I-96 Reopening • Stolen 600-Pound Statue Recovered in Detroit • Bad Fence Builder Has No Defense

FRIDAY NEWS HIT – If your trip includes I-96, hopefully it will be a little easier after this weekend.

All lanes in both directions of the highway from Kent Lake to I-275 are scheduled to reopen Sunday night, although that plan is dependent on weather.

The freeway has had rolling lane closures since the $270 million project to add a flex lane began in 2022. A flex lane is an additional lane that opens during peak travel hours to relieve traffic backups. Michigan has another one of these lanes on US-23.

“We all drive the same roads, including our families, who constantly complain to us about traffic jams and delays. So we understand, really,” said Diane Cross of the Michigan Department of Transportation. “We are all excited that we will have three lanes open eastbound and westbound again.”

The entire project is expected to be completed early next year.

Stolen 600-pound statue recovered

A 600-pound military tribute statue is back in the city’s possession after it was stolen from a Detroit park on Thursday.

Police found the statue of Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson early Friday in southwest Detroit.

The statue of Jefferson, who was a Tuskegee Airman, has been in Rouge Park since June until someone took it, leaving only the feet.

“It’s very disappointing, it’s dedicated to a lieutenant colonel who used to fly here. A World War II veteran hero,” Detroit Police Chief James White said after the statue was removed.

It is believed that the statue was stolen to be scrapped.

A $5,000 reward was offered for information leading to the statue. It is unclear how police located him.

Bad fence builder has no defense for Wolchek

A bad fence builder recently became the focus of Rob Wolchek and FOX 2’s Hall of Shame.

His name is James Goin, and he’s going to let FOX 2 know that he can’t believe Rob Wolchek would be rude enough to arrest him in front of his son.

“You don’t approach people when they’re with their kids,” he said. “Get out of here. Call me.”

Wolchek: “Listen. You’ve been taking money from a bunch of people and not completing the jobs, so don’t give me any nonsense about moral ethics.”

Why is James Goin angry with Wolchek? He’s supposed to be building fences for his clients.

Wolchek: “Have you ever done anything?”

“No,” said Kathy, one of his victims. “The only time he set foot on this property was to come collect his deposit.”

This fence contractor has more unfinished work than pickets.

Watch the full matchup here.

3 Michigan schools attacked by crush

Oxford High School and two other schools in Saginaw and Midland fell victim to a terrifying prank Thursday, and investigators are tracing the origin to the Netherlands.

“This re-traumatizes them and the community,” said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard.

A shock wave of fear ran through the halls of Oxford when the headmaster, over the loudspeaker, announced: “This is not a drill.”

Immediately, students and staff blocked the doors with chairs and tables, taking school supplies to use as weapons if necessary.

The fake threat reported inside the school was an AK-47 and a pipe bomb, called as a crush prank call.

“We determined that it came from a server in the Netherlands,” Bouchard said.

4,000 miles away, panic set in. The children ran to the same Meijer parking lot as three years ago, in November, when a shooter killed four students and wounded 11 others.

“It’s terrifying for any school to have that, but for a school that has actually been a victim of this type of tragedy, it’s just on steroids,” Bouchard said.

Judge claims immunity after handcuffing teenager

Detroit Judge Kenneth King claims he was acting in his official capacity when he staged a mock trial as a sort of straight scare show after multiple cases in which the teen slept in the officers’ courtroom in the 36th District Court in August.

The girl’s mother has since claimed that the family’s housing instability had caused her daughter to spend many sleepless nights, making her tired. During an August press conference with the Feiger law firm, Latoreya Till said her daughter had suffered immensely since the incident.

According to Gary Felty, the case boils down to “did the judge wrongfully arrest and detain this girl?”

The 15-year-old was detained for two hours and forced to change into prison clothing. She was also handcuffed. Her mother said it left her daughter devastated.

The judge has since gone through a training program and was reassigned to traffic court. But the daughter and her mother are suing King, alleging unlawful arrest and invasion of privacy.

But the defense argues that the case should be dismissed because King was acting within his official capacity as a judicial officer and therefore has immunity.

“He’s in his courtroom. He took action. Whatever people think about the action he took, he took action under the guise and authority of being a judge.” Todd Perkins said. “So if that’s the case, we believe he should have immunity and that this matter should not go forward as the plaintiff alleges in this case.”

A federal judge will decide whether judicial immunity applies.

The pulse: Revs. Al Sharpton and Charles Williams II discuss the black vote

Live on FOX 2

daily forecast

Some rain moves through the area this morning ahead of a dry weekend.

What else are we seeing?

1. Former President Donald Trump plans to hold a rally in Traverse City on Friday before heading to Metro Detroit on Saturday for a rally at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi.
2. The Eastpointe High School football field will be quiet tonight, despite the final game of the 2024 season originally scheduled after the varsity game. The squad was reduced to just enough to run an offensive.
3. Registration is now open for the Ruck March 22 in Royal Oak, a ruck march to collect donations for metro Detroit veterans.
4. Early voting begins statewide on Saturday. Find your early voting site here.
5. It’s the weekend before Halloween and that means tons of spooky fun! Find our weekend events guide here.

Hermanos Menéndez: New sentence recommended by the DA

After serving more than three decades in prison, the Menéndez brothers could have a second chance.

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced Thursday that he is recommending that Erik and Lyle Menendez, who have been serving life sentences without parole for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, be sentenced. again.

“I have to tell you clearly that we do not have a universal agreement. There are people in the office who firmly believe that the man and his brothers should remain in prison for the rest of their lives, and they do not believe that they were sexually abused,” said the district attorney. “And there are people in the office who strongly believe that they should be released immediately and that, in fact, they were sexually abused. I have to tell you that after a very careful review of all the arguments that were presented in favor of the people of both sides “Of this equation, I have come to a point where I believe that, under the law, a new sentence is appropriate.”

“And tomorrow I am going to recommend him before a court,” Gascón continued. “What that means in this particular case is that we are going to recommend to the court that the life sentence without the possibility of parole be removed, and that there will be a sentence for murder, that since there are two murders involved, there will be 50 years to life in prison, “However, due to their age under the law, since they were under 26 years of age at the time of these crimes, they will be eligible for immediate parole.”

“There is no excuse for murder. And I will never imply that what we are doing here is excusing our behavior,” the district attorney said. “Because even if you are abused, the right way is to call the police and seek help. But I also understand how sometimes people become desperate.”

This comes after an investigation prompted by new evidence presented to the district attorney’s office: newly revealed allegations that Roy Rosselló, a former member of the boy band Menudo, was also sexually abused by his father in the 1980s, and a letter that Erik Menéndez wrote to his cousin, Andy. Cano, which emerged in 2015, years after Cano’s death.