Good morning, Michiganians,

Here are some stories we’ll be tracking today:

∎ A Wayne County jury deciding the fate of Michael Jackson-Bolanos, the Detroit man accused of murdering Jewish leader Samantha Woll, will resume deliberations for a final day and if they can’t reach a verdict, the judge could declare a mistrial.

∎ Former President Donald Trump will formally accept his party’s nomination tonight during the final night of the Republican National Convention, his first speech since surviving an assassin’s bullet five days ago. Trump will campaign Saturday in Grand Rapids with his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, who spoke last night.

∎ President Joe Biden is becoming more embattled as more prominent Democrats have told Biden that his continued candidacy imperils the Democratic Party’s chances of being in power in Congress next year.

In case you missed it, here were five of the most-read articles yesterday on detroitnews.com:

① 4 arrested in smuggling attempt on St. Clair River

② Pistons improve to 2-1 in Summer League with win over Bulls

③ 3-year-old girl killed by vehicle in Hamtramck

④ 22-year-old mPerks theft suspect takes plea, will give up $630K in cryptocurrency and cash

⑤ Court orders Metro Detroit coney islands to pay overtime, keep records

And in today’s advice columns, Dr. Abby consoles a Michigan woman who is longing for intimacy again with her disinterested husband of 15 years.

Does the diabetes and weight loss drug Mounjaro ruin the kidneys and liver? Dr. Roach has answers.

(CBS DETROIT) — Two weeks after Michigan-based Priority Waste purchased a residential trash service from Canadian-based GFL, some customers are still experiencing service delays. 

“When Priority took over service in those 73 communities on July 1, we inherited all the issues that came with it. In some of these communities, they were between two and four weeks behind, and in one case, they were almost 5 weeks behind,” said Matt Allen, Director of Public Relations and Government Affairs for Priority Waste. 

Allen said that in addition to the service backlog, his company is dealing with many other issues related to the takeover. 

“One of the issues that exacerbated the problem was that of the 535 vehicles we purchased as part of the take over (from GFL) half of them were not road worthy, maybe a little more than that actually, and we’ve been working diligently to get those things fixed,” Allen said.

Of the 73 additional municipalities that Priority Waste took over, most of the areas have been caught up with service; however, some delays are still happening. 

“It’s never good to hold onto to trash for more than a week,” said Washtenaw County resident Dennis Murray.

Murray said GFL’s service became spotty long before the takeover, but he is hoping to get some clarification as to when Priority will begin regularly scheduled pick-ups. 

“It’s pretty upsetting not hearing any communication and when they’re going to show up and pick it up,” Murray said. 

Allen said customers like Murray can expect to get back on track in the next seven days.

“And we’re doing the best job in a very deliberate fashion to get us to a clean slate by next week,” Allen said. 

As we roll on with our 2024 Detroit Lions roster preview series, this time our own Meko Scott breaks down second-year quarterback Hendon Hooker over on the Pride of Detroit YouTube channel.

Previous previews: RB David Montgomery, WR Kalif Raymond, TE Sam LaPorta, TE James Mitchell, LT Taylor Decker, RT Penei Sewell, G Kevin Zeitler, C Frank Ragnow, DE Aidan Hutchinson, DE Josh Paschal, DT DJ Reader, DT Alim McNeill, LB Alex Anzalone, DB Brian Branch, S Ifeatu Melifonwu, and DT Levi Onwuzurike.

Hendon Hooker

Headed into the 2024 season, nobody is going to question whether or not the Lions have their starting quarterback figured out. Jared Goff’s performance over the last one-and-a-half seasons have made all of those old questions about his play fade to the point that they are now nothing more than distant memories. However, as football fans, we all understand injuries happen in this sport, and that is a big reason as to why the backup quarterback position has become more vital over the last several years.

With Hooker, the Lions knew they were getting a talented player when they selected him in the third-round of the 2023 NFL Draft. And since Hooker was still recovering from an ACL injury he suffered late in his final college season, he didn’t get any work in during last year’s training camp apart from mental reps. The majority of his rookie season was spent in recovery-mode, making his second year of development with the Lions even more vital.

Our own Meko Scott jumps into all of this and more as he examines the outlook for Hooker this season, and whether or not he believes Hooker is ready to settle in as the backup quarterback for a team that has championship aspirations.