Rewind: News from the last 7 days

Seven supporters of the former Eastern High School, representing a larger audience, urged Lansing City Council to save at least part of the building. They implored the Council to either deny demolition permits or reach out to owner University of Michigan Health-Sparrow to preserve it, mainly focusing on keeping the auditorium and western wing of the school. Council members did not respond. Sparrow has not changed a proposal to build a psychiatric care facility on the property, said spokesperson John Foren. It still needs U of M regents’ approval. (For more on this story, see lansingcitypulse.com.)

MSU attorney Mark Zausmer said a federal judge should dismiss former MSU Faculty Senate Chair Jack Lipton’s (pictured) complaint against the Board of Trustees, saying Lipton can’t sue the board as a “person.” Lipton claimed he suffered personal attacks from Trustees Rema Vassar and Dennis Denno and sought their removal. Zausmer said Lipton had no legal standing to act against the board since his suit focused on two trustees not acting on its behalf. He added that the board is immune because the 11th Amendment bars federal courts from hearing certain lawsuits against states. Only Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can remove Vassar and Denno from the board.

Jeremy (pictured) and Kristen Shepard of Mason and Dustin Urie of Okemos were convicted Monday on charges from a June 2023 shooting that injured a Lansing man, including assault with intent to murder, unlawful imprisonment, firearm possession by a convicted felon and tampering with evidence. They are in the county jail and scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 30. During the trial, Jeremy Shepard, who posted a bond with the understanding he would wear an ankle-monitoring device, fled the courthouse to Jackson, cut off his tether and attempted to flee the state. The Sheriff’s Office sent out a statewide alert and captured him.

The U-M Health Plan insurance program (formerly Physicians Health Plan) will end in December 2025 after U-M Health officials said it’s no longer financially viable. It serves about 64,000 members, or 16% of Lansing residents. Michigan Nurses Association President Jeff Breslin questioned the lack of a replacement plan and the announcement’s timing in a response statement. U-M Health Sparrow workers are amid contract negotiations after their prior contract expired Oct. 30.

The 121-year-old former Carnegie Library in Charlotte, home to several businesses after serving as the town’s library from 1903 to ‘94, is up for sale for $350,000. Owner Tammy Bush, who is retiring from her floral business, has listed the property at 200 North Cochran Ave. Philanthropist Andrew Carnegie paid for the library one of more than 2,500 he helped establish in the late 1800s through 1929. The building’s next owner would get ownership of Bush’ business and be able to negotiate new leases with current occupants.

Former MSU grad student Linglong Wei has filed a notice of intent with the Michigan Court of Claims to sue MSU, claiming she was diagnosed with cancer after working in a lab. The MSU Board of Trustees, the College of Agricultural and Natural Resources, the Horticulture Department and the Office of International Students and Scholars are defendants. Wei said she was diagnosed with a form of thyroid cancer in June, which she believes was caused by the lack of personal protection equipment and training while a master’s student in the Horticulture Department from 2008 to ‘11. Her work involved spraying hazardous pesticides and herbicides, she said.

Ten Lansing School District schools on a state watchlist for underperformance should be released from oversight next year, Superintendent Ben Shuldiner told the Lansing State Journal, thanks to improved enrollment, attendance, graduation rates, test scores and other metrics. He said that “10 or more schools” were on the Education Department’s partnership list, representing the bottom 5% of schools from the Michigan School Index System, but that number could be reduced to two based on the past year’s data. Attwood, Forrest G. Averill, Gardner International, Gier Park, Lyons, Mt. Hope, North, REO, Wexford Montessori Academy and Sexton High School made the last list published in 2022.

Public safety

The Ingham County Sheriff’s Office issued an alert notifying the public about scammers impersonating county workers, including those claiming to be specific individuals and asking for money to be put into gift cards to avoid going to jail on a bench warrant. Those who receive calls and believe they are scams should hang up immediately and report it to the Sheriff’s Office. … A 40-year-old Eagle man was killed in a single-vehicle crash on Packard Highway near Hartel Road, the Michigan State Police said. He lost control of his 2017 Buick Enclave, which struck an embankment, rolled over and ejected him. Police believe alcohol played a role in the crash.