Michigan News

KALAMAZOO, Michigan (AP) — The first trucks carrying a COVID-19 vaccine for widespread use in the United States have pulled out of a Michigan manufacturing plant. The shipments Sunday morning set in motion the biggest vaccination effort in American history. The shots that are critical to stopping the nation's coronavirus outbreak are destined to reach states a day later. Initial doses of the Pfizer vaccine will likely be limited to health workers and nursing home residents.

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department said Friday it’s on the side of Michigan faith-based schools that are challenging Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s ban on in-person classes in high schools. The Civil Rights Division filed an argument in favor of three Catholic high schools and the Michigan Association of Non-Public Schools. A federal judge in Kalamazoo will hear arguments Monday. The government says schools and families have a constitutional right to practice their religion through in-person instruction.

Berrien County health officials offered their weekly update on the COVID-19 pandemic on Dec. 11.

County Health Officer Nicki Britten says the county is seeing an average of 120 new cases per day, or 10 times more daily cases than at the end of September. But, she said new cases and hospitalizations are beginning to slow, a trend she called “encouraging.”

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan expects to receive about 257,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines initially if the federal government authorizes them for emergency use this month, enough to immunize roughly 128,000 residents. Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the state's chief medical executive, says the priority remains frontline health care workers and people living and working in long-term care facilities such as nursing homes. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced a commission to raise awareness on the safety and effectiveness of coronavirus vaccines that get the green light.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan is close to clarifying that veterinarians can consult with pet owners on the use of products derived from marijuana or hemp to help animals’ health. The state Senate gave final, unanimous approval to authorizing legislation Thursday. Supporters say the bill would let veterinarians become a trusted source of information regarding a marketplace with competing and confusing claims. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is expected to sign the legislation. The sponsor, Rep.

At the time of the flag lowering order by Gov. Whitmer, the coronavirus has killed 10,138 people in Michigan.   

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Michigan has canceled its annual rivalry game at Ohio State because of the COVID-19 outbreak within the Wolverines football program. Michigan says the decision was made after discussions with medical professionals, athletic department staff, athletic trainers and doctors. The Buckeyes played through what coach Ryan Day called a mini outbreak on Saturday in a 52-12 win at Michigan State after he was relegated to watching the game from home. Day is among the coaches and players in the program that tested positive for the coronavirus.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Nonpublic schools are suing after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration extended a coronavirus order that prevents in-person instruction at Michigan high schools, saying it violates the First Amendment right to practice religion. The federal lawsuit, filed in Michigan’s Western District, was brought by a group representing more than 400 nonpublic schools across the state, as well as three Catholic high schools and 11 parents. The state health department lengthened the restriction by 12 days, through Dec. 20. It took effect Nov.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan House has canceled its voting session scheduled for Tuesday following an announcement that Rudy Giuliani tested positive for the coronavirus just days after he testified before lawmakers in Lansing without wearing a mask. President Donald Trump’s personal attorney spoke for hours Wednesday before a Republican-led committee investigating alleged election irregularities. House Speaker Lee Chatfield says multiple representatives have requested time to receive results from recent COVID-19 tests before returning to session out of an abundance of caution.

NEW:  Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer just announced that the Dept. of Health and Human Services is extending the "pause" in the state for a dozen more days on certain activities to limit the spread of COVID-19. The partial shutdown impacts some businesses and schools. Whitmer says the extended order, due to end Dec. 20, will enable the state health department to assess how Thanksgiving travel affected the spread of COVID-19. In-person instruction at high schools, dine-in eating at restaurants and organized sports will continue to be prohibited. Entertainment venues such as movie theaters and bowling alleys will remain closed. The administration has identified key metrics it will use to determine whether to slowly reopen after Dec. 20, and its priority will be reopening high schools.

The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Admin. (MIOSHA) says it inspected and issued COVID-19 citations to nine Michigan businesses, including one in Berrien County. MIOSHA says the businesses were cited for serious violations for failing to protect workers and take safety precautions. 

In Berrien County the following business was cited: 

HOLLAND, Mich. (AP) — The senior pastor of a church in western Michigan has encouraged his congregation to catch the coronavirus to “get it over with” and calling it “all good.” The Holland Sentinel reports that Bart Spencer made the statements during a Nov. 14 sermon at Lighthouse Baptist Church in Holland. The sermon was posted on the church's website and shared on Facebook. Spencer later told the newspaper that he and several members of his family contracted the virus and have recovered. As of Thursday, 380,343 virus cases have been confirmed in Michigan.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A Republican lawmaker is pressing Michigan to lift an order closing all high schools to in-person instruction due to the coronavirus, saying the decision should be left at the local level. In a hearing Thursday, Sen. Kim LaSata told Robert Gordon, director of Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services, to let parents and schools decide about face-to-face classes. High schools and colleges can only provide virtual classes under the order.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer is urging Michigan Republican activists to pressure, even threaten, the GOP-controlled Legislature to award the state’s 16 electoral votes to Trump despite Democrat Joe Biden’s 154,000-vote victory. Rudy Giuliani made baseless claims of “massive fraud, all over the country,” before he was expected to testify before a Republican-led legislative committee Wednesday night. Attorney General William Barr has declared the U.S.

