Michigan girl accused of stabbing grandmother to death with kitchen knife facing murder charges
CANTON, Mich. โ A 14-year-old Michigan girl accused of stabbing and killing her 65-year-old grandmother is facing murder charges. Charges against the teen were announced by the Wayne County Prosecutorโs Office on Saturday. Charging teen as an adultAccording to the prosecutorโs office the teen is not being charged as an adult. Teen suspected of planning murderThe prosecutorโs office stated the teen allegedly planned the crime, although no additional details were provided. On Feb. 21 the teen allegedly killed her grandmother by stabbing her multiple times with a kitchen knife.
West Virginia GOP fractured by political appointment feud
A member of the audience holds a "Justice for All" sign during West Virginia Gov. Instead, state Republican leaders ordered a redo on candidate applications and insisted Marcum return home for an in-person interview. County Republicans claim the West Virginia GOP โ which created its own shortlist for the seat โ intervened to anoint a political favorite, a charge the governor denies. Booth's name appeared in place of Marcum's on the list that state GOP officials submitted to Justice. โI guess the swamp has made its way down to West Virginia.โ
Opera adapts to pandemic, hosts drive-thru show in a parking garage -- and the results are stunning
DETROIT โ When one thinks of the opera, images of a parking garage are unlikely to come to mind, but some unexpected creativity during the pandemic allowed people to experience the opera from their vehicle. This proves it: When you canโt pack people into a theater, you find another way to perform. Michigan Opera Theatre opened its season in late December this way. Each act performed on a different level of the opera house garage. Watch nextREAD: Michigan Opera Theatre names Yuval Sharon new artistic director
Biden transition gets govt OK after Trump out of options
But Trump did tweet that he was directing his team to cooperate on the transition. The president had grown increasingly frustrated with the flailing tactics of his legal team. Some Trump allies had expressed hope that state lawmakers could intervene in selecting Republican electors in states that do not certify. The campaign, in its filings, asked for urgent consideration so it could challenge the state election results before they are certified next month. Pennsylvania county election boards voted Monday, the state deadline, on whether to certify election results to the Department of State.
Michigan leader: Trump didn't ask for election interference
The Republican National Committee and the state Republican Party want the board to adjourn for 14 days to investigate alleged irregularities in Wayne County, the state's largest and home to Detroit. โMichigan election law clearly requires that the stateโs electors must be those nominated by the party that received the most votes โ not the Legislature,โ says a stock email House Republicans are sending in response to people who contact their offices. Experts on Michigan election law have said the state board's authority is limited in scope and that it must certify the results now that all 83 counties have reported theirs to the state. The deadline is Dec. 13, but that is five days after the federal โsafe harborโ date โ when Congress cannot challenge any electors named by that date in accordance with state law. In fact, election officials from both political parties have stated publicly that the election went well and international observers confirmed that there were no serious irregularities.
Minor discrepancies at heart of GOP effort to overturn vote
They were recommended by the GOP to fill spots after two other Republicans on the board resigned, according to the county. Palmer cited claims that certain Detroit precincts were out of balance, meaning that absentee ballot books did not match the number of ballots cast. Hartmann said he changed his vote to certify the election because canvassers agreed to seek an audit of Detroitโs election performance. Fixes include verifying that all absentee ballots have been processed and tabulated by going through return envelopes and verifying that every absentee voter is included in the poll book total. Q: WHAT ARE FALSE READS IN ABSENTEE BALLOTS?
Trump summons Michigan GOP leaders for extraordinary meeting
(AP Photo/David Eggert, File)DETROIT โ President Donald Trump summoned Michigan's Republican legislative leaders to the White House for an extraordinary meeting Friday amid a long shot GOP push to subvert the democratic process that handed the battleground state to Democrat Joe Biden. If Trump succeeds in convincing Michigan's state board of canvassers not to certify Bidenโs victory in the state, state lawmakers could be called on to select electors, but such a brazen move would be unprecedented and possibly illegal. Asked at a Lansing news conference about the plan for legislative leaders to visit Trump, Democratic Gov. Palmer and Hartmann initially voted against certification Tuesday, leaving the county Board of Canvassers deadlocked at 2-2 along party lines. But Trump and his allies have spent two weeks raising false claims of fraud and refusing to concede to Biden.
Trump influence seen in deadlock of Michigan election board
Republicans Monica Palmer and William Hartmann initially voted against certification Tuesday, leaving the Wayne County Board of Canvassers deadlocked at 2-2 along party lines. But he said he was bombarded with phone calls and emails from random Trump supporters urging him not to approve the election results. Michigan Republican Party Chair Laura Cox reacted swiftly after the initial Wayne County deadlock. An email landed immediately at the AP, with Cox saying she was proud that the party's work had caused GOP canvassers to refuse to bless the election results. This certifies the entire state, said Thomas, who added that by not certifying the county results, the state board would โwould basically nullify the entire electionโ in Michigan.
Michigan GOP backtracks after blocking vote certification
The state vote certification process is usually a routine task, and the ultimate resolution in Wayne County propels Biden toward formal victory in Michigan. Republicans are also trying to stop formal certification of the election results in other swing states, including Arizona, Nevada and Pennsylvania. Each state certifies its election results and the Electoral College meets Dec. 14 to codify the results. In Michigan, Trump allies and Republican poll challengers have spent days launching unsuccessful litigation. In a more rural county, Mohave, election certification was delayed until Nov. 23 in a sign of solidarity with the remaining election challenges in the state.
EXPLAINER: Why AP called Michigan for Biden
(AP Photo/David Goldman)WHY AP CALLED MICHIGAN FOR BIDEN:Democrat Joe Biden has won the electoral battleground of Michigan, the third state that President Donald Trump carried in 2016 that the former vice president has flipped. Biden had a 70,000-vote lead on Wednesday evening, a margin over Trump of about 1.3 percentage points. Michigan is among a handful of battleground states where Trump prematurely claimed early Wednesday that he was โwinningโ the contest with Biden. With Biden winning both Michigan and Wisconsin, all eyes are on Nevada and Pennsylvania. Voters who cast mail ballots have favored Biden.
Body of missing veteran fire department sergeant recovered from Detroit River
DETROIT โ On Saturday, authorities recovered the body of missing Detroit Fire Department sergeant, Sivad Johnson. His body was recovered by Detroit Police Department and DFD divers. The 26-year veteran of the fire department and native Detroit resident went missing Friday night. Last night dive teams searched the Detroit River near Belle Isle for Johnson. Johnson, 49, initially went into the Detroit River to save two young girls from drowning.