MSU holds vigil on shooting anniversary • Teen shot at hotel • Woman records kids hanging out of moving car

TUESDAY NEWS HIT - A Detroit woman named Asha recorded herself driving with a toddler on her lap and children hanging out of her car windows, drawing the attention of police.

At one point, the toddler on Asha's lap has their hands on the steering wheel.

"Looking at it, I was fearful for the kids' safety, number one, but it's outrageous," Detroit Police Chief James White said. "As you saw with one of the kids, it looked like the child was about to lose her balance in one of the turns. That just could've been disastrous."

Police immediately launched an investigation and charges could follow. White said his department also contacted Child Protective Services.

Asha spends a lot of time with the five children and says she is sorry.

"I want to clear up that I am remorseful. First of all, I'd like to say that I've already apologized to the parents of the kids," she said. "I do regret letting them hang out of the window. I definitely do feel sorry for that because it could've went badly."

15-year-old shot at Southfield hotel

A teen boy is in critical condition after he was shot in the head during a party at the Westin in Southfield.

Police said an adult rented a room for teens on Saturday night and left them unattended in the room. On Sunday morning, one of the boys named Tyler, a 15-year-old who attends Loyola High School in Detroit, was shot.

"Right now you have a mother grieving. You have other family members grieving. You have students who are grieving because, from our understanding, he was very popular within the school," Southfield Police Chief Elvin Barren said.

Two teens were taken into custody to be interviewed.

Barren said one of the detained minors was in possession of a stolen Glock 22 40 caliber handgun with a 22 round extended magazine that was equipped with a laser light. It was hidden in the teen's groin area. The gun was reported stolen out of Flint last June; the other weapon is unregistered. 

MSU remembers students killed on shooting anniversary

One year after a gunman opened fire at Michigan State University, killing Arielle Anderson, Brian Fraser, and Alex Verner, the school community is honoring those lost.

"There’s no one way to feel. There’s no right way to heal," said Emily Hoyumpa, the student body president at MSU. "That’s something I’ve definitely realized."

MSU is holding a Luminary Lighting event on Tuesday.

Members of campus government put together the event where students and community members can get a luminary, decorate them, and place them outside to turn the dark nights green in honor of the victims.

"Some people want to be with others at this point, others want to be completely by themselves – and that’s completely OK," Hoyumpa said. "I think it’s just really important that we validate that."

State representative removed over 'great replacement' post

The speaker of the Michigan House removed a lawmaker from his committee assignments over a racist post the lawmaker endorsed on social media last week.

Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, said Rep. Josh Schriver had "a history of promoting debunked theories and dangerous rhetoric" on Monday after the Oxford Republican appeared to support a racist theory that was shared by a right-wing activist on X.

The "Great Replacement" theory falsely asserts there is an active and covert effort to replace white populations in current white-majority countries, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

On social media on Feb. 6, Schriver re-posted the conspiracy theory. Six days later, Schriver still hasn't taken down the post.

New gun laws take effect

Three new laws regulating firearm storage and access in Michigan will go into effect this week after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed them last year.

Starting Feb. 13, firearm owners will be required to keep any unattended weapons unloaded and locked or stored away in a gun safe if a child is in the home. Failing to do so will result in charges and a fine, depending on the outcome if a child gets possession of the firearm.

Enacting stricter rules around storing firearms will reduce unintentional shooting injuries among kids, the state says.

"Data shows firearms involved in unintentional firearm injury deaths among children and adolescents were often stored both loaded and unlocked, and children were most often fatally injured when the shooter was playing with or showing the firearm to others," said health department director Elizabeth Hertel.

The other two laws going into effect Tuesday include expanding universal background checks on all firearm purchases as well as authorizing a judge to order law enforcement to confiscate one's guns if they're deemed a risk to themselves or others.

Live on FOX 2

Daily Forecast

Tuesday will be chilly and at times, breezy.

What else we're watching

1. A man was injured when the former McCarthy's Music Venue in Detroit caught fire Monday night.
2. Free high-speed internet and resources are available at eight Detroit tech hubs. Learn more.
3. The test results of a chemical spill in Bear Creek show the water is not harmful to the public, but it has potentially impacted aquatic life.
4. Wind gusts caused a pilot from Canton to crash into a private airfield outside of Metro Detroit on Monday.
5. Detroit police are looking for a suspect who tried to rob a 73-year-old man at gunpoint.

US aid package: Senate passes $95.3B bill for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed a $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan after an overnight debate, but it now faces an uncertain future in the House.

The Senate vote came after months of difficult negotiations and amid growing political divisions in the Republican Party over the role of the United States abroad.

A small group of Republicans opposed to the $60 billion for Ukraine held the Senate floor through the night, using the final hours of debate to argue that the U.S. should focus on its own problems before sending more money overseas. But 22 Republicans voted with nearly all Democrats to pass the package 70-29, with supporters arguing that abandoning Ukraine could embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin and threaten national security across the globe.

Read more here.