Tigers gear up for home playoff game • Rogers, Slotkin face off on debate stage • Milton nears landfall

WEDNESDAY NEWS HIT - For the first time in a decade, the Detroit Tigers play a playoff game at home today.

The Tigers will take on the Cleveland Guardians in game three of the American League Divisional Series (ALDS) this afternoon.

The teams are currently tied 1-1 in the best of five series.

The Guardians wiped out the Tigers 7-0 in game one before Detroit rallied back to win 3-0 in game two.

"We're really excited. I think a lot of our guys are anxious to get to tomorrow's game to see Comerica at its best," Tigers manager AJ Hinch said Tuesday.

The Tigers and the Guardians will face off in Detroit on both Wednesday and Thursday. If a fifth game is necessary, they'll head to Cleveland on Saturday.

Rogers, Slotkin face off on debate stage

Democrat Elissa Slotkin and Republican Mike Rogers agreed to disagree on lots of issues in their first televised debate Tuesday night.

Two U.S. Senate candidates agree that Michigan needs more energy and the federal government should re-open the mothballed Palisades Power Plant.

And on the agreement side, it was done after that, in terms of the debate topics.

The back-and-forth included Rogers charging the former CIA agent Slotkin with being 100% for President Joe Biden's agenda.

"I voted and split with my party more than 97% of other Democrats, on average a couple times every month," she said.

Slotkin accused him of voting to privatize Social Security, raise the retirement age, and stop Medicaid from negotiating drug prices.

He said it was not true.

"I'm not even sure she could pass the polygraph test for the CIA anymore," he said. "When you look at what we have to do to protect it, fear and scare is not going to get it done, nor did I do the things she suggested I did."

The tension rose when the topic of bringing a Chinese company to build EV batteries up north.

Milton nears Florida as Category 4 hurricane

Hurricane Milton continued on its path to the west coast of Florida on Wednesday, likely to remain a major hurricane when it finally makes landfall.

The Tampa Bay area, home to more than 3.3 million people, faced the possibility of widespread destruction after avoiding direct hits from major hurricanes for more than a century.

The monster storm, currently a Category 4 storm, maintained strength overnight into Wednesday, and forecasters predict that it will likely remain a major hurricane when it makes landfall later on Wednesday evening or early Thursday morning.

"Milton has the potential to be one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for west-central Florida," the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday morning.

Milton was centered about 300 miles southwest of Tampa early Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph, the hurricane center reported.

It was moving northeast at 14 mph early Wednesday and was expected to continue moving in that direction with an increase in its forward speed through Wednesday night, with landfall expected late Wednesday or early Thursday morning.

It was expected to turn toward the east-northeast and east on Thursday and Friday.

Crews battle large Detroit house fire

Crews are on the scene of a large house fire near in Detroit's Palmer Woods neighborhood on Wednesday morning.

The home on Balmoral near 7 Mile and Woodward, north of Palmer Park, started some time before 7 a.m. When crews arrived, flames were shooting out of the roof of the house.

Injuries are unknown. 

Suspect killed by Detroit police after shooting at officers

A man who authorities say had a long criminal history was shot and killed by Detroit police after pulling a gun on officer Tuesday night.

"He has a lengthy criminal history too much to list at this time," said Detroit Police Assistant Chief Charles Fitzgerald. "(Investigators will) come out and scale the scene get all the evidence, pull all the casings, take as many statements as we can. There were a lot of folks out here."

Officers were on patrol in the area of Chandler Park Drive and Canyon Street when they saw the suspect and recognized him from a previous drug encounter. When police ran his name, they saw he had a prior violation.

Before the officers could get out of their vehicle, Fitzgerald said the man pulled out a gun and started shooting, hitting the patrol car. One of the officers returned fire, killing the suspect.

Per department policy, the officer will be put on leave while an investigation is conducted.

Samantha Woll's family reacts months after murder charges dismissed

After Samantha Woll was stabbed to death outside her Detroit home last year and a man was arrested, her family thought the case was a done deal.

"We were 1,000% sure this person would be convicted," her sister Monica Woll Rosen said. "Prosecutors and police told us they had never had so much evidence against somebody."

For a month, Michael Jackson-Bolanos was on trial for the murder of Samantha Woll. He was captured on camera at her home minutes before the murder. He happened to be carrying a knife at the time he was arrested. Blood was also discovered on his jacket, and he even admitted to lying to police.

Despite that, the jury found him not guilty of premeditated murder but deadlocked on felony murder and home invasion charges. Instead, he was convicted of lying to police.

Jackson-Bolanos was sentenced to 18 months for lying to police. During that sentencing, Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Margaret Van Houten delivered another blow by dismissing the felony murder and home invasion charges. That means the prosecution cannot retry him for the murder unless new evidence is discovered.

The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office filed an appeal. If not reversed, it could prevent the Woll family from getting justice. 

Former U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider, who was not involved in the case, weighed in and said the prosecution may have overdone it, a move that led to no conviction.

"In my experience, if you present too much evidence to the jury, (they) get bored with that, and they can’t focus on the trees when they are looking through this gigantic forest," Schneider said.

The Pulse: Slotkin-Rogers debate & Kamala Harris media blitz

Live on FOX 2

Daily Forecast

The day starts chilly but will shape up to be warm and sunny.

What else we're watching

1. A 13-year-old Taylor girl accused of murdering her sister while babysitting her will remain in jail as her case moves through the legal system.
2. A 17-year-old is accused of fatally stabbing a 64-year-old man in Detroit after they allegedly met on a dating app. Police believe Detroit teen Ahmed Al-Alikhan targeted Howard Brisendine because he was a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
3. Two Sterling Heights police officers were charged with misconduct and felonious assault for deploying a K-9 while arresting a suspect. Officers James Sribniak, 31, and Jack Currie, 29, were both charged this week for the February incident.
4. Karl Robart, whose loaded, unlocked shotgun was used in the accidental death of his 5-year-old grandson, was sentenced this week to more than three years in prison for violating Michigan’s new gun storage law.
5. A fire destroyed a unit and displaced six people at the Ponds Apartments in Taylor on Tuesday. No one was hurt.

Biden sets 10-year deadline for US cities to replace lead pipes

President Joe Biden is setting a 10-year deadline for cities nationwide to replace their lead pipes, completing an aggressive approach to guarantee that drinking water is safe for Americans.

The 10-year period will not begin for three years. Some cities with large volumes of lead pipes may be given a longer time limit to meet the new standard.

According to the Associated Press, Biden’s announcement emphasizes an issue — safe drinking water — that Kamala Harris has prioritized as vice president and during her presidential campaign.

Biden made the announcement in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a city with the fifth-highest number of lead pipes in the nation, the AP reported, citing the Environmental Protection Agency.

Decades after the dangers of lead pipes were clear, more than 9 million lead pipes remain in use, a fact Biden called shameful.