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The top stories to know about
Vigil and community reflection held after Grand Blanc Township church tragedy
A vigil and community reflection event took place Tuesday night in Grand Blanc Township following the deadly mass shooting and fire at a church last month.
The event was held at Don Bachelor Field at Grand Blanc High School.
On Sept. 28, a gunman crashed his truck through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc Township. He then opened fire and set the church on fire, killing four people and injuring 10 more. The shooter was also killed by police.
The vigil provided a cathartic moment as people came from all around to be together and share in the vision of "better together. There was strong emotion at the vigil and a focus on the insanity of the shooting.
“It was such a tragedy and so many people were affected. It was so real because it as a half mile from my house. Usually, I can just say ‘well it’s far away. It doesn’t affect me.’ But the reality is it does affect me, and this violence is just, it’s just got to stop,” said Marjorie Gerber, who lives in Grand Blanc.
Some called for change.
“You know, something’s got to be done. I mean, automatic weapons and all this stuff’s out there and I know our politicians are out there debating that every day. But who needs an AK-47 to go deer hunting? Give me a break,” Grand Blanc resident Ronald Duke said.
The event was a place for the community to grieve and heal together.
“We’re just very proud of our community. We know that mental illness is a problem and we know that this person probably would not have done such a horrendous act if he had not had mental illness. And so, we just pray for the whole community. We pray for his family and we’re here for the victims,” said Barb Swift, who lives in Grand Blanc Township.
Ann Arbor requires sobriety test for nighttime scooter rides after deadly crashes
Ann Arbor is cracking down on impaired people riding electric scooters while under the influence. City Council recently voted to require the Spin scooter company to include a sobriety test for nighttime riders when they renewed the company's contract.
Scary scooter stories might be a dime a dozen in Ann Arbor. Eva Millwood, who works in Ann Arbor, described the craziest thing she's seen with someone riding those scooters.
"My friend ran into a wall on those once. Yeah, a brick wall," Millwood said.
Oforitsenere Bodunrin, a University of Michigan freshman, said she's "almost been hit by them like multiple times."
When asked for a thumbs up or thumbs down on the new requirement, a group of three young women all gave it a thumbs up. Amber Turner said, "You should not be operating anything while under the influence of something."
However, questions remain about enforcement of the new sobriety requirement. When we checked the Spin app on Tuesday, I could not find the sobriety test before getting on a scooter.
But that does not mean it's a free-for-all when you take a Spin for a spin. Ann Arbor Police Department says if officers observe or suspect an impaired rider, they treat them the same as they would if someone were behind the wheel drunk. Though it's rare, police have made OWI arrests involving riders on scooters.
Sarantou asked, "Have you ever seen anybody crash on any of these things? Late at night, probably intoxicated."
The unanimous decision comes after a 21-year-old was severely injured in a scooter crash in September of last year, and another 21-year-old was killed at a city intersection in a crash in 2023. Police and toxicology reports say the young man who died was under the influence.
Detroit boy died with broken bones, scars and pneumonia. CPS 'rejected' prior complaints.
A 9-year-old Detroit boy who prosecutors say died from untreated pneumonia also had multiple broken bones at the time of his death, scars all over his body and was likely in agonizing pain.
“There were a lot of marks from pretty much head to toe, all over his body, front to back,” said Detroit Police officer Ibn-Ameera Shakoor, who viewed Roserio’s body at the hospital. “There was bruising on the back of his head, almost like bedsores. And on his backside.”
Just hours earlier, Roserio’s stepparents told police that he had been sick.
“They said Owen was doing a lot of coughing,” Shakoor said. “They tried to put him in the shower for the steam to get into his system, but he had passed out so they called EMS.”
But police and prosecutors argue this case was much more than just a simple illness.
Rather, they allege that Roserio was tortured, abused and ultimately killed by his stepparents—both licensed foster parents—and that warnings to Children’s Protective Services went unheeded.
Martha Waller, the mother of defendant Sherman Jones, took the stand Tuesday and acknowledged calling CPS in June of 2023 over concerns about Roserio.
She said she asked for a welfare check after growing concerned that she had not seen the boy in some time.
According to a warrant request submitted by Detroit Police, Waller told officers that during a visit in 2023, “she observed both of Owen's hands were burnt. She asked her son about the burns, and he told her Owen burnt his hands when he pulled oatmeal out of the microwave. She said prior to her husband passing 2023, she saw bruising on Owen's back. She said almost every time she saw Owen, he had marks on his face."
But on the stand Tuesday, Waller’s testimony was more subdued.
“You had seen some marks on his face, is that correct?” asked defense attorney Adam Clements, representing Sherman Jones.
“Yes, some marks,” Waller said.
“Were the marks of a condition that you felt that they were alarming to you?” Clements asked.
“No,” Waller said.
Asked Clements: “In your experience raising children, is it abnormal for little boys to have marks or scrapes on their face?” Waller replied: “No.”
According to Detroit Police, Waller’s call to CPS was one of two instances where the agency was alerted that Roserio could be in harm’s way.
According to the warrant request submitted in the case, DPD wrote that “Child Protective Services has recorded that on June 13, 2023, the victim had bruises on his body. On June 18, 2023, the victim had a suspected burn on his hand, was malnourished, underweight and hungry. CPS rejected both complaints and had no Law Enforcement referral."
A spokesperson for CPS could not be immediately reached for comment Tuesday.
Also taking the stand was Dr. Bradley Norat from Children’s Hospital, an expert witness in child abuse pediatrics.He examined Owen’s body, finding evidence of a fractured arm, hand and rib.
“The injuries that we see are highly concerning for non-accidental trauma,” Norat said.
During his testimony, Norat viewed images of x-rays of broken bones found throughout Roserio’s body.
He said the 9-year-old suffered from an avulsion fracture where “bone was torn off his upper arm bone.”
Dr. Norat said Owen had scars visible all over his body and that he suffered from pneumonia at the time that he died.
“Would he have been able to cough without pain?” asked Assistant Wayne County Prosecutor Brittany Johnson.
“Rib fractures are very painful. So coughing, taking a deep breath, those are things that would be difficult for him,” Dr. Norat said.
Norat testified that Roserio would have likely lived had he been given treatment for his pneumonia weeks earlier.
Testimony Tuesday concluded before Dr. Norat could be cross-examined. The preliminary exam is set to continue Wednesday.
