Michigan

DETROIT (AP) — Thieves are using cloned key fobs to steal Dodge muscle cars and other high-powered vehicles directly from dealerships and even automakers in Michigan, then selling them for tens of thousands of dollars less than their value, according to authorities and court records.

JACKSON, Mich. (AP) — A judge has dismissed a young woman from the jury hearing the trial of three men in connection with a 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer after attorneys accused her of flirting with one of the defendants.

Judge Thomas Wilson announced Friday that the woman has been removed from the jury, two days after attorneys raised concerns the juror was having too much non-verbal communication with defendant Paul Bellar, the Jackson Citizen Patriot reported.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — While preparing to march in a Saturday morning parade through this fast-growing city’s westside, Democratic congressional candidate Hillary Scholten warned her staff that the area was traditionally very conservative and they should brace for possible booing.

But the crowd lining Fulton Street to mark the region’s Polish pride was friendly. Only one man bellowed what sounded to the candidate like “Go to hell, Hillary!” as she passed. But he also grinned and flashed a thumbs-up later.

He’d actually cried, “Give ’em hell, Hillary!”

DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. government’s road safety agency has closed an investigation into fuel leaks in two Volkswagen SUV models without seeking a recall.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened the probe in March after getting complaints about fuel injectors leaking in the 2018 through 2020 Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport SUVs. The probe covered more than 196,000 vehicles with 3.6-liter engines.

(AP) --- A 19-year-old man was charged Wednesday with first-degree murder in a series of apparently random shootings over roughly two hours last weekend in Detroit that left three people dead and a fourth wounded.

Dontae Ramon Smith was expected to be arraigned later in the day in 36th District Court on the three murder counts as well as other charges, including assault and firearms charges, the Wayne County prosecutor’s office said. It wasn’t immediately known if he had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A jury on Tuesday convicted two men of conspiring to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020, delivering swift verdicts in a plot that was broken up by the FBI and described as a rallying cry for a U.S. civil war by anti-government extremists.

The result was a big victory for the U.S. Justice Department. A different jury just four months ago couldn’t reach a unanimous decision on Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. but acquitted two other men, a stunning conclusion that led to a second trial.

(AP) --- There is no dispute about some evidence in the trial of two men accused of eagerly wanting to kidnap Michigan’s governor: They enjoyed getting high.

From start to finish, the jury repeatedly has heard about marijuana in the case of Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr., who are charged with conspiring to abduct Gretchen Whitmer as part of an anti-government uprising in 2020.

(AP) --- Lawyers for two men charged with conspiring to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called investigators to the witness stand Friday to try to raise questions about their tactics in 2020 and highlight scornful attitudes.

The defense rested its case on the ninth day of trial. Closing arguments were scheduled for Monday in federal court in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. declined to testify. They are on trial for a second time after a jury in April couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict but acquitted two other men.

PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) — Thundering gas-powered muscle cars, for decades a fixture of American culture, will be closing in on their final Saturday-night cruises in the coming years as automakers begin replacing them with super-fast cars that run on batteries.

Stellantis’ Dodge brand, long the performance flag-bearer of the company formerly known as Fiat Chrysler, is officially moving toward electricity. On Wednesday night, Dodge unveiled a battery-powered Charger Daytona SRT concept car, which is close to one that will be produced in 2024 as the sun sets on some petroleum models.

DETROIT (AP) — A judge declared a mistrial Thursday after jurors said they couldn’t reach a verdict in a dispute over whether two engineering firms should bear some responsibility for Flint’s lead-contaminated water.

Veolia North America and Lockwood, Andrews & Newman, known as LAN, were accused of not doing enough to get Flint to treat the highly corrosive water or to urge a return to a regional water supplier.

A mistrial was declared in federal court in Ann Arbor, Michigan, court spokesman David Ashenfelter said.