TRAIN HITS TEEN
Mich. teen survives being hit by freight train
SPRINGFIELD, Mich. (AP) - Calhoun County authorities say a 16-year-old listening to music on headphones survived being knocked down by a 105-car freight train he apparently didn't hear. Jesse Bauder of Springfield remained hospitalized Tuesday at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. The hospital isn't discussing his condition. Authorities say Bauder was walking on tracks in his hometown Monday when the train hit him from behind. Police tell the Battle Creek Enquirer the train engineer saw the boy about a quarter-mile ahead and began slowing while sounding the horn. Police say the train was traveling about 5 miles per hour when it hit Bauder. They say he was standing and talking when officers arrived. --- Information from: Battle Creek Enquirer, http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com
GOVERNOR'S RACE-ILITCH
Possible MI gov candidate Ilitch at White House
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - University of Michigan Regent Denise Ilitch has met with White House officials to explore a possible Democratic bid for Michigan governor. A White House official says that Ilitch, whose father owns the Detroit Red Wings and Tigers, met with staff there Tuesday, with President Barack Obama "stopping by the meeting." The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because of not being authorized to discuss the matter publicly. Denise Ilitch is a lawyer who owns Denise Ilitch Designs and Ambassador magazine. That combination of business and political experience could make her a good choice to replace Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Several Democrats are looking closely at the race now that presumptive Democratic front-runner Lt. Gov. John Cherry has withdrawn.
AIRPLANE DISTURBANCE-DETROIT
TSA: Unruly Northwest flight passengers questioned
ROMULUS, Mich. (AP) - The Transportation Security Administration says unruly passengers on a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit were interviewed by Customs and Border Protection officials after the plane landed. But the TSA says the passengers were released and no arrests were made. Delta Air Lines spokeswoman Susan Elliott says the crew of Northwest Flight 243 requested that authorities meet the plane Tuesday after it landed because four passengers didn't follow their instructions. She says nobody was injured but wouldn't describe what the passengers were doing. Tuesday's disturbance comes less than a week after a Nigerian man pleaded not guilty to trying to blow up a Northwest flight from Amsterdam as it was preparing to land in Detroit on Christmas.
TEENS KILLED-MICHIGAN
Trial set for drunk woman in 4 Mich. teens' death
MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. (AP) - A Michigan woman faces trial this spring on accusations she was driving drunk when she caused a crash that killed four Michigan teenagers. Macomb County Circuit Judge Donald G. Miller scheduled the second-degree murder trial of 47-year-old Frances Dingle of Mount Clemens for April 13. Authorities say she was drunk when she caused the March 16 crash in Roseville. Killed were Devon Spurlock, Erica Haudek, Jordan Michalak and Stephanie Currie. On Monday, Miller rejected a defense motion to exclude statements Dingle made from the trial. Defense lawyer Michael Dennis says it will be hard for Dingle to get a fair trial in the area and sought unsuccessfully to move the case elsewhere.
DOG HOUSE-MICHIGAN
Mich. man with 100 dogs pleads guilty in deal
DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) - A man who had hundreds of live and dead Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes in his Detroit-area home has pleaded guilty to an animal cruelty charge in a deal that keeps him out of prison. Fifty-six-year-old Kenneth Lang Jr. of Dearborn made the plea Tuesday in Wayne County Circuit Court. He had faced up to four years in prison. Under the deal, Lang gets five years' probation, may not own animals and must pay $3,000 restitution to the Animal Legal Defense Fund. In July, authorities found Lang was hoarding the dogs. They say some dead dogs in freezers in the home may have been killed with an injection. Defense lawyer James Schmier says his client needs treatment for an obsessive-compulsive disorder.
WOLF KILLINGS
Feds investigate wolf killings in 3 states
DULUTH, Minn. (AP) - Federal agents are investigating a recent rash of illegal wolf killings across northern Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Tuesday asked for the public's help in finding suspects in 16 wolf killings across the three states in November and December. Two wolves were killed in Minnesota, eight in Wisconsin and six in Michigan. Wolf populations have rebounded over the last 30 years, but the gray wolf remains under protection of the federal Endangered Species Act. The Fish and Wildlife Service is offering up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people who kill wolves. Wolf advocacy groups have added money to the rewards. --- Information from: Duluth News Tribune, http://www.duluthsuperior.com
SKI INSTRUCTOR DIES
Coroner: Mich. ski instructor suffocated in Colo.
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - Colorado authorities say a ski instructor found dead at the Steamboat resort suffocated in loose snow at the base of a tree. Routt County Coroner Rob Ryg released his findings Monday about 23-year-old Grace Lynn McNeil of Cedar, Mich., whose body was found Jan. 6. McNeil was an instructor at the Arapahoe Basin ski area and was skiing with friends at Steamboat. Ryg says McNeil was wearing a helmet but had no external injuries. He says she apparently lost control and fell into what's called a tree well, an area of quicksand-like snow at the base of an evergreen tree, and couldn't get out. --- Information from: Steamboat Pilot & Today, http://steamboatpilot.com/
DETROIT EX-MAYOR-RESTITUTION
Ex-Detroit mayor's restitution hearing resuming
DETROIT (AP) - Prosecutors are asking a judge to keep a closer eye on Kwame Kilpatrick's spending and to order the former Detroit mayor to pay $225,000 toward his restitution in a criminal case. Wayne County Circuit Judge David Groner was hearing closing arguments Tuesday in a dispute over how much Kilpatrick should pay monthly toward the $1 million owed to Detroit. Prosecutors say he didn't disclose all assets and financial help from friends and should repay the debt faster. His lawyer says Kilpatrick's monthly payments should be cut to $3,000 from $6,000 because of a drop in income. Groner says he'll rule Jan. 20. Kilpatrick quit in 2008 after pleading guilty in two criminal cases. He'd faced perjury and other charges for testimony in a whistle-blowers' trial.
