Somber return to class for Oak Park students, Ann Arbor considers magic mushrooms, the Whitmer recall effort
MONDAY NEWS HIT - Grieving for a Friday night tragedy in the Oak Park School District will continue for students returning to class on Monday, mourning the loss of DeRell Blackmon and JaQai Garrett.
The two, described as popular, outgoing, and always putting smiles on the faces of other students, were killed in a single-car crash on Telegraph around 9 p.m. on Friday.
A third teen remains in critical condition following the wreck.
It happened in the 24000 block of Telegraph near 10 Mile and Southfield when a vehicle carrying six people lost control and flipped.
An investigation by police found the driver of the vehicle had been speeding through the intersection and crashed after losing control of the vehicle.
Even with a weekend of mourning, grief counselors plan to be on sight throughout the week to assist anyone struggling with the tragic loss.
Ann Arbor City Council pushes resolution to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms
Monday's agenda in Ann Arbor will have a curious resolution that city council members plan to address during a meeting between representatives.
Two city council members have introduced plans to decriminalize psychedelic drugs like magic mushrooms.
It would be among the first steps a municipality would take to offering the hallucinogenic drug a place in the medicinal practice.
If the resolution is approved by six of the 11 council members, it would result in the investigation and arrest of people growing and transporting the drug to be the police department's lowest priority.
The effort has been undertaken by Decriminalize Nature Ann Arbor, or DNA2.
Activists pushing for end to emergency powers, Whitmer recall
It would require more than a million signatures for the state to consider a recall of Michigan's governor. Jim Makowski, leader of Guarding Against Government Excess believes they're up to the task.
"We've decided that Gov. Whitmer has gone too far and her actions throughout the pandemic have endangered Michiganders and we've decided we've had to take action," said Makowski.
While several challenges to Whitmer's authority have come in the form of lawsuits against her use of emergency powers, some believe a recall effort is necessary to oust the governor from her position.
GAGE plans on having volunteers at every poll site on election day to amass enough support to start the effort.
Woman found dead in Harper Woods backyard, boyfriend turns himself in
Harper Woods police received a call early Sunday morning after reports a dead woman with wounds in her chest and back was in her backyard.
Neighbors say the same person who made the call also turned himself in to police afterward; her boyfriend.
“When I heard about it this morning, I was so shocked because you never would have thought that someone would have done something like that,” said neighbor Pamela Kearse.
Everyone who knew the couple didn't believe there had been any problems between the two and never saw any problems.
“Always laughing and joking, like normal people, like family,” said neighbor Linda Barnes.
Former clerk and UofM law professor remembers Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Before he was a law professor, Sam Bagenstos was a young lawyer in 1997 where he took up a clerkship with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
She was an incredibly hardworking and caring boss who treated him like family, Bagenstos recalls.
"When I married another one of her former clerks, she thought that was the greatest thing ever," the professor said over zoom. "She always treated our children as if they were adjunct grandchildren, grand clerks she called them."
From there, the memories spilled out, from both personal experiences to professional contexts.
"When she would walk on to the bench, she would be beaming and that always made me feel good," he said. "Then, of course as soon as the argument started, she launched in with these incredibly incisive questions, cutting right to the point."
The justice will leave a lasting legacy on him, his colleagues, and the legal landscape Bagenstos said.
Daily Forecast
Expect a warmer week over the next five days with 70s and 80s on the way. Monday will reach a high of 71 with clear skies.
Biden to GOP senators: Don't jam through nominee to replace late Justice Ginsburg
Joe Biden on Sunday slammed President Donald Trump and leading Senate Republicans for trying to jam through a replacement for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and urged more senators to stand with a pair of GOP colleagues who oppose the election-season rush.
The extraordinary televised plea from the Democratic presidential candidate to Republican senators reflected the ferocious maneuvering that has followed Ginsburg's death at 87 on Friday. Her passing upended a campaign that had, until then, focused on Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the nation's economic collapse and racial unrest that has stoked protests in U.S. cities.
Trump has said he intends within days to name a woman to succeed the liberal icon, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was moving toward the first hearings this week.
Just hours before Biden spoke, a second Republican senator, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, joined Sen. Susan Collins of Maine in opposing efforts to fill Ginsburg's seat before the next president is elected.