{"id":11585,"date":"2021-02-25T20:59:55","date_gmt":"2021-02-26T01:59:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/?p=11585"},"modified":"2024-02-01T13:10:54","modified_gmt":"2024-02-01T13:10:54","slug":"latest-news-155","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/?p=11585","title":{"rendered":"Latest News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Man arrested, charged in fatal shooting on E. State Street<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The St. Johns Police Department has arrested a 24-vear-old St. Johns man for a fatal shooting that took place on February 27at approximately 8:30 p.m. in the 500 block of East State St. in the City of St. Johns.<\/p>\n<p>The initial investigation indicates that several subjects had gathered at the residence where the shooting occurred. During the course of the evening, the resident had taken out several firearms to display them to his guests. At some point, a firearm which was assumed to be unloaded was discharged striking a person in the residence.<\/p>\n<p>St. Johns Police Officers and Clinton Area Ambulance Service rendered emergency aid, but the victim succumbed to his wounds.<\/p>\n<p>The victim has been identified as 21-year-cld Brandon William Chunko of DeWitt Township.<\/p>\n<p>The suspect in the fatal shooting has been formally charged by the Clinton County Prosecuting Attorney&#8217;s Office. Jesse Xavier Osga-Groves of St. Johns has been charged with one count of Homocide-Manslaughter-Death by Weapon Aimed With Intent But Without Malice. Suspect Osga-Groves remains lodged at the Clinton County Jail under a $200,000.00 cash\/surety bond.<\/p>\n<p>The incident remains under investigation. The St. Johns Police Department were assisted by the Clinton County Sheriffs Office, the Michigan State Police and the Clinton County Prosecuting Attorney&#8217;s Office.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Historic local church set to be demolished<\/strong><br \/>\nphotos by Maralyn Fink<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/o0e_lV_gEV0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>According to the Facebook page for Divine Mercy Parish, &#8220;For the past couple of years, Holy Mass has been prayed in our traditionally appointed Pastoral Center Chapel, as we continue with the gradual process of salvaging our 127-year-old church building and preparing it for demolition. Maintaining our old Church structure has been an expensive commitment for the past 10 years. As much as we have desired to keep up with our historic building&#8217;s needs, present reality has made it very difficult and more than our small congregation has been able to afford.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It is sad to see this building go,&#8221; the post continues. &#8220;It has had an active worshiping community since 1854. Our present church erected in 1894, was constructed in a basilica style &#8211; that is, if you look at it from the top, you readily recognize that the worship area is constructed in the form of a cross. This was a prevalent form of architecture in years gone by. So, when it is demolished, there will be a great loss, both historically and architecturally, for this community.&#8221;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>MMDHD works at getting shots in arms<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>At the most recent meeting of the Mid Michigan District Health of Health meeting Health Officer Marcus Cheatham reported on the progress of the agency&#8217;s COVIE-19 vaccination program. Vaccine was in short supply recently due to winter storms, especially a snowstorm in Memphis TN on February 15 that delayed shipments to Michigan. He gave kudos to the State for getting available vaccine to the local health departments as soon as they could.<\/p>\n<p>Now that the vaccine is moving to local health departments again, Cheatham says that the State has set a goal of 31,283 in the target populations of people over age 65 and essential workers that Mid-Michigan District Health Department (MMDHD) needs to vaccinate immediately. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) has asked providers to give about 75 percent of the vaccine to people age 65 and over and 25 percent to essential workers.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;A breakdown of doses by age for MMDHD compares it to the State as a whole, he says. &#8220;For people over 65 throughout the State as a whole, 68 percent are vaccinated compared to<br \/>\n63 percent for MMDHD. We all need to find a better balance between essential workers and the elderly and are discussing how to do this given that the definition of essential worker keeps expanding.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Cheatham says that guidelines call for making the vaccine available to people in rural areas within an hour&#8217;s drive. &#8220;We think that is too far, says Cheatham. &#8220;We have arranged to make the vaccine available within 20 minutes for people living in our rural communities.&#8221; He cited Sparrow Hospital&#8217;s outreach in Frandor and Sparrow Clinton Hospital in St. Johns as excellent examples of places that we doing an excellent job of providing the vaccine to local residents.<\/p>\n<p>Cheatham says that MMDHD is working with the Emergency Volunteer Registry in the hopes of providing weekly vaccine clinics at Smith Hall on the Clinton County Fairgrounds in the near future.