Court: University of Michigan can ban guns on campus
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — The University of Michigan has won a significant decision in a lawsuit challenging a campus ban on guns.
The state appeals court says the university can regulate the possession of guns. In a 2-1 opinion, the court says a 2001 ban doesn’t violate the U.S. Constitution.
The court also says the Ann Arbor school and its other campuses aren’t covered by a state law that prevents local governments from putting limits on guns.
Judge David Sawyer disagreed. He says the university is exceeding its authority by adopting its own restrictions.
All University of Michigan properties are gun-free for students, staff and the general public, unless a waiver is granted by the public safety department.
The appeals court decision was dated Tuesday but released Wednesday.
Court overturns murder conviction in death of 2-year-old
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan appeals court says ineffective work by a defense lawyer has spoiled the murder conviction of a Kalamazoo man in the death of his 2-year-old son.
Brian Roberts will get a new trial. The court says attorney Eusebio Solis “failed to properly investigate the medical controversy surrounding abusive head trauma in young children.”
Roberts was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the 2014 death of Nehemiah Dodd. The appeals court says Solis failed to get expert testimony to support a theory that Nehemiah’s death was an accident.
Solis, a former prosecutor, admits he had never handled a case involving head trauma linked to abuse.
Solis now is representing Jason Dalton, who is charged with killing six people in a series of shootings in the Kalamazoo area.
Legislative panel approves cut to Michigan prisons
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan would cut spending at all but one of its 30 prisons under a compromise hashed out by lawmakers but without involvement from Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration.
A Republican-led legislative conference committee approved a nearly $2 billion corrections budget Wednesday. It includes a $10 million reduction across all correctional facilities except the state’s women’s prison.
The Snyder administration had vehemently opposed a $41.6 million cut to the $1 billion facilities budget proposed by the Senate, warning it would lead to hundreds of officer layoffs and create unsafe staffing levels. Corrections Department spokesman Chris Gautz says it is too early to say what the $10 million reduction would mean.
GOP lawmakers have excluded Snyder from major budget decisions due to his opposition to closing the pension system to newly hired teachers.
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