The Michigan Liquor Control Commission (MLCC) has issued emergency suspensions of the liquor license and permit held by the Silver Beach Hotel in St. Joseph for alleged multiple violations of the current Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Emergency Order.

The violations of the order include allowing non-residential, in-person gatherings; providing in-person dining; failure to require face coverings for staff and patrons; and failure to prohibit patrons from congregating.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s acting unemployment director has told lawmakers that her office is trying to strike a balance between quickly paying benefits to jobless workers and preventing fraud. Liza Estlund Olson said Wednesday that  impostor claims are rampant in a backlog of approximately 90,000 cases. Olson took over the Unemployment Insurance Agency less than a month ago after the previous chief, Steve Gray, fell out of favor with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

DETROIT (AP) — A judge has refused to block Michigan’s ban on indoor dining during a surge in coronavirus cases. Federal judge Paul Maloney says a “plausible explanation” for the state order exists: People can’t eat or drink without removing their mask, a step that could spread the virus. Maloney turned down a request for an injunction with a week left in the three-week indoor dining ban. Restaurants fear that the steady loss of customers could put them out of business. They also fear a possible extension of the order by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration.

JACKSON, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan couple who was married for nearly 50 years died seconds apart from the coronavirus. The couple died on Nov. 24 in Henry Ford Allegiance Hospital in Jackson. Leslie and Patricia McWaters spent a week at the hospital after getting sick with COVID-19. Their daughter said her mother visited a doctor two weeks ago after “feeling poorly," and when she went back home, her dad ended up getting it. They both got progressively sicker and on Nov. 17 took an ambulance to the hospital. Leslie and Patricia were cremated, and a future service is being planned.

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Undergraduates at Michigan State University will be required to live on campus a second year as part of efforts to help students toward graduating. The school says a 2-year living requirement waived since the 1980s will be reinstated next fall. An analysis by Michigan State’s Office of Institutional Research shows undergraduates who live on the East Lansing campus their first two years have graduation rates about 2.5 percentage points higher than those who live on campus only their first year.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer acknowledged Tuesday that it’s becoming more difficult to get people to follow mask, distance, and gathering guidelines to slow the spread of COVID-19. That’s as her top health advisor warned that a new wave of infections is likely following Thanksgiving gatherings.

PORTER TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Authorities are investigating a house fire that killed two people in southwestern Michigan over the weekend. In a Sunday statement, he Cass County Sheriff's Department identified the two who died in the Porter Township fire on Saturday as 69-year-old Patricia Cloud and 37-year-old Brandon Cloud.  The statement said the two were unable to escape from the home and died of injuries from the fire. It did not include a possible cause of the fire.  The Porter Fire Department was called to the location near the state border with Indiana at just after 5 p.m.

The St. Joseph Co. Prosecutor's Office has released information regarding skeletal remains found over the weekend in a creek bed in the North Liberty area.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — State leaders are asking Michigan residents to beat lines and avoid crowds by shopping at local small businesses on Black Friday. The Michigan Economic Development Corp. is encouraging shopping, eating and traveling locally through a new “Support Local” campaign in order to make sure small businesses make it through the winter. One in five jobs in Michigan are in the retail industry, according to the Michigan Retailers Association. It says that in 2017, Michigan residents spent $18.5 billion on out-of-state retailers.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel says her office is investigating threats against election officials in Wayne County, where two Republicans voted against certifying the results last week before reversing course.

The Michigan Board of State Canvassers has voted to certify the results of the November 3rd election. The vote was 3 in favor and one abstention. One Republican joined both Democrats for a bipartisan majority, Certification formally awards Michigan's 16 electoral votes to President-elect Joe Biden. Allies of Pres. Trump and losing GOP Senate candidate John James had urged the panel to delay voting for two weeks to audit votes in heavily Democratic Wayne County, home to Detroit.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield says President Donald Trump didn't ask the state's Republican lawmakers to “break the law” or “interfere” with the election during a meeting at the White House. Chatfield was among several GOP legislators who met with Trump on Friday, amid Trump's longshot efforts to block Biden’s win. Chatfield's comments to Fox News about the highly unusual meeting came a day before canvassers plan to meet on whether to certify Joe Biden’s 154,000-vote victory. Michigan’s election agency has recommended that the Nov.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is trying to leverage the power of the Oval Office in an extraordinary attempt to block President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. But his pleas Friday to Michigan lawmakers to overturn the will of their constituents appear to have left them unswayed. Trump summoned a delegation of the battleground state’s Republican leadership in an apparent extension of his efforts to persuade judges and election officials in the state to set aside Biden’s 154,000-vote margin of victory and grant Trump the state’s electors.