What happens when the regulatory systems we depend on to protect us break down?
In February, President Trump signed an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act — a wartime authority — to guarantee the domestic supply of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, the world’s most widely used weedkiller. The order extends legal immunity to its producers. It came one day after Bayer proposed a $7.25 billion settlement to resolve tens of thousands of cancer lawsuits without admitting wrongdoing.
The World Health Organization classifies glyphosate as a probable carcinogen.
Last month on The Metro, Harvard historian Naomi Oreskes explained how the landmark safety study behind Roundup was ghostwritten by Monsanto, cited by regulators worldwide for 25 years, and finally retracted after she and researcher Alexander Kaurov documented its influence. Since then, she has identified more scientific research ghostwritten by Monsanto.
To discuss, Oreskes, author of “Merchants of Doubt,” returned to The Metro to join Robyn Vincent.
Hear the full conversation using the media player above.
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One of the most popular programs in the City of Detroit is community violence intervention. It’s a policy that tasks neighborhood residents with intervening in disputes to reduce gun violence and mitigate harm. Many say it’s working.
Now, the city is trying to institutionalize community violence intervention work and programs like it. That’s why Detroit created a new department: The Office of Neighborhood and Community Safety.
What is the scope of the office’s responsibilities? And, how does it believe it can target and alleviate the roots of violence?
Teferi Brent is the office’s first director. He spoke with The Metro’s Robyn Vincent.
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The cities of Dearborn and Warren, MI have launched Drone-as-a-First-Responder programs. In Dearborn, a drone can now reach a 911 call in about two and a half minutes, often before a patrol car leaves the station.
Police and fire departments in Warren are sharing a fleet of these drones to scout house fires, crime scenes, and missing-person searches before officers arrive on the ground.
It’s fast and efficient. Police chiefs call it a game-changer. But more surveillance and more data come with increased risks and erode privacy and anonymity in public spaces.
Are the tradeoffs worth it? Drone researcher and author Arthur Holland Michel joined The Metro to discuss.
Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.
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Alerts of an active shooter situation around Temple Israel in West Bloomfield were issued Thursday afternoon after a man armed with a rifle rammed his truck into the building.
Listen: 6:30 press conference on Temple Israel attack
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said at a short briefing that security engaged the shooter on the scene. A source told the Detroit News that the attacker was killed, though they cannot verify how he died at this time.
Shortly before 1 p.m., the attacker drove into the synagogue and down a hallway before exchanging fire with Temple Israel security. The truck ignited, creating plumes of smoke that could be seen from the road. Law enforcement is searching for potential explosives.
One security officer was knocked unconscious by the attack, but everyone else on the premise is unharmed—including teachers and students attending the early childhood center.
In a statement posted to Facebook Temple Israel thanked teachers, staff, officers, families, and neighbors for their quick action and care.
The FBI is now leading the investigation into the attacker and motive.
Located at 5725 Walnut Lake Road, Temple Israel is one of the largest reform synagogues in the U.S.
State police said in a statement on X that troopers will be increasing patrols surrounding other places of worship in the area.
Sheriff Bouchard noted that he had been coordinating with local law enforcement and faith centers frequently over the last two weeks in preparation for such an attack after the U.S. and Israel began striking Iran.
This is a developing story. Check in at wdet.org for more updates.
Last updated: 8:38 p.m.
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This story was originally published by Bridge Michigan, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. Visit the newsroom online: bridgemi.com.
In Oakland County’s Waterford Township, concern over the use of automatic license plate readers by law enforcement agencies escalated to a 24-year-old man smashing several of the devices to bits.
Police credit one of the cameras he’s accused of breaking with helping track him down. The license plate reader, Sheriff Scott Underwood said, captured his license plate data before it was damaged.
Underwood highlighted that incident as one of many examples where the readers have assisted in solving crimes quickly, but the damaged cameras and subsequent arrest highlight the tension many communities are experiencing as local officials grapple with how and whether to use automatic license plate readers in policing.
At least 16 states have adopted policies aimed at regulating the use and retention of data collected by license plate readers, which capture pictures of vehicle license plates every time a car drives by.
A group of lawmakers led by Republican state Rep. Doug Wozniak of Shelby Township and Democratic state Rep. Jimmie Wilson of Ypsilanti are suggesting it’s time for Michigan to do the same.
