Livingston County immigrant tracking • Woman randomly attacked in Detroit • Anchor Bay coach investigation

TUESDAY NEWS HIT - Despite pushback from many who spoke during public comment, the Livingston County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution that allows the sheriff's office to monitor undocumented immigrants.

Under this measure, the sheriff's office can track all interactions with what the resolution refers to as "illegal immigrants." This includes contact during traffic stops and other interactions, even if a crime is not committed.

The resolution cited a case where an undocumented immigrant sexually assaulted a teen girl in the county as one of the justifications for needing this tracking. It also compared crime ratings on crimegrades.org, claiming that Livingston County has a better rating than neighboring Washtenaw and Ingham counties because Washtenaw County and the city of Lansing in Ingham have been declared as sanctuary spots. These are where undocumented immigrants are not prosecuted for violating immigration laws.

"Can you say that they're all criminals? Of course not," Sheriff Michael Murphy said in a video addressing the resolution. "Can you say that it doesn't exist or we shouldn't keep track? I think is insane."

Following the vote, the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center said it was "deeply concerned" with the resolution. It released a statement, saying in part that "local law enforcement officers cannot detain or arrest someone simply because they believe the person is in the United States unlawfully. Doing so would result in law enforcement violating the constitutional rights of the people arrested and detained."

Woman brutally beaten in Detroit

A woman was walking to a friend's Detroit house earlier this month when she was randomly attacked.

Morgan Catton's Uber dropped her off a few blocks from her friend's home near 14th and Hazelwood streets, so she decided to walk. That's when a man on a bicycle grabbed her neck and beat her without saying a word. 

The man left, while an ambulance picked up Catton, who is from Mount Clemens, and took her to a hospital. She needed stiches on her face, but thankfully did not suffer any broken bones.

"I'm very concerned," said Terrance Willis, who lives near where the attack happened. "I think accountability is what's needed more so than anything else."

Police are continuing to search for the attacker. 

Anchor Bay football coach on leave during investigation

Anchor Bay High School football coach Mike Giannone is currently on leave amid a Title IX investigation.

"He came home and basically said that Coach G was on leave and not even the athletic director knew why. It happened so quick," a concerned parent said.

The parent said the athletic director made the announcement to the football players last week that Giannone had been placed on administrative leave.

Sources told FOX 2 he is under investigation for trying to enforce a dress code because a female student's clothing was too revealing for gym class.

The Anchor Bay School District said the coach was placed on administrative leave on Sept. 18 but did not give further details to respect the privacy of those involved. Since this is a personnel matter, no further information will be released at this time.

"Solidarity. I think they're all united with Coach G," the parent told FOX 2. "They all wore shirts underneath their pads at last week's game against Eisenhower; the T-shirts said ‘Free G’ on them."

Stellantis responds to UAW strike threat

Despite the UAW threat to strike against Stellantis over claims of contract violations, the automaker said it is fulfilling all commitments as promised.

The union alleges Stellantis is failing to uphold the contract, which was reached in 2023 after one of the biggest strikes in UAW history that lasted about six weeks. The agreement promised $19 billion in commitments to plants in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio.

The agreement between the UAW and Stellantis included getting the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois running again after it was indefinitely shut down in late Feb 2023. However, Stellantis announced in August it would not be able to meet the anticipated timeline to reopen the facility, delaying all operations.

"During 2023 national negotiations, the parties agreed to the investment plan for Belvidere to address job security concerns impacting bargaining unit members throughout the entire system," according to the UAW. "The company’s failure to honor its commitments in the U.S. investment letter is a serious concern to all bargaining unit members."

The UAW also claims that Stellantis has not commented on whether the production of the next generation Dodge Durango will be moved outside the U.S., despite reports of the production allegedly being moved from the Detroit Assembly Complex to Canada. 

Man offers $20K reward for stolen Hellcats

A Lake Orion man has $10,000 per vehicle for whoever helps him find his two stolen Hellcats.

Tom Bailey's Hellcat TRX truck and a Hellcat Dodge Durango were parked in his driveway when someone stole them last week. 

"I don’t know how they got into the vehicles because there was no glass broken or anything and when the cameras activate is when they start backing up," he said.

Bailey's cameras caught the crime, but he didn't realize what happened until a few hours later, when he took the garbage out and noticed the vehicles were gone.

"Either you have to live in a gated community or just don’t drive anything nice. It’s sad," he said.

To claim the reward, email info@sickthemagazine.com.

Live on FOX 2

Daily Forecast

Today will be rainy and cooler.

What else we're watching

1. Arab-American Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalieb has endorsed Donald Trump for president. Ghalieb says he is a Democrat on paper, but backs Trump, especially when it comes to the war in Gaza.
2. Homeowners in Detroit's Grandmont neighborhood say thieves have been targeting their homes despite cameras catching them in the act.
3. The Detroit Tigers have moved up the start time for Tuesday's game against the Rays to 1:10 p.m. due to weather.
4. Michigan State football player Armorion Smith has been raising his five siblings after his mother died from cancer this summer. He's determined to keep his siblings safe and healthy since he has been tasked with being responsible for them.
5. The Wayne County Prosecutor will not charge five people arrested during a pro-Palestinian protest at Wayne State University in the spring.

Watches expand as Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine expected to strengthen

A tropical system is expected to rapidly intensify into a tropical storm and then a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico before making landfall somewhere over Florida this week, according to the latest track and projections from the National Hurricane Center.

When it forms, it will be known as Helene, the eighth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. Regardless of where it makes landfall, Central Florida and Tampa will likely see impacts from the storm, including tropical storm-force winds, heavy rain, and perhaps a few tornadoes.

Ahead of the storm, Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for 41 of the state's 67 counties.

Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine is about 150 miles west of the Grand Cayman Islands and 205 miles south-southeast of the western tip of Cuba.

It's traveling NW at 9 mph with sustained winds of 35 mph. A tropical storm has sustained winds of 38-73 mph, while a Category 1 hurricane has sustained winds of at least 74 mph. A northwestward motion is expected later today and tonight, followed by a faster northward to north-northeastward motion on Wednesday and Thursday.