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SW Michigan Today: Thursday, April 4

Unfriendly cows are reportedly on the loose in Kalamazoo County's Cooper Township. In a news release this afternoon,  the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office said it’s trying to find a small herd that got loose from a local farm. The cows have had limited contact with people and could be dangerous if approached. The sheriff asks anyone who spots the cattle to give the department a call.

(Kalamazoo Gazette) - A student who brought a loaded gun to Kalamazoo Central High School last month says he was trying to protect himself. The 16-year-old, whose name was not released, told police that he had been threatened with assault. He says that led him to bring a revolver with three bullets in it to school. Kalamazoo Public Safety officials and administrators at the high school searched the student and found the gun after getting a tip from a parent.

(DetroitNewsThe Michigan Department of Environmental Quality says it’s setting an “aggressive” timeline for regulating PFASes in the state’s drinking water. The Detroit News reports that the DEQ expects to present a statewide PFAS standard in about a year. PFASes are industrial chemicals, some of which have been linked to serious health problems including cancer. The Environmental Protection Agency sets an advisory level for a few PFASes, but some activists say that research has shown that that standard is too high to protect people’s health. PFASes have been found in the water in Richland, Battle Creek, Parchment and other parts of Michigan.

(Kalamazoo Gazette) - Michigan voters may have legalized recreational marijuana last fall. But businesses that sell it aren't welcome in Galesburg. City council members voted to ban them this week. Galesburg officials say one reason for the decision was a lack of information from the state on how it plans to regulate recreational marijuana. Those rules could be announced in June. Last year, Galesburg also banned medical marijuana businesses after earlier voting to approve them. The state says several townships in Kalamazoo County and the City of Portage have also said "no" to recreational marijuana sales.

(MLive) The search for a letter that went missing from the graves of former president Gerald Ford and former first lady Betty Ford last week in Grand Rapids is over. Police say 19-year old Chris Johnson came forward and admitted to damaging the memorial. MLive reports that Johnson, who recently moved to Grand Rapids, told police he didn’t know he was at a grave or that Ford was a former US President when he happened upon the site while skateboarding with a friend. Johnson added that he started getting nasty messages after he was recognized on a surveillance tape released by police. He says he’s sorry for the damage. The Kent County Prosecutor will decide whether to charge Johnson with a crime.

(WDET) - An appeals court says a federal judge in Detroit did not have the authority to stop Iraqis held in federal custody from being deported. That means the government can soon begin sending some Iraqi detainees back to their native country. U.S. Immigration officials arrested about 1,400 Iraqi nationwide two years ago. They included more than a hundred in the Detroit area. But a judge said they faced religious persecution or death as Christians if they were forced to go back to Iraq. Then, an appeals court panel ruled in December that Goldsmith over-stepped his authority. Now the full Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati has upheld that ruling. That means some of the Iraqi detainees could be deported in a few days. Hundreds of the Iraqis were released after the first ruling. But those still in custody or who haven't asked for an immigration hearing face deportation. The Iraqi government has reportedly said it won't accept any detainees who don't return voluntarily.

(MLive) - New bills in Lansing would ban local governments from ordering their police officers to limit cooperation with federal immigration agencies. The proposals in the State House are aimed at communities that are "sanctuary cities." They were introduced by two Republican lawmakers. Similar bills died in the House last year. No Michigan cities have officially declared themselves as sanctuaries for undocumented migrants. But several have said that enforcing federal immigration laws is not a high priority for their police departments. The Michigan ACLU says the legislation is unnecessary and would improperly dictate rules for local elected officials and agencies.

(Gongwer News Service) - The State Supreme Court says it won't hear an appeal by Larry Nassar. The court rejected the request by the former Michigan State University sports doctor Wednesday. Nassar was convicted last year of sexually abusing girls and young women and is serving a 60-year prison sentence. The court also says it won't hear an appeal by former state representative Todd Courser. He resigned from the House in 2015 to avoid being expelled. That followed a cover-up of his affair with former Plainwell lawmaker Cindy Gamrat, who was expelled. Lower courts said Courser couldn't claim legislative immunity from charges that he lied under oath.

(MPRN) - Republicans in the state legislature want Michigan Supreme Court to rule on whether a maneuver in the closing days of the 2018 session was legal. The question deals with laws raising the state's minimum wage and requiring employers to offer paid sick time. Petition drives would have put the issues on the ballot last fall. But Republican lawmakers approved both measures before the election, then changed them to make the new laws more employer-friendly. Now the GOP majority wants the Supreme Court - where Republican justices are also in the majority - to rule on whether that was legal. It would only be an advisory opinion. But it could give a strong signal on what the court would do if it got a legal challenge. The court will hear the case in July.

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Andy Robins has been WMUK's News Director since 1998 and a broadcast journalist for over 24 years. He joined WMUK's staff in 1985. Under his direction, WMUK has received numerous awards for news reporting.