“Michiganders deserve to know that new technology is being used responsibly, not in ways that invade privacy or erode public confidence,” Wozniak said in a statement announcing bipartisan bills to regulate the devices, arguing their plan would protect driver privacy and help maintain public trust in law enforcement.
Absent a statewide policy, decisions on the use of license plate readers have fallen to local law enforcement agencies and municipal governments.
In communities where license plate reader contracts are being considered, concerned residents have increasingly spoken up at public hearings about the possibility of data being used to surveil lawful activity or the possible sharing of data with federal law enforcement agencies.
At least 125 Michigan agencies contract with the Atlanta-based company Flock Safety, one of the largest providers nationwide of automatic license plate reader technology.
Law enforcement agencies using the devices tout the technology as a speedy way to help locate missing people or catch criminals, and some police groups are concerned the proposed statewide regulations as written would go too far.
“We’re not against any regulations — we just don’t want it to weaken what a good investigative tool the license plate readers are,” said Matt Saxton, executive director of the Michigan Sheriff’s Association.
HOW THE BILLS WOULD WORK
If the proposed legislation became law, the biggest change would be a restriction on how long any data collected by license plate readers is stored.
Lawmakers supporting the bills are pushing for a 14-day limit on data retention, as well as limiting use of the license plate reader system to specific law enforcement actions, including:
Finding missing peopleLocating stolen vehiclesLocating people with outstanding arrest warrantsIdentifying uninsured or unregistered vehiclesParking and tolling enforcementCriminal investigations
The legislation also calls for publicly available reports from agencies using the readers on how the data is used and would offer a path for legal recourse if a driver believes his or her data was used improperly.
State and local governments can support effective policing “while still demanding safeguards that protect civil liberties,” Wilson said in a statement announcing the bills.
“This legislation creates clear limits on how … data is collected, stored and shared, ensuring these tools are used to improve public safety, not to enable routine mass surveillance,” he continued.
In most communities with license plate readers, the devices are placed at or near major public intersections. As vehicles pass by, the reader takes a photo of the back of the car, collecting the license plate number that can be used to look up the vehicle registration.
Photos are typically stored by the contractor for 30 days, though locals can elect to keep them for more or less time. The law enforcement entity can then cross-check those images with “hot lists” of license plates connected to suspected criminals or missing people.
Critics contend that 24-hour surveillance of drivers, the vast majority of whom will never be charged with a crime, poses major privacy concerns — especially considering the 30-day standard for storing the data also means anyone with access could gain insight into a driver’s daily routines.
Saxton, the executive director of the Sheriff’s Association, said law enforcement criminal investigations or missing person searches can take longer than two weeks to complete. He’s concerned cutting the timeline short could limit the effectiveness of the tool.
“If that data was gone after 14 days, we couldn’t use that as a tool to help that family find out answers about their missing loved ones,” he said.
The proposed legislation is pending in the House Judiciary Committee and would need to earn majority support in the politically divided House and Senate to become law.
ACLU of Michigan policy strategist Gabrielle Dresner, whose organization worked closely with lawmakers on crafting the proposal, is optimistic about the chances of meaningful reform.
“In conversations we’ve had with the vast majority of the representatives, we’ve had a lot of support from both sides of the aisle … the most left of left and right of right,” she said. “It’s really a popular issue among everyone.”
WHERE THINGS STAND STATEWIDE
In the meantime, communities around the state are reaching differing conclusions about how to balance law enforcement requests with increased pushback from citizens.
After weeks of opposition from residents, Lapeer County Sheriff Scott McKenna recently pulled back a request for license plate readers.
He told county commissioners that he personally believes foregoing the readers “leaves us in a vulnerable position,” but, after taking stock of the situation, he “felt it was my duty at that point to pull it off the agenda.”
Some cities, including Bay City and Ferndale, have in recent months backed out of contracts with Flock and have reassessed their license plate reader policies or switched to a different provider in response to community concerns.
In Detroit, city council members recently requested a report on how data collected from the city’s more than 500 license plate readers is used, expressing concerns about the possibility of data sharing.
But other communities are still considering getting their own license plate readers or adding onto existing contracts as local police credit the technology with helping locate stolen vehicles, bust human trafficking rings, solve serious crimes like rapes and murders and fill coverage gaps in short-staffed departments.
