Trooper drunk driving case will be retried.

May 13, 2015
Trooper drunk driving case will be retried.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief.  LUDINGTON — Mason County Prosecuting Attorney Paul Spaniola announced today that his office would retry Michigan State Police Trooper Sammy Seymour for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Seymour was arrested on Jan. 17, 2015 by Ludington Police Department and charged with OWI and with open container. OWI is a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum of 93…

Read more »

Memorial service for Orval Smith is Saturday.

May 13, 2015
Memorial service for Orval Smith is Saturday.

Orval W. Smith, 91 of Custer, passed away on January 14, 2015.  A Graveside Memorial Service with military and Mason County Rural Fire Authority honors will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 16 at Riverside Cemetery, Custer with Rev. Norman Letsinger officiating.  Following the service, a reception will be held at the Custer Gold Bar VFW Post 5096 in Orval’s…

Read more »

Synthetic substance abuse on the rise; officials concerned.

May 13, 2015
Synthetic substance abuse on the rise; officials concerned.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief. LUDINGTON — Local law enforcement and medical officials are becoming concerned with a recent increase in cases involving teenagers and synthetic substances being ingested via e-cigarette vaporizers and they want the public to know. The Mason County Sheriff’s Office hosted a press conference Tuesday morning which included representatives from MCSO, Michigan State Police, Ludington Police Department,…

Read more »

Police respond to domestic assaults, suspicious situations

May 13, 2015
Police respond to domestic assaults, suspicious situations

The police news is sponsored by VanderHaag Car Sales of Scottville, 231-757-2727, www.vanderhaagcarsales.com and Springstead Law Offices, with locations in Hart and Fremont, 231-873-4022 (Hart),www.springsteadlaw.com. The following is Ludington Police Department activity from Tuesday, May 12, 2015: – 1:46 a.m., suspicious situation, 200 block of East Fifth St. – 6 a.m., suspicious situation, 300 block of N. Rowe St. –…

Read more »

Glucose monitors topic of diabetes meeting

May 13, 2015

LUDINGTON — The May meeting of the Type 1 Diabetes Support Group at Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital will feature a discussion of “Continuous blood glucose monitors—are they a viable option?” The meeting will take place Wednesday, May 20 at 7 p.m. near the fireplace in the hospital’s main lobby. For further information please call Kay Kessel, RN, OCN, at 231-690-4731.

Read more »

Drunk driving trial with trooper declared mistrial.

May 12, 2015
Drunk driving trial with trooper declared mistrial.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief. LUDINGTON — The drunk driving trial of Michigan State Police Trooper Sammy Seymour has ended as a mistrial due to a hung jury. After deliberating for about 90 minutes, the six jurors came out of the jury room and announced that they could not come to an agreement. At that time, 79th District Court Judge Pete…

Read more »

Walhalla man sent to prison for numerous convictions

May 12, 2015
Walhalla man sent to prison for numerous convictions

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor. LUDINGTON — A 22-year-old Walhalla man who pleaded guilty to numerous charges in 51st Circuit Court last month was sentenced to prison Tuesday, May 12. Nicholas Brian Lauterwasser was arrested last December by the Michigan State Police for felonies of interfering with electronic communications; third-offense domestic violence; and third-offense habitual offender. In a separate file,…

Read more »

Man who strangled victim during assault pleads guilty

May 12, 2015
Man who strangled victim during assault pleads guilty

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor. LUDINGTON — A 38-year-old Ludington man is looking at serving 10 months in jail after pleading guilty to assault by strangulation in 51st Circuit Court Tuesday, May 12. Joseph Otto Chamness was arrested Dec. 11 by the Ludington Police Department for a 10-year felony of assault by strangulation and second-offense domestic violence. Chamness, who is currently…

Read more »

Recent death, May 12, 2015.

May 12, 2015

Leonard Allen Vunck, 67, of Ludington passed away on October 29, 2014. Arrangements by Oak Grove Funeral Home and Cremation Center, Ludington. List of 2015 deaths on record. 

Read more »

Man who made a false bomb threat at Tendercare allowed release from jail for mental health treatment

May 12, 2015
Man who made a false bomb threat at Tendercare allowed release from jail for mental health treatment

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor. LUDINGTON — The 22-year-old Ludington man who was arrested last December after making a false bomb threat to Tendercare of Ludington was sentenced in 51st Circuit Court Tuesday, May 12. Dayvin Michael Flickinger was ordered to one year discretionary jail with eight months up front, and if he is accepted into inpatient treatment, Judge Susan…

Read more »

MCP Podcast: Special Olympics to hold fundraising dodgeball fundraiser.

May 12, 2015
MCP Podcast: Special Olympics to hold fundraising dodgeball fundraiser.

