Michigan plan would tax retirees up to age 67
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has announced a new plan to tax retirees' income up to age 67. The Republican governor had wanted to tax all retirement income the same as normal income in a bid to raise $900 million to help pay for a business tax cut, but many lawmakers balked after seniors made their displeasure clear. Snyder has been working to reach a compromise with top Republican lawmakers, and they joined him at his announcement Tuesday. Michigan currently exempts all Social Security and public pension benefits from income taxes, as well as up to $45,120 a year for a single return and $90,240 on a joint return in private retirement and pension benefits, a cap that increases annually with inflation. Democrats have opposed the increases.
MICHIGAN PROTESTS
Large protest set Wednesday for Michigan Capitol
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Thousands of Michigan teachers, public employees and others are preparing to protest at the state Capitol. Organizers say a rally scheduled for Wednesday could be the biggest yet for the state's current budget cycle. It's expected to include groups represented by the Michigan AFL-CIO, teachers unions and other associations. Michigan AFL-CIO President Mark Gaffney says Republican Gov. Rick Snyder and lawmakers are moving ahead too quickly with budget plans. Unions are upset about proposals they say would undermine collective bargaining rights. Other groups are upset about proposed cuts to education funding and other programs. Snyder has said the protests are part of the democratic process.
MOTHER-SON SLAIN
Trial starts for man in killing of fiancée, son, 3
CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - A trial has begun for a Detroit-area man accused of killing his fiancée and her 3-year-old son and wounding two other people while drunk. Macomb County Circuit Judge Richard Caretti seated a jury Tuesday for the first-degree murder trial of 38-year-old Todd M. Pink of Clinton Township. Opening statements are expected Wednesday. He's accused of fatally shooting 35-year-old Carrie Seils and fatally stabbing her son Skyler last May. Pink also is accused of stabbing Seils' then-5-year-old daughter Heavyn and shooting 41-year-old James Pagano. Prosecutors say Pink was drunk after attending the Downtown Hoedown in Detroit with Seils and her children.
FORD-STOLEN SECRETS
Ex-Ford engineer sent to prison in espionage case
DETROIT (AP) - An engineer who stole trade secrets from Ford Motor Co. has been sentenced to almost six years in prison. Xiang Dong Yu is also known as Mike Yu. He admits copying thousands of documents with details on engine transmission systems and electrical power supply before leaving to work for a Chinese competitor in 2008. Yu was sentenced Tuesday to 70 months in prison and will be deported to China after his release. He worked at Ford for 10 years and quit the company by sending an e-mail from China in January 2007. A year earlier, Ford received a tip from Yu's ex-girlfriend that he'd provided Ford documents to potential employers. The company has described the information as the "DNA" found in all Ford vehicles.
EX-OFFICIAL-CHILD SOLICITATION
Ex-senator, liquor official faces child sex case
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Former state senator and Michigan Liquor Commission chairman Philip Arthurhultz is facing multiple child sex charges. The 63-year-old Lansing resident was charged Tuesday with conspiracy to entice a minor girl for immoral purposes, gross indecency between males, tampering with a witness and accosting children. He was jailed with a $150,000 bond. Ingham County Prosecutor Stuart Dunnings III says Lansing police and the state police Internet Crimes Unit investigated. He says Arthurhultz has a status conference in district court Monday and a preliminary hearing April 21. A message seeking comment was left at Arthurhultz's office after business hours Tuesday. The Republican was in the Senate from 1979-94, representing Whitehall in Muskegon County. He was majority floor leader. He served on the Liquor Control Commission in 1995-98.
BANK EMBEZZLEMENT
Key Bank employee charged with stealing $704,000
CHELSEA, Mich. (AP) - A Washtenaw County woman has been charged with embezzling $704,000 from Key Bank over a 10-year period. The charge against Dianna DeLawter of Manchester was filed Tuesday in federal court in Detroit. It was filed as a criminal "information," which is negotiated between parties. Defense attorney David Goldstein (GOLD'-styne) says a guilty plea is likely. The 49-year-old DeLawter worked at a Key Bank branch in Chelsea. The court document says the embezzlement began in May 2001. Bank spokesman Dan Davis says it was uncovered through internal monitoring. Asked why the money was taken, Goldstein would only say that DeLawter had problems.
REGULATOR QUITS
Granholm holdover Ross leaving Snyder administration
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - A holdover from the administration of former Gov. Jennifer Granholm is stepping down this week. Ken Ross says he's resigning effective Friday as commissioner of the state Office of Finance and Insurance Regulation. Democrat Granholm appointed Ross in 2008. He's continued as commissioner under Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, who took office in January. Before being appointed commissioner, Ross served as deputy commissioner and as the office's chief of staff. Earlier, he was a vice president of the Michigan Credit Union League and an assistant state attorney general.
MAN CHARGED-YOUTUBE VIDEO
Jail for man who made sexy YouTube video with kids
MUSKEGON, Mich. (AP) - A 21-year-old man who spliced together a video that made it look as if he were singing sexually oriented lyrics to first-graders has been sentenced to 60 days in jail. Muskegon County Circuit Judge William Marietti sentenced Evan Emory of Fruitport on Tuesday. The judge also gave Emory two years' probation and ordered him to perform 200 hours of community service. The sentence came after Emory pleaded guilty in a plea deal. He'd been facing up to 20 years in prison on a charge of manufacturing child abusive material. Emory made a sexually themed YouTube video that used material he shot Jan. 12 in a class at Ravenna's Beechnau Elementary School. He later apologized to parents and acknowledged using bad judgment.