Local officials in Trenton and Taylor this week considered renewing existing contracts with Flock Safety. Taylor police credit the tool with arrests in a 14-year-old’s shooting death and a sting operation involving possible child predators, among other things.
In Waterford Township, where police began using license plate readers in 2022, law enforcement was recently approved to add additional readers and Flock-powered drones to its repertoire, despite concerted pushback from locals.
After several cameras were destroyed — including the camera that led to an arrest in the crime — Underwood, the Waterford police chief, in a press release said the public is entitled to their opinions regarding the readers, but aren’t entitled to maliciously interfere.
The license plate readers “collect only images of vehicles and license plates,” he said in the release. “Those images, coupled with a number of other investigative techniques, led to a successful resolution in this case, that being the arrest of a person who committed three felonies.”
A Flock Safety license-plate, vehicle-trait recognition camera is deployed along southbound Gratiot Avenue north of Interstate 696 in Roseville.
MACOMB DAILY PHOTO
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday fired his embattled Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, after mounting criticism over her leadership of the department, including the handling of the administration’s immigration crackdown and disaster response.
Trump, who said he would nominate in her place Oklahoma Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin, made the announcement on social media on Thursday, two days after Noem faced a grilling on Capitol Hill from GOP members as well as Democrats.
Trump says he’ll make Noem a “Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas,” a new security initiative that he said would focus on the Western Hemisphere.
Noem, took the stage to address a Department of Homeland Security event moments after Trump’s announcement but made no immediate mention of her ouster. Instead, she read from prepared remarks, including reinforcing Trump’s message from the State of the Union last month.
Noem is the first Cabinet secretary to leave during Trump’s second term. Noem’s departure caps a tumultuous tenure overseeing immigration enforcement tactics that have been met with protests and lawsuits.
Noem’s tenure looked increasingly short-lived after hearings in Congress this week where she faced rare but blistering criticism from Republican lawmakers. One particular point of scrutiny was a $220 million ad campaign featuring Noem that encouraged people in the country illegally to leave voluntarily.
Noem told lawmakers that Trump was aware of the campaign in advance, but Trump disputed that in an interview Thursday with Reuters, saying he did not sign off on the ad campaign.
Noem has faced waves of criticism as she’s overseen Trump’s immigration crackdown, especially since the shooting deaths of two protesters in Minneapolis at the hands of immigration enforcement officers. The former South Dakota governor was also criticized over the way her department has spent billions of dollars allocated to it by Congress.
Frustrations over Noem’s execution of the Republican president’s hard-line immigration agenda — particularly her leadership after the shooting deaths of the two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis — as well as her handling of disaster response, paved the way for her downfall. She faced blistering criticism from Democrats, and some Republicans, in Congress hearings this week over those issues and others.
Aside from immigration, Noem also faced criticism — including from Republicans — over the pace of emergency funding approved through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and for the Trump administration’s response to disasters.
Mullin would need to be confirmed by the Senate, but under a federal law governing executive branch vacancies, he would be allowed to serve as an acting Homeland Security secretary as long as his nomination is formally pending.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Surveillance footage captured a coyote following a 3-year-old boy toward his home in Pasadena earlier this week.
At around 1 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 23, on Tamarac Drive, 3-year-old Salvo Bessemer exited his gated courtyard and headed for the driveway, hoping to give his father, Leonard Bessemer, a hug goodbye before he left for work, his father said.
Salvo did not find his dad, who had left about five minutes earlier. Instead, he spotted a coyote in front of the house, Leonard Bessemer said. The boy then turned around and ran back toward the house, screaming for his mother.
Video footage shows Salvo reaching the door, with the coyote following behind him. Audio captured Salvo’s mother, Aida Svelto, screaming when she spotted the coyote near the entrance.
The coyote then turned around and trotted away. According to Bessemer, the animal did not immediately leave the area, but lingered nearby for a short time, watching the house through ivy on the property.
Coyotes are frequently spotted in the neighborhood, Bessemer said. He sees one at least once a week while on early-morning runs and typically makes noise to deter them, especially when accompanied by the family’s chihuahua, Sam.
Monday’s scare prompted Bessemer and his fiancée to take stricter precautions with both Sam and Salvo.
“We made a rule that he’s not to go to the gate without one of us,” Bessemer said. “It might have gone differently if Salvo had been by himself.”
