Man killed after letting employee stay with him • Short-staffed Ypsilanti PD gets help • SS Badger ends season
Manager killed by homeless employee he let stay with him
Louis Stafford offered to help an employee who fell on hard times, but no one could imagine it would end in a fatal shooting.
THURSDAY NEWS HIT - Louis Stafford's offer to help a co-worker at a Chesterfield Township Taco Bell led to his murder.
Stafford, 27, who was a manager at the restaurant on 23 Mile, noticed Dejon Drake was showing up to work in wet clothes. When he learned Drake was homeless, Stafford said he could stay at his apartment, Stafford's mother said.
However, other employees say Drake soon became combative toward Stafford and other workers.
Last Saturday, Stafford told Drake he couldn't stay with him any longer and Drake allegedly killed him.
"That’s when the fight broke out," Leola Stafford said. "The dude didn’t want to leave, and he pushed Louis and Louis fought back and beat him up, and so he shot him."
Drake was arrested at the scene, Aspen Creek Apartments. He is now charged with second-degree murder, felony firearm, and carrying a concealed weapon.
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Taco Bell manager killed by homeless employee he let stay with him, mother says
"You just cannot let your heart overrule your safety - the world has changed," she said. "And it’s the luck of the draw. You don’t know if you stop and help that person, what’s on their mind - just because they’re in need."
Short-handed Ypsilanti police getting help
With only one detective currently, the Ypsilanti Police Department needs extra help to solve crimes.
Through a new temporary partnership with the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office, they will be able to get that help. The department will be able to call on the sheriff's office for 120 days and request help investigating major crimes, such as murders.
Washtenaw County Sheriff Jerry Clayton says his detectives are busy, dealing with 10 homicides in their county jurisdictions in June alone.
"Since June we have had a spate of homicides, the suspects connected to those homicides have all been identified and arrested and arraigned or in the court system," he said.
But, he says they are the right people for this added workload - and the proof is in their clearance rates, that’s the measure of crimes solved.
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Short-handed Ypsilanti police have 1 detective, bring in outside help
"Victims of crimes need to understand and know that we are going to be tenacious about serving the public," he said. "And this effort is another step in ensuring the community is serviced to the correct level."
SS Badger ends season early
The SS Badger will not ferry people across Lake Michigan for the rest of the season after ramp damage last month.
Daily crossings between Ludington, Mich. and Manitowoc, Wis. were suspended indefinitely by operator Lake Michigan Carferry after the ramp system failed July 21.
That ramp will take months to repair, meaning that the season that was expected to go until Oct. 9 had to be cut short.
"This is a very complicated process and one that will not be complete in time to resume service this season," Sara Spore, general manager of Lake Michigan Carferry, said in a news release.
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SS Badger, ferry that carries traffic across Lake Michigan, ends season after ramp damage
The SS Badger, America's last coal-powered steamship on Lake Michigan, is now docked for the rest of the season after a failure of its ramp in mid-July.
Mayor Jim Fouts announces lawsuit against Warren City Council
It has been ruled that Warren Mayor Jim Fouts cannot run again, but that hasn't stopped him.
Fouts said Wednesday he intends to try his hand in court with a civil rights lawsuit alleging the city council's term limits law specifically targeted the official to keep him off the ballot.
"It was an exclusive proposal to limit my right to be on the ballot," Fouts said.
Fouts accused the city council violated his constitutional rights.
"I do feel this is an important constitutional question that could have far-reaching repercussions," he said during a press conference.
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Mayor Jim Fouts not finished yet, announces lawsuit against Warren City Council in re-election bid
"I don't give a crap whether the mayor or the city council like each other," Fouts' attorney said. "We're constitutional rights attorneys, what we look for is 'is this a violation of our constitutional rights'."
Metro Detroit dominates most dangerous intersections list
The bulk of Michigan's most dangerous intersections are here in Metro Detroit.
Michigan Auto Law analyzed crash data from 2022 to compile its newest list of most dangerous intersections. Nearly all the top 20 are in Metro Detroit, with two in Grand Rapids and one in Ann Arbor.
The most dangerous intersection in 2021, 11 Mile/I-696 at Van Dyke was again the most dangerous on the new list, with 34 more crashes in 2022 than in 2021.
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MAP: The most dangerous intersections in Michigan
Most of Michigan's most dangerous intersections are in Metro Detroit, according to 2022 crash data.
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What else we're watching
- Ann Arbor police are looking for an armed robber who they believe has committed several crimes in the past week. He robbed a clerk at gunpoint after asking to buy lottery tickets.
- Erebus Haunted Attraction is prepping for the 2023 haunt season by holding open actor auditions soon.
- A man accused of beating a puppy after she broke his sunglasses is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday.
- Animal rights activists are pushing Wayne State University's new president to stop the school's animal testing program.
- The weekend is almost here! Need plans? Check our guide.
Man poses as police officer to kidnap woman in Seattle, kept her in cell
A man who posed as an undercover police officer kidnapped a woman in Seattle, drove her hundreds of miles to his home in Oregon and locked her in a makeshift cell in his garage before she managed to escape and flag down a passing motorist, the FBI said Wednesday.
Negasi Zuberi, 29, faces a federal interstate kidnapping charge, and authorities said they are looking for additional victims after linking him to violent sexual assaults in at least four more states.
"This woman was kidnapped, chained, sexually assaulted, and locked in a cinderblock cell," Stephanie Shark, the assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Portland field office, said in a news release. "Police say she beat the door with her hands until they were bloody in order to break free. Her quick thinking and will to survive may have saved other women from a similar nightmare."