Here are 10 stories from the past week that had a big impact on Northern Michigan. Click the link in the headline below to read the full story.
1. The Devil Came to Michigan: The Bath School massacre
Almost 100 years ago an act was committed in Bath, Michigan, that was so violent it’s still the most deadly attack on a school in America to this day, claiming 46 lives. That act of violence was committed by a man named Andrew Kehoe, who wired the building with dynamite and set the timer to go off at 8:45 a.m. on May 18, the last real school day of the year. Our special video report has multiple parts, and viewer discretion is advised.
2. Missaukee Co. man gets 90 years for sexual exploitation of children and even babies
A Manton man was sentenced Tuesday to 1,080 months in prison – 90 years – for sexual exploitation of children, some as young as 3 days old, announced Mark Totten, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Michigan. If Nathan Gary Christensen, 45, of Manton, is ever granted parole, he would be required to spend the rest of his life on supervised release. “Mr. Christensen’s sexual abuse of innocent children is horrific,” Totten said. “This 90-year sentence does not begin to undo the harm he’s inflicted on our most vulnerable. No sexual predator who learns of Mr. Christensen’s fate should experience a moment of ease: we will find you and we will hold you accountable.”
3. State police solve Otsego Co. theft, then quickly solve 6 more cases
On Aug. 14, a trooper from the Michigan State Police Gaylord Post was sent to investigate a breaking-and-entering at a business in Bagley Township. The business reported the loss of nearly $6,000 of equipment and supplies stolen from a trailer on their property. The trooper searched the area and located another business with a camera facing the roadway near the venue. He contacted the asset protection officer and was able review footage and saw a man casing the business next door. Through the course of the investigation, troopers solved seven B&E’s and recovered $16,317 of stolen equipment and merchandise.
4. Cadillac man gets 3-10 years for concealing Laken Clark’s death
Kyle Dickinson was sentenced to a minimum of 40 months and a maximum of 120 months in prison, with 40 days credit. He had already pleaded guilty to one count of concealing the death of an individual. Wexford County Prosecutor Corey Wiggins said Kyle Dickinson admitted to concealing Clark’s death and as a habitual offender 3rd offense. Wiggins said his plea means Dickinson will not have to go to trial.
5. Twin brothers from Houghton Lake, 1 other charged in home-invasion crime spree
Twin brothers wanted in connection with a 2022 crime spree in Roscommon and Missaukee counties were captured in Florida and charged in Roscommon County, officials said Wednesday. In addition, a woman previously arrested was charged in the same case. A team of investigators from the Roscommon County Sheriff’s Office, the Denton Township Police Department, Michigan State Police and the Missaukee County Sheriff’s Office investigated multiple home invasions and breaking-and-entering complaints across Roscommon and Missaukee counties in 2022. Investigators executed a search warrant on Dec. 13, 2022, at a home in Roscommon Township. Investigators said they recovered more than 200 items of stolen property from numerous incidents in both counties.
6. Michigan Supreme Court declines to pick up two controversial cases out of Traverse City
The Michigan Supreme Court ruled Monday on two controversial cases impacting Traverse City, making the future clearer for the FishPass Project and how the city measures buildings. The state’s high court declined to take up both of the cases, after they moved up to the Michigan Court of Appeals. The tall building ruling allows the city to keep measuring the height of buildings the way they have been, without including rooftop structures.
7. Families in Maui get money hand-delivered thanks to the help of Northern Michigan and others
Sharina Husted lives in Cadillac but is from the island of Maui, where some of her family still resides. She recently traveled back to Maui to help those affected by the devastating fires. Sharina said thanks to people in Northern Michigan who are donating, Grace Bible Church Maui is able to provide people with resources to continue working to rebuild. “We were able to help a carpenter who lost everything in the fire including his tools but still had jobs to do here on the island. We were able to go to Home Depot and purchase everything that he needs, he still has work and was in tears when we were able to come alongside him and help,” said Husted, the executive director of the church.
8. Timeline of the plot to kidnap Gov. Whitmer
In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, a group of disgruntled citizens who said they were fed up with government interventions hatched a plan to take matters into their own hands. Training, stalking and kidnapping were all on the line. What they didn’t plan, the FBI was onto them the entire time. The FBI reported they discovered discourse on social media as early as April 19, 2020, threatening the violent overthrow of state governments and law enforcement. From the start, the group worked to obtain Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s address, according to court records. Here’s a look at the case, which kicked off this week.
9. Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians hold ribbon cutting ceremony for new low-income housing in Traverse City
Low income housing has been a big topic of discussion in Northern Michigan. The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians is doing its part to help their tribe with this crisis. The band held a ribbon cutting ceremony on Monday for a new housing development in Traverse City. Sixteen units have been completed with a plan for 173 total units intended for tribal members.
10. British nurse gets life without parole for killing 7 babies and trying to kill 6 others
A former neonatal nurse convicted of murdering seven babies in her care and trying to kill six others at a hospital in northern England was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of release by a judge who highlighted “the cruelty and calculation” of her actions. Lucy Letby, who refused to appear in court to face her sentencing or to hear grieving parents share their anger and anguish, was given the most severe punishment possible under British law, which does not allow the death penalty.