Bessemer said he also plans to make sure Sam is always leashed when taken outside and that the front door remains closed as a precaution.
Kevin McManus of Pasadena Humane said that while the video may appear frightening, the coyote did not demonstrate signs of aggressive or hunting behavior based on the footage.
“The good news is everybody’s safe,” McManus said.
Bessemer said he has noticed more coyotes in the area recently, including during daytime hours. McManus said this is likely due to mating season, when coyotes are more active and more likely to be seen outside of dawn and dusk.
“People should make noise and try to make coyotes uncomfortable to scare them off,” McManus said. “Remember, we’re bigger than them.”
McManus also advised residents to be extra cautious with pets during this season and to avoid leaving food or unsecured trash around their homes.
Surveillance footage shows a coyote following 3-year-old Salvo Bessemer toward his home in Pasadena on Monday, Feb. 23. (Courtesy of Leonard Bessemer)
UAW Stellantis workers are reportedly disappointed because they are not getting profit sharing checks from 2025. This follows the company facing a multibillion dollar deficit last year. It’s also the first time Stellantis hasn’t provided a profit-sharing bonus since the recession.
The Big Three has faced obstacles because of tariff uncertainty, Electric vehicle whiplash, interest rates and more, but Ford and GM still provided a profit-sharing checks to their employees. Stellantis says that it expects 2026 and its expanding product wave to bring profitable growth in North America.
Additional headlines for Friday, Feb. 27, 2016
Personnel shortage in behavioral health field
A new report from the Michigan Health Council shows that Michigan doesn’t have enough opportunities for students to become behavioral health care workers. This is contributing to a shortage of certified school-based mental health professionals across the state, according to the council.
This shortage puts a large workload on the personnel in this field. In the 2023-2024 school year Michigan had about 600 students per school counselor, over a thousand students per school psychologists, and almost 500 students per social worker. The report goes on to share that improving vocational programs could introduce thousands of high school students to fulfilling careers in behavioral health.
Sports updates
NBA
The Detroit Pistons face the Cleveland Cavaliers today at Little Ceasars Arena but—like their game against the Thunder—the opposing team is without their best players, with both Donovan Mitchall out with groin injuries and James Harden questionable with a thumb injury.
The Pistons are playing without their full strength with Isaiah Stweart out again because of his involvement in the fight with the Charlotte Hornets on Feb. 9. This is his sixth game of his seven game suspension.
Tonight’s game tip off is at 7 p.m. with a following away game against the Magic on Sunday, March 1.
NHL
The Red Wings face the Carolina Hurricanes tomorrow Feb. 28 at the Lenovo Center. The Red Wings are currently second in the Atlantic Divison with 34 wins and 19 losses. Game starts at 7 p.m.
Blueberry recall
More than 55,000 pounds of frozen blueberries, some of which were shipped to Michigan, have been recalled because of possible listeria contamination.
The Oregon Potato Company was the distributor of the recalled berries. This shipment was also sent to Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin and Canada.
The FDA recalled it initially on Feb. 12 and classified the recall as a Class 1 recall on Feb. 24, which means there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.
Go to your local grocery store to see if your purchase of frozen blueberries was in the mix.
Handmaid’s Tale in Detroit
And the dystopian world of the Handmaid’s Tale comes to the Detroit Opera House. The play, once a hit television series and novel, is a chilling look into a future where America’s democracy morphs into a religious tyranny.
There are showings on Sunday March 1, Thursday March 5 and Saturday March 7.
Listen to the latest episode of the “Detroit Evening Report” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.
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Khary Mason is a multidisciplinary artist from Detroit who has spent much of his life living in a state of cognitive dissonance.
For over 20 years, Mason worked as a member of the Detroit Police Department and eventually became a detective for the city’s homicide unit.
Looking back six years after leaving the department, he considers those training years a form of indoctrination and sees the work of “protecting and serving” communities as a means of controlling them.
He illustrates these reflections in his new exhibition “Friendly Fire: Scenes of Service, Searching for Safety.” It is on display now at Irwin House Detroit through March 15. Mason joined the program to discuss his journey into service and why he chose to get out.
Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.
WDET strives to cover what’s happening in your community. As a public media institution, we maintain our ability to explore the music and culture of our region through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
A Pontiac teen accused of shooting to death a Warren teen in January is scheduled for a preliminary exam in late March where evidence will be presented for a judge to determine if there’s probable cause to advance the case to Oakland County Circuit Court for possible trial.
