Water main break buckles road • Day 2 of Jennifer Crumbley's trial + day 1 recap • Metro Detroit flooding

FRIDAY NEWS HIT - A water main break buckled Baseline Road near Novi Street in Northville early Friday.

The Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA) line break was reported about 3:30 a.m. Now, crews are working to isolate the break on the 24-inch main and determine the next steps.

"Obviously, tons of water is going down the road. It's getting into some of the houses," Northville Fire Chief Matt Samhat said. "We have one house that the basement's completely filled with water."

Currently, residents in the area are asked to restrict their water usage. A boil advisory has not been issued, but may be required once the main is repaired. The road will also need to be fixed where it buckled above the main.

Jennifer Crumbley's trial continues

Jennifer Crumbley returns to court today for more testimony in her Oxford High School shooting trial.

She is facing four counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count for each of the students her son killed on Nov. 30, 2021. Her husband, James, is also facing the same charges and will go to trial later this year.

The trial opened Thursday with statements from both her defense and prosecution before several witnesses took the stand, including a teacher who was shot and an ATF agent who was at the scene.

Though the shooter has been sentenced to life in prison without parole, prosecutors have said the parents are partially to blame for the deaths of Madisyn Baldwin, Tate Myre, Justin Shilling, and Hana St. Juliana. 

Jennifer's attorney Shannon Smith put the blame on James, arguing that Jennifer knew nothing about guns. Smith argued that despite evidence that Jennifer was at a gun range with her son, she did not know what she was doing and was not the one to buy the weapons.

Prosecution, defense clash over emotions during Crumbley trial

The attorneys of both Jennifer Crumbley and the state got into a heated debated Thursday morning in court over emotional reactions inside the courtroom.

During the second witness was called by the prosecution, Oxford assistant principal Kristy Gibson-Marshall, loud sniffles and crying can be heard. When it was the defense's turn to cross-examine Gibson-Marshall, attorney Shannon Smith stood up and said she couldn't think straight before apologizing and saying she had no questions for the witness.

As she was dismissed, Smith stood up and asked the court for a break, which was granted by Judge Cheryl Matthews. After the jury and Jennifer Crumbley both left the courtroom, Smith and Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald went back on the record with the judge about the emotional testimony.

McDonald asked about influencing the jury, after saying they were instructed not to show emotion during the trial to not influence the jury – but says the defense is not following the order.

Smith countered that she wasn’t sobbing, and said Crumbley was crying because it was the first time she’d seen the video shown in the courtroom. The video showed the scene after the shooting, including victims in the hallway. 

Metro Detroit flooding

No freeways are fully closed due to flooding, but some areas have lanes closed because of water over the road. 

If you're headed on the roads Friday morning, give yourself extra time and expect to deal with ponding and large puddles. Radar estimated rainfall totals around .50 -.75" and the rain's still coming down. With the rain continuing, entire freeways could close later in the morning. 

Freeway flooding:

• EB I-696 after Lodge Freeway – Center lane, right lane, right shoulder blocked
• WB I-94 at W Grand – Right Lane, right shoulder blocked
• SB I-75 at Eureka – Only right lane open

House minority leader asked to step down amid domestic violence allegations

Michigan House Minority Leader Matt Hall is under fire by members of his own party amid domestic violence allegations.

Police records show that Hall, of southwest Michigan, was accused of domestic violence against his girlfriend in 2019 but was never charged, according to a Daily Beast report. He was also accused of interfering with a 911 call.

Now, Republican State Rep. Jim DeSana of Wyandotte is calling on Hall to step down.

"Our caucus would not have elected Matt Hall as our leader had we known this," DeSana said. "I think it’s a basic question of honesty. This report came out and we got factual information on the report and the facts are completely different than what Matt has told us."

Live on FOX 2

Daily Forecast

Widespread rain subsides this morning but showers will pop up in the afternoon and evening.

What else we're watching

1. When Stephen A. Smith, a famous ESPN sportscaster, pegged Detroit's revival on the Lions, City Council President Mary Sheffield set the record straight.
2.  A 55-year-old woman died after driving her car into the Detroit River at Bishop Park in Wyandotte, police said.
3. Michigan State Police is mourning the loss of 39-year-old Joel Popp, who was hit and killed during a traffic stop in Saginaw County Wednesday night.
4. Dozens of cars, trucks, and other vehicles, such as a dump truck and motorcycles, are available for auction in Oakland County. See the auction schedule.
5. The weekend is here! Find things to do here.

Donald Trump's lawyers begin his defense in the E. Jean Carroll defamation suit

Former President Donald Trump 's lawyers began his defense Thursday with the expectation that he'll be called as a witness to fight a lawsuit seeking over $10 million for things he said about advice columnist E. Jean Carroll after she accused him of sexual assault.

Trump attorney Alina Habba called as her first witness a retired television journalist and friend of Carroll — Frances Carol Martin — to testify at the Manhattan federal court trial, asking how she expressed her concern to her friend about her own safety after Carroll went public with her claims about Trump in 2019 as she was publicizing a memoir.

Martin acknowledged that Carroll had assured her that she didn't have any major security concerns as the public learned about her claims that Trump had raped her in the dressing room of a midtown Manhattan luxury department store in spring 1996.

Read more here.

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