<\/p>\n<p>When they have COVID-19 appointments available, they will send out a notice to those on the waiting list. If you would like to be placed on the the MMDHD waiting list, please visit the website: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mmdhd.org\/covid-vaccine-information\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0000cc;\">www.mmdhd.org\/covid-vaccine-information\/<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The good news is that more and more vaccination locations are opening up in our area, and they recommend that people explore all of these options to increase their chances of obtaining an appointment. These locations can be found on the website: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mmdhd.org\/covid-vaccine-information\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0000cc;\">www.mmdhd.org\/covid-vaccine-information\/<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Drive-through food distribution is Saturday, February 27<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Drive-Through Mobile Food Distribution is a Free program intended to distribute fresh and non-perishable food items to the disadvantaged and vulnerable. This includes senior citizens on fixed incomes, families or individuals with low income jobs. The next one will be held on Saturday, February 27, 2021, 4th Saturday of every month, from 9:00-11:00 a.m. or until all food is distributed at the South Point Mall, 1023 S. US 27<br \/>\nSt. Johns, MI 48879<\/p>\n<p>To participate you will need:<br \/>\n&#8211; Proof of Residency: Bring either a gov\u2019t-issued ID or mail with your address<br \/>\n&#8211; Stay in your vehicle for registration and food distribution<br \/>\n&#8211; Food will be placed in your trunk\/hatchback, so please make room<br \/>\n&#8211; Restrooms will Not be available<br \/>\n&#8211; If you have any symptoms of COVID-19, please stay home and arrange for someone to bring your identification and a note allowing them to pick up food for you<\/p>\n<p>Who can participate:<br \/>\n&#8211; Anyone in financial hardship in need of food, especially due to the pandemic<br \/>\n&#8211; Senior citizens on fixed incomes<br \/>\n&#8211; Families\/individuals who have recently lost jobs<br \/>\n&#8211; Residents in Clinton County<\/p>\n<p>For more information, call GLFB at (517) 908-3680.<br \/>\n<em>In accordance with Federal Law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Speers Electric picks up tab for St. Johns school lunch debt<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The St. Johns Public Schools student lunch debt is being paid off by <a href=\"http:\/\/speerelectric.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0000cc;\">Speer Electric<\/span><\/a> in DeWitt. The owners of Speer Electric reached out to let them know that they had given them a little inspiration to do this.<\/p>\n<p>When the Schools were contacted to confirm the donation, they said that three other people had reached out asking to do the same.<\/p>\n<p>Giving inspires other giving. What an amazing concept!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Talksooner names billboard contest winners<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-23204\" src=\"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/billboard.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"408\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/billboard.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/billboard-300x245.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Each year we host a youth led billboard contest. This year&#8217;s 2020 theme was to create a billboard that showcases the <a href=\"https:\/\/talksooner.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0000cc;\">TalkSooner app<\/span><\/a> and how it helps spreads the message throughout Clinton County for a drug free community. Both the winning billboard and the 1st and 2nd place runner-ups will have their billboard featured throughout Clinton County! Our 2020 winners were:<\/p>\n<p>\u2022 First Place: Bianca, age 12, St.Johns Middle School<br \/>\n\u2022 Runner Up: Katelyn, age 16, P-W High School<br \/>\n\u2022 Runner Up: Carter, age 14, St. Johns High School<\/p>\n<p>The contest is open to Clinton County youth ages 10-18 years old! The winner will receive a $60 Amazon gift card and their artwork featured on our Clinton County Fall billboard for all of our community to see! Second and third place runner ups will each receive name recognition and a $30 Amazon gift card.<\/p>\n<p>Bianca&#8217;s billboard can be seen on the east side of US-127 north of St. Johns.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.drugfreeclinton.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0000cc;\">https:\/\/www.drugfreeclinton.com\/<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>K of C fish fries are back<\/strong><br \/>\nby Maralyn Fink<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Knights of Columbus fish fries are scheduled for March 12, 19 and 26.<\/p>\n<p>No advance orders will be accepted, and dinners will be drive thru only. One line only from North Drive.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Take out items are 1) Fried fish with steak fries, 2) Baked fish with Bake Potatoes. Sides include Green Beans, Coleslaw, Applesauce and Dinner Roll.<\/p>\n<p>The K of C Hall is located at 1108 Old U.S. 27 in St. Johns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Man arrested, charged in fatal shooting on E. State Street The St. Johns Police Department has arrested a 24-vear-old St. Johns man for a fatal shooting that took place on February 27at approximately 8:30 p.m. in the 500 block of East State St. in the City of St. Johns. The initial investigation indicates that several <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/?p=11585\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11585"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23205,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11585\/revisions\/23205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stjindy.com\/newindy\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}