Kqualin Isaac Douglas, 19, is charged with second-degree homicide for the death of Cornelius Traves Murphy Jr., 19, whose body was discovered on Jan. 8 near a home in the 100 block of North Jessie Street in Pontiac. A caller had reported seeing a man lying in a field and not breathing, the sheriff’s office said.
The man — subsequently identified as Murphy — had been shot in the chest, the sheriff’s office said.
Kqualin Douglas booking photo
Investigators said the shooting happened Jan. 7. Douglas turned himself in to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office a few weeks later.
The preliminary exam is scheduled for March 30 before 50th District Judge Ronda Fowlkes Gross.
Along with second-degree homicide, Douglas is charged with tampering with evidence, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and using a firearm in the commission of a felony. He’s held in the Oakland County Jail with bond set at $300,000.
As stated in his obituary, Murphy was the son of Cornelius T. Murphy, Sr. and Chantell Hunter. He’s also survived by eight siblings, and several other relatives and friends.
A pair of social media trolls — including one who sports a “Make America Great Again” red hat — have been arrested for trying to light a Black woman’s boots on fire during a clash on a Manhattan street filled with racist insults, police said Thursday.
The demented duo, known online as “ScrubsNYC,” were nabbed late Wednesday, just a few hours after cops released their images and asked the public’s help tracking them down. They were wanted for a bizarre hate crime on W. 26th St. and Seventh Ave. in Chelsea on Feb. 19.
Michael Santiago, 31, and Michael James, 33, were hit with a slew of charges including attempted assault, criminal mischief and menacing, all as hate crimes, as well as aggravated harassment, arson and criminal tampering. The two suspects live in the same apartment building on the Upper East Side, according to cops.
The pair, known online as "ScrubsNYC" were arrested late Wednesday, just a few hours after cops released their images in connection with a reported hate crime on W. 26th St. and Seventh Ave. in Chelsea on Feb. 19. (NYPD)
The two approached the 54-year-old victim about 2:50 p.m. and were chatting her up when the provacateur in the MAGA hat began spewing a racist tirade that was caught on camera and posted online.
“I want to f— you right up your n—– a–,” the man in the MAGA hat screamed. “I want to f— a slave. You’re my slave. You’re my slave.”
The woman casually pulled out her own phone and began recording the creeps, throwing insults right back at them.
“Of course you do,” she said of their comments about bedding her. “I could never ’cause you’re a slave — you’re a slave to my Blackness.”
The suspect told the woman, “kiss me,” and she replied saying she “would never.”
“That’s your bitch, not me,” the woman said casually, motioning to the camera man recording the entire exchange.
NYPD
The pair, known online as "ScrubsNYC" were arrested late Wednesday, just a few hours after cops released their images in connection with a reported hate crime on W. 26th St. and Seventh Ave. in Chelsea on Feb. 19. (NYPD)
At one point, one of the provacateur’s asked to kiss the victim’s pair of boots. She agreed, but when he knelt down he set one of her boots on fire with a hand-held blowtorch.
The hair on the boots were singed but the flames quickly petered out, the video shows. Cops say the $89 pair of boots were ruined.
The woman didn’t appear to notice as she continued to trade insults with the creep.
“I just burned your boot,” the provocateur said.
“Of course you did,” the victim replied.
“I want to impregnate you, let’s f—,” the MAGA hat sporting suspect said.
“Of course you want to impregnate me and contaminate my race,” she replied. “Your mother’s a f——.”
Barry Williams/ New York Daily News
Michael James is pictured in custody outside the Midtown South Precinct station house on Thursday. (Barry Williams/ New York Daily News)
The victim reported the incident to police after she realized her $89 boots were damaged. She also gave cops images of the two suspects from her recording of the bizarre exchange.
Scrubsnyc boasts about being the “biggest streamers in New York right now” in one of their online videos.
One video shows the pair lying in traffic and angering strangers with their bizarre rants.
“Yeah, right here bro! Do something!” one angered resident screams at them on the sidewalk in one clip. “Do something! Then don’t f—ing run your mouth! Get the f— out of here!”
