Detroit school goes remote, rap video leads police to shooting suspect, Beaumont suspends 370 workers

FRIDAY NEWS HIT - After a mostly successful season of schooling amid the pandemic's second autumn, a Detroit school has suspended in-person learning following reports of "multiple" coronavirus cases among students and staff.

Bates Academy on the city's west side will commence remote learning until Nov. 1. A statement from the district said concerns from staff and families had pushed officials to turn to virtual learning for the next week.

COVID-19 cases in Michigan are growing largely among children and teenagers due to their proximity among groups and because students 11 and younger are not yet eligible for a vaccine. 

The health department reported 101 new COVID-19 outbreaks at schools last week, adding to the 319 ongoing outbreaks already being tracked. 

In total, more than 3,800 students and staff have been affected by the outbreaks. 

Wayne County is among several of Michigan's most populated with a mask mandate in place in school districts. 

"Due to concerns raised by staff and families regarding multiple positive cases at Bates Academy, including the principal being positive, in-person learning will be suspended until Monday, November 1," read a statement from the Detroit Public Schools Community District.

Virtual learning has grown to complicate both the learning process in school and the order at home, where parents have needed to adjust work schedules to accommodate for children being at home. 

Rap video leads police to shooting suspect

Law enforcement investigating a Pontiac man's involvement in a number of shootings say a music video he appeared in showed guns and ammunition magazines that were used during a recent incident near an area restaurant.

Roy Gill, who works at Elam Brothers restaurant said he heard seven gunshots when he was working earlier in September, later discovering bullet holes in his truck. The back window had been shattered and the passenger side was broken out, costing $800 in damages. Another employee's truck was also damaged.

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office says that Tylique Campbell was among the suspects involved in the shooting. They managed to connect the dots when a rap video featuring Cambell was uploaded to YouTube around the same time as the September shooting. But firearms and rounds found at the scene of the shooting, as well as a backpack were all strikingly similar to the one seen in the music video.

The men were taken into custody before later being released. The sheriff's office is working with the Oakland County prosecutor on relevant charges. Police are still looking for Campbell, who is currently on probation for making bomb threats. 

Beaumont suspends 370 unvaccinated employees

Michigan's largest health care provider suspended 1 percent of its workers after they failed to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Beaumont Health had set an Oct. 18 deadline. Crain's Detroit Business says the 370 employees now have until Nov. 16 to get a shot or they will be fired.

Spokesman Mark Geary says Beaumont hopes they decide to get the vaccine and return to work. An additional 70 employees resigned. At Henry Ford Health System, 400 refused to get the vaccine by an October deadline and lost their jobs.

The vaccination mandate was based on the rapid spread of the new Delta variant among unvaccinated people along with its highly contagious nature, according to the release. In late July the health system said it will not be required until the Food and Drug Administration formally approved one or more of the vaccines. In August the Pfizer vaccine received approval.

Anyone who works in a Beaumont facility, including employees, volunteers, and providers who practice or work at Beaumont facilities, will be required to get the vaccine. 

Mental health crisis among young people forming

Some of the country's top doctors and experts in child psychology say the pandemic's prolonging effects are triggering alarming behavior trends among kids, causing heightened reports of anxiety, depression, and angst. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry declared a national emergency as a result.

"There will be an uptick in some kids acting out not because there’s a bunch of bad kids right now but because they’re reacting to something that’s going on in our society," said Dr. David Connell, a clinical psychologist in Northville. "My experience with it is there’s more angst, there’s more anxiety, more depression because everything is topsy-turvy everything‘s uncertain."

Children unable to handle stress well are seeing more than usual as parents become sick or lose their jobs, creating problems at home. Mike Kelly, a juvenile law attorney, says he gets five calls a week from parents across Michigan whose kids are facing suspension or expulsion. Pre-pandemic he says he only got one or two a month. 

"Just like they added an exception in their policies for the Covid protocols for wearing masks and spacing and things like that, they should look at their disciplinary practices to - and maybe -  instead of just having the seven factors, they use to consider the disciplinary action," he said. "They should be adding the context of was this a student affected by Covid did they have a disability pre-COVID-19."

Michigan man arrested on 68-count arrant after child sexual assault in Kentucky

A man from northern Michigan was arrested Thursday morning after a child was sexually assaulted multiple times in Kentucky.

Police said the 70-year-old Houghton Lake man had a 68-count warrant out for his arrest.

Michigan State Police were contacted by Mississippi authorities in June about a child that had been sexually assaulted over several years. Police said the child now lives in Mississippi but the assaults happened in Kentucky, where the suspect used to live.

A collaborative effort between Michigan police, Kentucky police, and Mississippi police led to the arrest of the man. He is awaiting extradition to Kentucky.

What else we're watching

1. It's not just Hamtramck - an action lead level exceedance at Manchester schools in Washtenaw County has prompted the health department to offer free lead testing to children and pregnant women Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
2. High winds traveling over the Great Lakes push M/V Calumet off course and forced it aground in the Saginaw River, the U.S. Coast Guard said Friday. It's carrying approximately 19,000 metric tons of limestone and 96,000 gallons of diesel fuel. 
3. One person was killed and two others were injured after a crash in Monroe County in Bedford Township Thursday evening. A driver traveling at excessive speeds collided with another vehicle. While witnesses stopped to assist, a pedestrian was struck by an unknown vehicle, before it fled. 
4. A virtual townhall in Troy will feature officials from FEMA and the Disability Network in Oakland and Macomb County, providing information for individuals impacted by the late June storms and flooding.
5. Local expos in Metro Detroit are offering free health screenings to seniors at the Troy Community Center Friday and the Palazzo Grand Banquet Center in Shelby Township on Monday. 

Live on FOX 2

Daily Forecast

October temperatures will feel a bit more normal Friday and this weekend as conditions take a turn for the cooler with highs in the 50s and a mixture of clouds and sun. Rain won't be a factor in the forecast until Sunday night. 

National Story Headline

Actor Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun on the movie set of "Rust" in New Mexico, killing the cinematographer and wounding the director, authorities said. Officials are now investigating what happened.

Halyna Hutchins, cinematographer on the movie "Rust," and director Joel Souza were shot Thursday afternoon on the rustic film set in the desert on the southern outskirts of Santa Fe, Santa Fe County Sheriff’s officials said.

A spokesperson for Baldwin said there was an accident on the set involving the misfire of a prop gun with blanks, though a charge without a metal projectile is unlikely to kill at a moderate distance. Sheriff’s spokesman Juan Rios said detectives were investigating how and what type of projectile was discharged.