Animal sacrifice in Hamtramck • FAA pausing flights • Legislature back in session

WEDNESDAY NEWS HIT - Should the City of Hamtramck allow residents to sacrifice animals for religious purposes? According to the US Constitution - yes.

One activist called Tuesday night's City Council meeting where an ordinance regarding religious animal sacrifice was to be voted on, "one big waste of time." But according to the city attorney, animal sacrifice was already a protected under state and federal law. 

Eventually the city council approved the measure 4-2 following a lengthy debate that sparked some fiery responses from residents. 

Community members - mostly of the Muslim faith - spoke out against the measure that would allow for the sacrifice of animals inside the home as part of religious rituals if passed. City leaders got an earful on both sides of the issue.

"Don’t prevent people from letting them practice their religious freedom," said one resident. "People have been doing it for decades and no harm has been done."

"I am disappointed that the animal slaughter in regards to the animal ordinance is still an issue and being discussed," said another resident.

According to the measure, anyone who wants to conduct an animal sacrifice for religious purposes must notify the city at least one week in advance. They have to give the exact date and time of the animal sacrifice and must allow the City to inspect the ritual site to make sure the area was cleaned and sanitized properly.

The sacrificer also has to pay a fee to cover the inspection. Violators will face big fines.

Among the groups that were skeptical of the measure were the Council on American-Islamic Relations Michigan Chapter.

"This proposal will greatly limit religious slaughtering for Muslims and within the Islamic tradition, we slaughter an animal during Eid al-Adha. We typically slaughter a sheep, goat or lamb," said Nour Ali, CAIR Michigan.

Mayor Amer Ghalib says the proposal represents a compromise after getting passionate pleas from both sides, while hoping to avoid a lawsuit.

"We took into consideration the safety, the health precautions," he said. "We came up with regulations for proper waste disposal."

There was discussion of amended language in lieu of the constitutional concerns - but the bottom line is the legal team for the city says these religious rituals can take place under the constitution and under religious liberty - but that does not mean that some of the existing restrictions in terms of disposal, and sanitation, aren't still in effect.

FAA reports nationwide system failure

The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday reported a system failure nationwide, appearing to impact several flights across the United States. About 1,162 flights within, into, and out of the U.S. were delayed as of about 7 a.m. ET on Wednesday, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Around 98 flights were listed as canceled.

A statement from the FAA noted an issue with NOTAM (Notice to Air Missions), a system that sends out critical information to pilots and other flight operations personnel about potential hazards along a route. NOTAM used to be available through a hotline, but that was phased out with the internet, according to the Associated Press. 

The alerts span from mundane information about construction at airports to urgent flight restrictions or broken equipment. There is a potential for widespread disruption because of the outage. All aircraft are required to route through the system, including commercial and military flights.

In an update sent my the FAA, all domestic departures were paused until 9 a.m.

Michigan legislature back in session

There wasn't much legislating during the off-season in the Michigan Senate and House chambers, but make no mistake - it was a busy end of the year. Now, with the legislature back in session Wednesday, residents will get a first look at their new government.

Democrats control the House 56-54 and the Senate 20-18. The slim margins granted them the first majority in both chambers in decades. Detroit Rep. Joe Tate is expected to be the House speaker - the first Black lawmaker to hold the position. 

Expect that to be the first of several big moves that Democrats make now they're in control. Among the policies they'll go after includes right to work, gun control, and issues like childcare and education. 

Rep. Matt Hall, the minority leader in the House, will have his hands busy during the new session. That includes working with a rowdy caucus group of hard-right conservatives that are aiming for a fight over rules within the Michigan House. 

District Detroit developers seeking $616 million in funding

Developers being a massive project in Detroit that would construct some 10 buildings for affordable housing, retail and office space, and other mixed-use purposes are asking for $616 million in funding.

Labeled "transformational brownfield" funding, the money request represents close to half of the expected $1.5 billion cost that Stephen Ross and the Ilitch family say it will be needed for the project.

The incentives package was announced during one of the project's community benefits meeting Tuesday night. 

The Detroit Economic Growth Corporation says the 10 projects will generate $751 million in new tax revenue over 35 years. The state of Michigan can also expect to see $1 billion in revenue. Along with the $616 million request, the developers are also asking for another $81 million in other public loan programs. 

Detroit running out of patience with Perfecting Church

The City of Detroit appears to be running out of patience with a church's construction plans. The future home of Perfecting Church sits at the corner of Woodward and Seven Mile in Detroit. It has been under construction for years since the plans to build there were first revealed in 2003.

"The time to deal with the issue is right now," said Detroit city attorney Conrad Mallett. "Various administrations have been working with the bishop to get that project done."

The church is currently located on Nevada Street in Detroit. Plans for a new location have not materialized, prompting a letter to be sent to the leader of the church last week. Mallett said the reason the city was now looking for answers was due to the mayor's focus on transforming blight.

Pastor Marvin Winans, the bishop of the church, was unavailable for comment. 

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Daily Forecast

Temperatures will bounce back into the 40s Wednesday and Thursday along with some rain potential tomorrow. Chances for snow are looking increasingly unlikely in the month of January. 

What else we're watching

1. Attorneys for Christopher Schurr, the former Grand Rapids police officer charged with murdering Patrick Lyoya, argued he shouldn't stand trial. The lawyer made a motion to toss the ruling that a jury trial was necessary this week. 
2. The Mega Millions jackpot has crossed the "millions" threshold and is now up to $1.35 billion. It's the second-largest jackpot ever. 
3. The NACTOY awards are expected to be announced today. The North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year award kicks off the new year. Expect the announcement at 11 a.m.
4. It's not just the legislature that's back in session. The state Supreme Court is also set to hear oral arguments beginning at 10 a.m. for the first cases of the year. 
5. The Red Wings ended their three-game losing streak against the Winnipeg Jets in a wild 7-5 victory at home. 

Biden 'surprised' government records were found at former office

President Joe Biden said Tuesday he was surprised when informed that government records were found by his attorneys at his former office space in Washington. He was asked about the issue after the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee requested that the U.S. intelligence conduct a "damage assessment" of potentially classified documents.

Speaking to reporters in Mexico City, Biden said his attorneys "did what they should have done" when they immediately called the National Archives about the discovery at the offices of the Penn Biden Center. He kept an office there after he left the vice presidency in 2017 until shortly before he launched his presidential campaign in 2019.

The White House confirmed that the Department of Justice was reviewing "a small number of documents with classified markings" found at the office.