Barry Williams/ New York Daily News
Michael Santiago is pictured in custody outside the Midtown South Precinct station house on Thursday. (Barry Williams/ New York Daily News)
Many of the videos show the MAGA hat-wearing provocateur being forced to leave an apartment building or a bodega. In one quick clip, a bodega patron throws a drink at him. In another, a woman knocks the red hat off his head.
“They tell you that the city never sleeps,” Scrubsnyc wrote in the opening of one video. “But they don’t tell you about the ones who keep it awake.”
Michael James, left, and Michael Santiago are pictured in police custody outside the NYPD Midtown South Precinct station house on Thursday Feb. 26, 2026 in Manhattan, New York. (Barry Williams/ New York Daily News)
Sheriff Michael Bouchard is worried about people who want to keep tabs on federal agents for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and the U.S. Border Patrol in Oakland County.
There’s confusion between the federal agents in masks and unmarked cars and undercover sheriff’s deputies assigned to the narcotics enforcement or fugitive apprehension teams, he said.
“We’ve had people show up at these high-risk (sheriff’s) raids … running up with their phones and trying to insert themselves, thinking it’s ICE,” he said. “But it’s a very dangerous situation. If a suspect opens fire, the (people with phones) would be in the middle of it.”
Deputies working undercover must wear masks and use unmarked cars for their own safety and the safety of anyone who helped them as part of a criminal investigation, Bouchard said, adding that suspects would recognize an unmasked undercover officer, make the connection with the person who helped the officer, endangering their lives.
Police dispatchers get calls every week from residents who think ICE agents were at a mall, a school or other location, “but that never happened,” he said.
Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard. (Peg McNichol/MediaNews Group)
Those are just a few things people don’t understand about the difference between deputies’ and ICE activities.
Another, he said, is that deputies don’t work with ICE.
“The U.S. Supreme Court held that immigration is under federal authority and it’s a federal government job,” he said. “We don’t have the authority, nor do we want the authority, to arrest someone simply for being in this country illegally. But if they’re in our custody and suspected of a crime, we will alert ICE.”
Bouchard said ICE agents would be informed when that person would be released from custody, but if federal agents are not present at that time the person would go free.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald issued a statement last week opposing the presence of ICE in the county.
She reminded people that basic constitutional rights include “the right to be free from unlawful arrest, regardless of immigration status.”
McDonald said she expected any legal violations by federal, local or county officers to be “fully and transparently investigated by independent authorities.”
Facebook video
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald. (FILE)
Federal agents do not have absolute immunity from prosecution, according to the think tank Brennan Center for Justice, which has offices in New York and Washington D.C., however federal officials can impede state or local investigations.
After the shooting deaths of Minneapolis residents Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents, federal officials opposed an investigation by Minnesota officials and would not share information with the state. Deaths during law-enforcement incidents are typically investigated by a separate, independent law-enforcement agency.
A criminal case has advanced for a Royal Oak man charged with felonious assault and other crimes for allegedly crashing his vehicle multiple times into another — with infant occupants — and then fleeing the scene.
The case against Brian Robert Bock, 54, was bound over to Oakland County Circuit Court on Thursday at the conclusion of a preliminary exam in Troy’s 52-4 District Court.
According to police, on Feb. 3 a woman reported that she was rear-ended while stopped at a red light at Big Beaver and Crooks roads; her car was then struck by the same vehicle multiple times before it went on the road’s shoulder to get around her and drove away.
No injuries were reported, police said.
Brian Bock booking photo (Troy Police Dept.)
After reviewing dash camera video from a witness, police caught up with Bock in a vehicle with heavy front-end crash damage — then arrested him.
Along with felonious assault, Bock is charged with malicious destruction of personal property valued at more than $1,000 but less than $20,000, reckless driving and failure to stop at the scene of a property damage accident. He’s held in the Oakland County Jail with bond set at $50,000.
Bock is scheduled for arraignment in the higher court on March 10.
For the MDOP charge, Bock could face up to five years in prison and a hefty fine if convicted. Felonious assault is punishable by up to four years in prison and/or a $2,000 fine; the other crimes he’s charged with are misdemeanors.
A former Cherry Creek School District teacher was arrested Monday on suspicion of child sex assault after a former student came forward, police said.
Robert Combs, 56, was arrested on investigation of five counts of sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust and three misdemeanor counts of abusing public trust as an educator, according to Arapahoe County court records.
