By Amy Oprean For The State News Michigan police agencies reported a total of 1,323 arrests for drunken driving and another 825 alcohol-related arrests during the 2005 holiday season, nearly 300 more than the same period in 2004.
Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero will give his first State of the City address at 7 p.m. in the Dart Auditorium at Lansing Community College in Lansing. Bernero is expected to outline his plans to address the city's budget deficit.
Hotels in and around downtown Detroit are filling up as Super Bowl fans travel to the area for the weekend celebration.
East Lansing and university officials are thinking about throwing their own Final Four after-party, with hopes it could prevent celebrations from getting out of control should the MSU men's basketball team make a run in the NCAA tournament this April. But the key questions remain unanswered — including what to do, where to do it and whether the city and university even want to do it. "I don't think anybody is dead set for or against this," said East Lansing City Manager Ted Staton. The independent commission that reviewed last April's disturbances — which followed the basketball team's Final Four loss — recommended the city and university consider holding an approved event. But the biggest question for any event, officials say, is finding out if students will come. MSU researchers hope to answer that question through an online survey which could be e-mailed to a random sample of about 1,800 undergraduates as early as today. The survey will ask students what kind of an event they'd be interested in attending, and where they would want such an event to be located. A special celebratory events committee, with representatives from both MSU and the city, will discuss and possibly plan an event, eventually recommending a course of action to the East Lansing City Council.
Fifteen-year-old Brittany Bergquist and her younger brother Robbie, 14, have collected more than 200,000 cell phones since 2004. With an effort that started with a car wash in their hometown in Massachusetts, "Cell Phones for Soldiers" has grown to become a nationwide effort. Cell phones are collected at different businesses and recycled for their parts, or sometimes resold.
Williamston — Congressman Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, spoke and fielded questions on Friday at a local cafe about prescription drugs, the war in Iraq, torture, trash imports and campaign finance reform. About 50 people gathered at Cappuccino Expresso Cafe to meet Rogers as part of a series of events held last week outlining his principles and agenda for House Republicans. He is seeking to become majority whip, the third-ranking position in the Republican caucus. Rogers represents the 8th district, which includes Clinton, Ingham and Livingston counties and part of Shiawassee and Oakland counties.
By Katherine LaLonde Special for The State News With 169 candles on its cake this year, the state of Michigan has a lot of history to look back on.
The jury for the trial of Claude McCollum, a Lansing man charged with the murder and rape of Lansing Community College Professor Carolyn Kronenberg last year, was selected Friday at the Ingham County Circuit Court in Lansing. It took a full day at court to select 14 jurors from a pool of about 70 people.
Bringing in a 10-point buck or a 10-pound salmon could cost more for Michigan hunters and fishers. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources, or DNR, is considering a change in hunting and fishing license fees to offset a structural deficit, said Chief of Staff Dennis Fox. "A large portion of the programs are funded through hunting and fishing licenses, so (increased revenue) would continue those programs," Fox said. Programs such as law enforcement, research and other programs in the fisheries and wildlife divisions would be affected by additional funding from a license increase. A work group comprised of representatives from various outdoors and conservation associations has been formed as a way to make recommendations.
A pilot Michigan antibiotic disposal program started this week intends to slow down possible antibiotic resistance in consumers. The program, Antibiotic Roundup, is a statewide public health initiative aimed to educate consumers about proper antibiotic use.
Help may be on the way for the millions of overweight and obese Americans. In an 11-3 vote, a Food and Drug Administration health advisory committee recommended the approval of an over-the-counter weight loss pill. The FDA generally follows the outside panel committee recommendations. The pill, orlistat, would be the only FDA-approved weight loss medication available without a prescription.
Congressman Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, will speak in Williamston Friday as part of a series of speeches this week outlining his agenda for the Republican House members. Rogers is outlining his principles as part of his bid to become the new majority whip, the third ranking position in the Republican caucus. The speech will focus on the institutionalization of poverty and his vision to reform the system based on Republican values. Rogers will take questions from the audience after the speech, at 10 a.m.
A new law prohibits a person from annoying or harassing someone else online without disclosing their identity. The law, intended to prevent cyberstalking, is causing some to worry it will limit freedom of speech online because of its vague wording and difficulty of enforcement. The law extends an existing telephone harassment law and is part of the Violence Against Women Act.
The chaos and celebrations accompanying Super Bowl XL in Detroit are attracting Lansing cab and limousine companies to the heart of the action. The game is Feb.
Do you think drinking games create a noise problem in East Lansing? "What accompanies drinking games is loud music.
By Trey Scroggin Special for The State News Emerging out of the former Soviet Union, Moldova, a small country located northeast of Romania, has had a rough time as a republic.
Michigan Supreme Court Justice Michael Cavanagh of East Lansing announced Tuesday that he's running for a fourth term in 2007. Cavanagh, 65, has been on the court since 1983 and is the longest-serving justice currently on the court. "I still have the energy," Cavanagh said, adding that he's a "young 65." This is the last time he will be able to run for re-election because people cannot seek a judicial position past the age of 70.
A proposal which would guarantee yearly funding increases equal to inflation for all public schools, including community colleges and Michigan's public universities, has received significant support from voters across the state. The K-16 Coalition for Michigan's Future has collected about 300,000 signatures supporting its proposal, according to the group's spokesman Ken MacGregor. The number of signatures required for a proposal to appear on the November ballot as a ballot initiative is 254,206.
Liberty Tax Service offices in the Lansing area canceled last Saturday's event to collect old cell phones due to bad weather conditions. The company will trade in the donated cell phones for cash, which will pay for 60-minute calling cards for soldiers in Iraq.
Local police and FBI agents are investigating to see if the man who robbed an Okemos bank Friday is the "Michael Moore bandit." An armed man drove away in a gray 1990s BMW after robbing National City Bank, 2260 Jolly Oak Road, at about 1 p.m.