Romance author Nora Roberts helps save MI library defunded over LGBTQ books
by Ron French (Bridge Michigan) It could make a great final chapter of a book: A doomed library is saved by the small checks of book lovers, and one huge donation from an internationally known author whose novels are among the most popular on the library’s shelves. Romance novelist Nora Roberts donated $50,000 last week to […]
735K signed abortion-rights petition. How word spaces may keep it off ballot
by Jonathan Oosting and Yue Stella Yu LANSING — An abortion rights petition signed by more than 735,000 Michigan voters could be kept off the Nov. 8 ballot because of what opponents say are “60 missing spaces between what were formerly words.” Welcome to the great “kerning” debate of 2022, the biggest fight over a seemingly […]
Michigan’s residential real estate market cooling after record extremes
by Paula Gardner (Bridge Michigan) After three summers of robust traffic, there has been a 14-percent decline in Michigan home showings through mid-August, according to Real Estate One, the state’s largest residential brokerage. Company president and broker Dan Elsea said the dip in showings among potential buyers — 40 percent of whom will list their homes on […]
Court: Past crash survivors not subject to Michigan auto no-fault limits
by Lauren Gibbons and Robin Erb (Bridge Michigan) Limits on health care reimbursements for accident victims in the 2019 Michigan no-fault auto insurance reform law can’t be applied retroactively to past injuries, a Michigan appeals court ruled Thursday. The decision, if upheld, is a major win for thousands of people with severe and long-term injuries […]
Dixon, Hernandez ticket prevails in contentious Michigan GOP convention
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge Michigan) LANSING — Michigan Republican gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon is heading toward the November election with her preferred running mate: Former state Rep. Shane Hernandez. Hernandez prevailed Saturday in a contested, raucous, and at times chaotic Michigan Republican Party convention in Lansing, where delegates voted to make him the party’s nominee […]
Men convicted in Whitmer kidnapping trial to be sentenced in December
by Yue Stella Yu (Bridge Michigan) LANSING — Two men convicted this week of plotting to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will be sentenced in December, a federal court in Grand Rapids announced Wednesday. Adam Fox of Potterville, Michigan, and Barry Croft, of Delaware, face up to life in prison after a jury Tuesday found them […]
MI community colleges ditching remedial courses to keep students enrolled
by Ron French (Bridge Michigan) Abby Melson admits she wasn’t the best student in high school. She scraped by with Ds in English in an online high school, which she attended from her home in Benton Harbor. Almost two years after graduating in 2020, Melson worked up the nerve to enroll at Lake Michigan College, […]
Biden student loan forgiveness plan: What it means for Michigan
by Isabel Lohman (Bridge Michigan) President Biden announced Wednesday that he would cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt for tens of millions of Americans. For low-income students receiving Pell Grants, that award will be doubled. Biden also extended a pandemic-related pause on student loan collections and interest through the end of the year. […]
Michigan gas prices fall for 10 straight weeks. How long can that last?
by Paula Gardner (Bridge Michigan) Michigan’s average gas price hit $3.88 per gallon last Wednesday, a three-cent decline over the past three days. The drop underscores a quiet but significant 10-week decline in gas prices since they hit a state record in June, though experts say the steady declines could end by Labor Day and […]
Judge issues preliminary injunction to block enforcement of abortion ban
by Lauren Gibbons (Bridge Michigan) County prosecutors won’t be able to enforce Michigan’s decades-old abortion ban while legal challenges continue, a judge ruled Friday. Oakland County Circuit Judge Jacob Cunningham granted a request from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s legal team and issued a preliminary injunction to block enforcement of Michigan’s 1931 ban on abortion. Cunningham said […]