Combs was a CTE Engineering and Technology Teacher at Grandview High School, 20500 E. Arapahoe Road, between 2002 and late 2025, according to a letter sent to parents and families by the Cherry Creek School District.
The school district placed Combs on administrative leave in October 2025, when Grandview Principal Lisa Roberts was first made aware of the sexual assault allegations by the Aurora Police Department, police wrote in his arrest affidavit. Combs was officially “separated” from the school district on Nov. 13, according to the letter sent to parents.
“The safety and security of our students and staff is our highest priority,” school district officials wrote in the letter. “We appreciate your partnership in these critical efforts. We are committed to keeping you informed about all aspects of your child’s education.”
Aurora officers responded to Grandview High School on Oct. 30, after a former student reached out to Roberts to apologize for lying to her in 2022 and said they were considering reporting Combs, according to the affidavit.
The student previously denied having an inappropriate relationship with Combs to Roberts in 2022 after a security guard and other teachers came forward with suspicions about the nature of the two’s relationship, the affidavit stated. At that time, the student said Combs was “like a father.”
Roberts encouraged the student to report Combs and also contacted the Aurora Police Department in October to report the incident on her own, according to the affidavit.
The unidentified victim first met Combs in August 2021 when the student joined a high school club the man advised, the Technology Student Association, according to Combs’ arrest affidavit.
Other teachers at Grandview High School also recommended that the student reach out to Combs for assistance with getting into a military academy, police wrote in the affidavit. Combs helped the student with interview preparation, essay writing and physical training.
In February 2022, Grandview students and staff attended the association’s state conference in Denver, according to the affidavit. Combs allegedly encouraged the then-underage student to come back to his hotel room, where they kissed and he “expressed romantic feelings” for them.
The victim told Aurora Police they “felt shocked and unsure how to respond,” according to the affidavit.
Combs’ interactions with the student after the conference “became more frequent and increasingly inappropriate,” police wrote in the arrest affidavit.
The student would meet Combs after school to work on applications, and those meetings often turned intimate, the student told police. Combs also sent the student inappropriate photos and text messages.
Combs and the student had sex in classrooms, offices and closets at the high school almost every day between March 2022 and May 2022, according to the arrest affidavit. They would also drive to empty parking lots and have sex in cars.
The student told police that it felt like they “owed” Combs for his help, the affidavit stated.
Combs and the student’s relationship ended in December 2022, according to the affidavit. The student blocked his number and “ceased all contact” with Combs in February 2023, but didn’t come forward about the relationship until October 2025.
Police advised Roberts of the specific sexual assault allegations made toward Combs late that month, at which point Combs was suspended and escorted out of the school, according to the affidavit.
Combs is next scheduled to appear in court on March 20 for a preliminary hearing, court records show. He posted a $50,000 surety bail on Monday.
CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE, CO – MARCH 13: Cherry Creek school bus drivers get their buses ready at the Cherry Creek Bus terminal March 13, 2014 in time for their route. The largest single cut at Cherry Creek Schools was to transportation. The district had to increase the walking distances for middle and high schools in 2010 (Photo by John Leyba/The Denver Post)
A 76-year-old man was arraigned Tuesday morning on multiple charges in connection with the non-fatal shootings of a woman and man in West Bloomfield last Saturday.
At arraignment before 48th District Judge Diane D’Agostini, bond was set at $3 million for Fawzi George Kased of West Bloomfield, charged with two counts of assault with intent to murder, discharging a firearm in or at a building, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and four counts of felony firearms.
Assault with intent to murder carries the highest penalty, up to life in prison.
The victims are reportedly recovering from their injuries. The shootings were targeted and not random, according to West Bloomfield Police Chief Dale Young.
Police spotted the suspect — later identified as Kased — while he was driving. He was pulled over and exited the car while holding a rifle, but dropped it when ordered to by officers, police said.
As previously reported, the case unfolded shortly before 9 a.m. when a resident of the Thornberry Apartments — near Maple and Farmington roads — contacted police and said another resident of the apartment complex tried unsuccessfully to force their way in the apartment with an object that looked like a stick. A few minutes later as officers began searching the area for the suspect, police received another call from someone who identified themselves as a family member of an employee at the Maple View liquor store on Maple Road just east of Farmington Road, reporting that the employee had been shot and was driving himself to the hospital. While officers were enroute to the hospital, additional calls came in from residents of the Thornberry Apartment complex, reporting gunshots in the area.
