State Roundup

Detroit Ex-Rep. Schauer of Mich. says he won't run in '12 DETROIT (AP) -- Former U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer of Battle Creek says he won't run for Congress next year. The Democrat made the announcement in an email sent to supporters on Wednesday. The decision means Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg will get a new Democratic opponent after facing Schauer for the past two elections. Last year, Walberg beat the then-incumbent Schauer in a contentious rematch of their 2008 race that saw Schauer unseat Walberg, who was then a freshman in Congress. In the email, Schauer writes that, despite his decision, he still sees south-central Michigan's 7th District as "winnable for a Democratic candidate in 2012." Schauer currently serves as national co-chair of the BlueGreen Alliance Jobs 21! Campaign. Grand Blanc Mich. man finds mother was a 1982 homicide victim NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. (AP) -- A Michigan man seeking his long-lost mother has discovered she was killed in 1982 when her body was found miles off Florida's Gulf coast. Jeff Earley of Grand Blanc, Mich., had his wife search the Internet for information about his mother. What Earley and his wife discovered cracked the case and led to a fresh investigation, said Pasco County sheriff Chris Nocco. "We got the closure that we needed," Earley told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "Twenty-nine years is a long time. When she left I was only 9 years old. You learn to cope with it." Two years ago, Julie Earley checked a website listing unidentified bodies. The information she submitted about Amy Rose Hurst matched a woman found in September 1982 in the Gulf of Mexico. The body was found 27 miles offshore, had head trauma and was wrapped in an Afghan blanket. Jeff Earley remembered a similar blanket from his childhood. Hurst's family had reported the 29-year-old missing in August of 1982 but that case wasn't linked to the body until the Earleys began searching on the Internet. The Earleys contacted Florida officials and the results of a complex DNA test showed this month that the body was Hurst's, authorities said. "Due to his persistency and his love for his mother, he was able to put some pieces together," Nocco said at a news conference last week. "Because of that, we are able to pursue this case even further." Nocco did not elaborate further on the case and whether investigators had any leads to possible suspects or the circumstances of the killing. A detective from Pasco County was in Michigan this week interviewing family members, Jeff Earley said. The family expects to have his mother's remains brought back to Michigan sometime this week. "Our next step is we want a conviction. We want to know what happened," he said. Grand Rapids Letter offers thanks after shooting spree GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) -- Family members of four of the seven people killed by a 34-year-old ex-con during a shooting spree in Grand Rapids are offering thanks to the public for its support. The Grand Rapids Press reports Wednesday that a letter to the editor was written on behalf of families of Rodrick Dantzler's 29-year-old ex-girlfriend Jennifer Heeren, their 12-year-old daughter Kamrie, and Jennifer's parents -- 52-year-old Rebecca and 51-year-old Tom Heeren. Police say Dantzler on July 7 killed the four as well as another former girlfriend and two other people before taking his own life. The letter says "these senseless murders may have shaken us to our roots, but they do not fundamentally change who we are as a community." Ann Arbor Police in Ann Arbor report 6th woman attacked ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) -- Police are reporting that another woman has been sexually assaulted in Ann Arbor, the sixth such attack since earlier this month. The University of Michigan Department of Public Safety says the woman reported being grabbed from behind and fondled late Tuesday while walking to her vehicle in an off-campus parking lot. Police say she was able to break away and fled to an apartment. Police say it wasn't known Wednesday whether the attack is connected to five others reported July 15-18, including two rapes that occurred 22 hours apart. In each case, police say women walking alone were targeted late at night or early in the morning. Detroit 3 lose jobs after Detroit furniture spending probe DETROIT (AP) -- Two employees of a City of Detroit office have been fired and a third "unappointed" after an investigation into records showing that more than $210,000 intended for poor people was used to furnish an office. Mayor Dave Bing announced the results of the Human Services Department investigation Tuesday. A statement from the mayor's office says the furniture purchases weren't "fraudulent or criminal in nature." But he says it reflects at "lack of oversight and poor inventory management within the department." He says changes are being made to improve oversight. The Detroit Free Press first reported the furniture purchases in May, and later published details of the spending after obtaining a 56-page receipt. The document listed dozens of high-end items destined last year for Human Services Department offices. Ionia Man sentenced to life in 2006 mid-Michigan slaying IONIA, Mich. (AP) -- A man convicted of murder in the 2006 death of an 80-year-old woman in the small mid-Michigan community of Hubbardston has been sentenced to life in prison without parole. Justin Stephens was sentenced Tuesday in a courtroom in Ionia. A jury in May found the 21-year-old guilty of first-degree murder, felony murder and second-degree home invasion in the death of Bernita Cunningham. Stephens' defense lawyer had raised questions about the work of investigators during the trial. Authorities initially believed Cunningham died of accidental injuries after falling from a ladder, but later exhumed her body and ruled the death a homicide. Stephens moved to Texas shortly Cunningham's death and was arrested last fall. Published: Thu, Jul 28, 2011