  Click to the left of the timer on the left to begin. A white square should appear. Editor’s note: Today MCP introduces our first podcast. We plan on regularly providing these audio stories featuring community events. They will also soon be available for subscription on iTunes.  By Kate Krieger. MCP Correspondent. LUDINGTON — Area 24 Special Olympics will be holding…

Read more »

Strangulation case set for trial, may reach resolution

May 12, 2015
Strangulation case set for trial, may reach resolution

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor. LUDINGTON — The case against a 26-year-old Scottville man accused of felonies of assault by strangulation and interfering with electronic communications, along with a misdemeanor of domestic violence, is being scheduled for trial in 51st Circuit Court. Jason Matthew Kapala, who was arrested last March by the Mason County Sheriff’s Office, is free after posting…

Read more »

Hart man receives tether term for retail fraud

May 12, 2015
Hart man receives tether term for retail fraud

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor. LUDINGTON — A 45-year-old Hart man who stole approximately $1,500 in merchandise from the Ludington Walmart with his wife last December will spend the next three months on an electronic monitoring device or tether. Randy Alan VanDerZanden and his wife Melinda Ann VanDerZanden, 31, were arrested, Dec. 1, by the Mason County Sheriff’s Office. He…

Read more »

MSP: Suspect reportedly brandished handgun

May 12, 2015
MSP: Suspect reportedly brandished handgun

The police news is sponsored by VanderHaag Car Sales of Scottville, 231-757-2727, www.vanderhaagcarsales.com and Springstead Law Offices, with locations in Hart and Fremont, 231-873-4022 (Hart),www.springsteadlaw.com. AMBER TWP. — Troopers from the Hart post of the Michigan State Police were dispatched to a suspicious situation Monday, May 11, at 8:07 p.m. near the intersection of US-10 and US-31 where a suspect…

Read more »

Reed wins international photography award.

May 12, 2015
Reed wins international photography award.

Ludington-based photojournalist Ryan Spencer Reed has been announced as the winner of the Leica Oskar Barnack Public Award 2015. Now in its second year, the Public Award is organized in conjunction with the photo-competition platform www.i-shot-it.com. Visitors to the website were able to vote for their favourite submission from a pool of pre-selected finalists. Reed won by a large margin with…

Read more »

Scottville Main Street’s future may be limited due to tax collection error.

May 11, 2015
Scottville Main Street’s future may be limited due to tax collection error.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief. SCOTTVILLE — The Scottville Main Street portion of the city’s Downtown Development Authority may cease to exist after June due to an error in distribution of its funds. The DDA is a specially assessed part of the city’s central business district. Typically, Scottville property owners pay taxes that are distributed into millages for the city, the…

Read more »

Scottville approves millage, second time around.

May 11, 2015

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief. SCOTTVILLE — City Commission approved the 2015-2016 city budget Monday during a special meeting. The meeting was called because commissioners found discrepancies in the budget during the commissions regular meeting last Monday. Among those discrepancies was an approximate $12,000 error under the line item of “city hall.” City Manager Amy Williams said the error was due…

Read more »

Recent death, May 11, 2015.

May 11, 2015

Helen (Ruthven/Fiers) Rust, 96, of Ludington passed away on May 10, 2015 at Oakview Medical Care Facility. Arrangements by Oak Grove Funeral Home and Cremation Center, Ludington. Nancy Brooks, 84, of Ludington, passed away on Monday, May 11, 2015.  Arrangements by Wyman Funeral & Cremation Services – Stephens Funeral Home, Scottville. List of 2015 deaths on record. 

Read more »

Drunk driving trial against state trooper begins.

May 11, 2015
Drunk driving trial against state trooper begins.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief. LUDINGTON — The 79th District Court trial of the City of Ludington vs. Sammy Seymour began this morning. Seymour, a Michigan State Police trooper, was arrested on Jan. 17, 2015, by Ludington Police Dept. and charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated. A six person jury, consisting of three men and three women, was seated for…

Read more »

Sexual assault in the woods

May 11, 2015
Sexual assault in the woods

The police news is sponsored by VanderHaag Car Sales of Scottville, 231-757-2727, www.vanderhaagcarsales.com and Springstead Law Offices, with locations in Hart and Fremont, 231-873-4022 (Hart),www.springsteadlaw.com. PERE MARQUETTE TWP. — A 36-year-old Ludington man was arrested by the Mason County Sheriff’s Office for fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct Saturday, May 9, at 12:39 p.m. following a disturbance in a wooded area off…

Read more »

Missing Ludington man identified as body found in river.

May 11, 2015
Missing Ludington man identified as body found in river.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief. LOGAN TWP. — Leonard Allen Vunck has been identified as the man who was found dead in the river Friday night, according to the Michigan State Police. Vunck, 67, of Ludington, had been missing since October 2014, when he hired a taxi to pick him up from his home at Pineview Apartments and to drive him out…

Read more »