Kased’s next court appearance is scheduled for March 5 for a probable cause conference. A preliminary exam is scheduled for a week later, both to be held before Judge Marc Barron.
The Oakland Press has reached out to police for additional information, including the possible connection between the victims and Kased, and what may have prompted the shootings. Continued coverage of the case is planned.
A Troy woman is facing a charge of first-degree child abuse after a 13-month old child suffered serious brain damage, allegedly while in her care, officials said.
An arraignment is pending for Swapna Hari, 44. The complaint was filed on Feb. 24 in 52-4 District Court for the alleged Sept. 3, 2025 incident.
The crime is punishable by up to life in prison.
According to the prosecutor’s office, Hari claimed the infant fell backward while eating and started choking. The infant was hospitalized with severe head trauma and brain damage.
The prosecutor’s office said the injuries suffered are inconsistent with a backward fall or choking.
“In a single moment, this healthy and happy 13-month-old child suffered a life-changing injury, allegedly at the hands of this defendant,” Prosecutor Karen McDonald stated in a news release. “Our office sees too many cases of childhood brain injuries caused by abusers. These are physical injuries that often never heal completely. It’s heartbreaking and horrifying to learn a caregiver would harm a child instead of protecting them.”
The Oakland Press will report further on this case as additional information becomes available.
The case against a Royal Oak man accused of fatally shooting a maintenance worker outside an apartment complex was bound over Friday to Oakland County Circuit Court for possible trial.
The alleged killer, Nathaniel Rockwell, 33, faces charges of first-degree premeditated murder and three firearms-related crimes in connection with the July 31, 2025 fatal shooting of Gregory Hill, 65, of Southfield. The case was advanced after Rockwell waived his right to a preliminary exam in 44th District Court.
Nathaniel Rockwell (Royal Oak Police Dept.)
According to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, prior to the shooting, Rockwell — a tenant at the Devon Park apartment complex — received an eviction notice due to multiple incidents with firearms. He allegedly confronted building management and another tenant who had reported him, got into an argument and then retrieved a gun from his vehicle and began firing at Hill. Hill was shot approximately 11 times at close range, the prosecutor’s office said.
Hill was working at the time of the shooting, the prosecutor’s office said.
As stated in his obituary, Hill was a General Motors retiree who continued working as a part-time maintenance worker at apartment complexes. “Known as everyone’s mechanic and go-to handyman, Gregory’s hard working spirit and skillful hands touched the lives of many….Those who knew him will remember his discipline, unwavering consideration for others, and steadfast reliability — qualities that defined his life. He was deeply loving and dependable, connecting effortlessly with both pets and babies, who were always drawn to his warmth,” the obituary states.
Hill was married and had two daughters.
Rockwell is held in the Oakland County Jail, denied bond. Arraignment in the higher court is scheduled for March 2 before Judge Daniel O’Brien.
When a government agency decides whether a chemical in your food is safe, where does the science come from? Most of us assume it’s independent. In the case of Roundup — the world’s most widely used weedkiller — the manufacturer wrote the research, and it went unchallenged for 25 years.
Harvard historian of science Naomi Oreskes and researcher Alexander Kaurov changed that. Their 2025 analysis found the ghostwritten paper ranked in the top 0.1% of all cited glyphosate literature. They requested the journal retract it. In November 2025, it did, citing “serious ethical concerns.” Oreskes and Kaurov also wrote about their findings in Undark.
Oreskes, author of “Merchants of Doubt,” joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to discuss how one ghostwritten paper shaped pesticide policy for a generation, and what it means now that it’s been thrown out.
Hear the full conversation using the media player above.
Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
On this episode of The Metro, we tackled a really serious topic: online child exploitation.
It’s a criminal act that targets the most vulnerable people in our communities, kids and teens. Online child exploitation comes in many different forms, including online grooming, enticement and solicitation.
Kathryn Seigfried-Spellar is a professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University and an expert in the psychosocial and technological factors associated with cybercriminal behavior. She focuses on the criminological characteristics and grooming strategies of online child sex offenders.
Seigfried-Speller offers advice on keeping minors safe in our modern digital landscape.
Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
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