MONDAY NEWS HIT - A bizarre scene has unfolded on Detroit's east side after two barricaded gunmen holed up in a home after injuring one person managed to escape police surveillance. The scene unfolded around 10:30 a.m. Sunday when a 39-year-old man and his friend got into an argument over parking with two unknown men.
Taking place at the 5700 block of Coplin, police say the two unknown men, ages 26 and 59, pulled out guns and pointed them at the victims at one point during the argument. The 59-year-old eventually fired shots and hit one of the victims.
Officers say the friend was able to drag the victim to an alley and called for help. EMS eventually took him to a local hospital where they're expected to be okay after surgery. For the gunmen, both ran into a home and barricaded themselves inside. Police later told FOX 2 that officers had talked to the suspects over the phone about surrendering.
"We were able to talk to them multiple times throughout the day, encouraging them to surrender. At one point the suspects both agreed they wanted to surrender but they wanted to go to a police station, they didn't want to come out of the house," Cmdr Darin Szilagy said. "They stated they weren't in the house, we're asking suspects to consider surrendering this is not going to go away. Come In turn yourselves in peacefully, I promise you we'll treat you with respect and let the justice system do its thing."
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Barricaded gunmen escape police after shooting incident injured one
Detroit Police say two men involved in a shooting Sunday that ended up as a barricaded gunmen situation have escaped the house where they were holed up. Having been told they wanted to surrender at a police station, two suspects instead slipped out the back of the home.
At some point yesterday, the suspects managed to escape the barricade. Police have released mug shots of both of the suspects, however they declined to discuss further details about them.
Neighbors tell us the 59-year-old and the 26-year-old are a father and son.
Police don't believe the men are a danger to people but are asking for help finding them.
Parents rally at Grosse Pointe, protest virtual-only options for school
"Back to the class room - Refuse to be ruled by fear - it's in Gods Hands - Let them live, love, laugh, + learn."
Here's another one:
"Learning is NOT a spectator sport."
That's what signs outside a protest of about 40 parents and kids demonstrating against the Grosse Pointe school district read Sunday afternoon.
Following an announcement from the district's superintendent that said virtual options for learning would be the only education plan offered to start the year, several angry parents made an appearance outside one of the schools to voice their displeasure.
"I have a 15-year-old son and he can't do online learning," said Tracy Skupien. "He's distracted, he can't concentrate, he can't focus, he can't get work done. It was a disaster in the spring."
"If the rest of the schools, Detroit Public Schools will have in-class learning - Catholic schools (as well) - there's no reason we can't do the hybrid learning plan here, now," said Francis Charbonneau.
Ironically, the source of much of the protests against education plans for the fall semester has come from Detroit. There, many teachers, staff, and parents actively protested against the use of in-class learning during summer school. The demonstrations led to blocking buses, lawsuits, and arrests on some mornings.
Detroit Public Schools remains one of the few major districts in the state that is still planning on offering a hybrid learning option for kids. Many others have opted to only offer virtual plans to start the year.
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Parents rally in Grosse Pointe to protest district not offering in-person learning
This protest effort emerged from a Facebook group put in motion after the superintendent for Grosse Pointe Public Schools announced the school district will start the year with remote learning only, offering a plan to reintroduce students to in-person learning when appropriate.
In Grosse Pointe, the district said it would transition into a hybrid option once it was safe to do so. Per protester's reading of the governor's MI Safe Schools Return to Schools Roadmap plan for districts, the option of hybrid learning is already permitted in the county.
"We are in phase 4, therefore we are allowed to have hybrid learning in school," said Charbonneau.
Superintendent Gary Niehaus also offered the following statement
"The recommendation is to start the 2020 - 2021 school year in Remote Learning and One GP Virtual. Remote Learning would gradually turn to In-Person when the time is right for the safety and security of our students, faculty, and staff."
An interview with Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist
What is the status of COVID-19 in terms of race? How is a public health crisis declaration changing the discussion of equality? And where exactly does the Michigan governor fall into the vice president search mix?
Michigan's Lieutenant Governor discussed all of that and more in an interview late Sunday night.
With twin crises slamming into the U.S., one being the product of decades of racial policies driving an institution of inequality and the other a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic, Michigan has sought to find a relationship between the two by tracking COVID-19 data based on race.
"One of the recommendations is based on the recognition that racism has led to negative health outcomes for generations," said Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist, who chairs the Michigan Coronavirus Task Force on Racial Disparities.
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Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist discusses COVID-19’s racial disparities, implicit bias training in police, and Whitmer’s VP standing
Michigan was one of the first states to track COVID-19 data based on race. How has guided health officials' recommendations in dealing with the pandemic? Also, reports state Whitmer traveled to interview for the VP position last week. What's the status on her standing in the race? Lt. Garlin Gilchrist discusses all of this and more.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared racism a public health crisis last week. With that order, Gilchrist says the "full force" of state governmental resources can be used to assess the unequal health outcomes for minority communities.
Among the many changes that are coming based on the task force and that declaration is implicit bias training for state employees. The governor and lieutenant governor hope the mandatory training will eventually become mandatory for all law enforcement as well.
Daily Forecast
Another hot Monday is on the way with temperatures nearing 90 degrees in the late afternoon. A few storms are also possible around then.
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The heat is on! Near 90° again this afternoon. A few storms are possible this afternoon.
Less muggy air moves in behind tonight's cold front.
New Zealand marks 100 days of no new reported cases of coronavirus
New Zealand on Sunday marked 100 days since it stamped out the spread of the coronavirus, a rare bright spot in a world that continues to be ravaged by the disease.
Life has returned to normal for many people in the South Pacific nation of 5 million, as they attend rugby games at packed stadiums and sit down in bars and restaurants without the fear of getting infected. But some worry the country may be getting complacent and not preparing well enough for any future outbreaks.
New Zealand got rid of the virus by imposing a strict lockdown in late March when only about 100 people had tested positive for the disease. That stopped its spread. For the past three months, the only new cases have been a handful of returning travelers who have been quarantined at the border.
“It was good science and great political leadership that made the difference,” said professor Michael Baker, an epidemiologist at the University of Otago. “If you look around the globe at countries that have done well, it’s usually that combination.”