Michigan

Michigan superintendent accused of smoking weed with colleague, having gun on school grounds

Published

1 year ago

December 24, 2024

Michigan superintendent accused of smoking weed with colleague, having gun on school grounds

A Michigan school superintendent was ousted from her position for allegedly getting high with a colleague on school grounds and then driving off in her car – where police found a hunting rifle stashed in the backseat.

Hollie Stange, who headed Fitzgerald Public Schools in Warren, is accused of getting behind the wheel after police spotted her smoking marijuana with the district’s food services director for several minutes in a parked car 1,000 feet from school grounds, according to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office.

Police arrested Stange and Amanda Carroll, both 38, after the pair left in separate vehicles on Dec. 20, and were found allegedly driving “under the influence.”

Fitzgerald Public Schools superintendent Hollie Stange and Amanda Carroll were both arrested and charged after they were caught smoking weed on school campus and then getting behind the wheels of their car. Click on Detroit

“This is deeply concerning and violates the trust our community places in these school administrators,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido said.

“Driving under the influence and possessing drugs near school grounds is not only unlawful but also puts the safety of our children at risk. As individuals entrusted with the well-being of Macomb County’s children, we will take all necessary legal steps to ensure accountability.”

Police found a rifle wrapped in a blanket in the backseat of Stange’s car, along with a 50-gram bag of marijuana in her purse, WWJ reported.

A 6-year-old was inside Carroll’s vehicle when police pulled her over.

Carroll was also in possession of more than 25 grams of weed, the outlet reported.

Prosecutors believe Stange had the gun in her car while she was on school grounds.

Both women were placed on leave, pending an internal review, on Sunday following a unanimous vote by the Fitzgerald School Board.

“The Fitzgerald Public Schools Board of Education today voted unanimously to place District Superintendent Stange and Amanda Carroll on leave effective immediately pending our internal review and the ongoing criminal investigation,” board president Julia Yokel said in a Facebook post.

School officials arrested Friday — A Michigan school superintendent was ousted from her position for allegedly getting high with a colleague on school grounds and then driving off in her car – where police found a hunting rifle stashed in the backseat. Google Maps

“The school district is cooperating with local law enforcement and will continue to do so.”

Stange is charged with possession of marijuana on school grounds, possession of a weapon in a weapon free zone and operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, prosecutors said.

Charges against Carroll include possession of marijuana on school grounds, operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated second offense and operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated with an occupant less than 16 years old.

Both women were arraigned on Dec. 21 in Warren District Court, and their bond was set at $5,000 each.

Both are barred from entering school grounds unless otherwise directed, no uses of alcohol or drugs with random testing twice a week and limited contact with each other, prosecutors said.

Stange is also restricted from using any firearms.

“My client is a dedicated educator and administrator with two decades of services, a mother of two young children herself, and is presumed innocent under the law,” William Barnwell, defense attorney for Stange, told the Detroit Free Press.

“They have to prove she knew the weapon was in the vehicle, they have to prove distance (from school grounds) and they have to prove impairment.”

They will appear in court next on Jan. 2.

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Michigan

Werewolf, trout ruled in ’24. What will be next ‘I voted’ sticker

Published

3 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Werewolf, trout ruled in ’24. What will be next ‘I voted’ sticker

The rewarding feeling of wearing an “I Voted” sticker after turning in your ballot is something everyone can relate to.

Michigan voters can take it one step farther and vote on the design for the Election Day tradition.

The Michigan Department of State announced on March 3 the return of the highly competitive “I Voted” sticker contest in preparation for the state’s general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

“Our first-ever ‘I Voted’ sticker design contest in 2024 was a massive success,” Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in a March 3 release. “This year we look forward to seeing the creative ways Michiganders of all ages celebrate democracy. Submit your entry to help us continue the tradition and get voters excited to cast their ballot this fall.”

Designs are being accepted online via the Secretary of State’s “I Voted” webpage: Michigan.gov/IVotedSticker. On the page, participants may print or download the official entry form.

Design and entry rules, the sticker template, and tips and suggestions are included on the official entry form.

There are three categories — elementary/middle school (grades K-8), high school (grades 9-12) and Michigan residents of all ages. Designs are due at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 1.

Once submissions are closed, the public may vote for finalists online in June. Winners will be announced and celebrated later in the summer. Winning stickers will be dispersed to local election clerks for the November Election.

In 2024, there were more than 480 submissions, and more than 57,700 voters selected the nine winners, according to the release. Before the contest opened up for a public vote, the Michigan Collegiate Student Advisory Task Force members narrowed the submissions down to 25 semifinalists.

Here’s the 2024 winners and rules for the 2026 participants:

What did the winning 2024 ‘I Voted’ sticker designs look like?

Want to enter a design? Here are the ‘I Voted’ sticker contest rules

According to the Secretary of State, here’s what to keep in mind for your sticker:

Designs must be completed using official entry form.
Designs must include the phrase “I voted” AND be nonpartisan in nature.
Artwork must be original, non-AI generated, and not contain copyrighted or trademarked designs.
Entries can be created using your preferred method (digital, paint, crayon, mixed media, etc.)
Provide as high quality of resolution as possible when submitting your design.
There are three categories — elementary/middle school (grades K-8), high school (grades 9-12) and Michigan residents of all ages. You may enter one design in one category.
Designs are due at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 1.

Contact Sarah Moore @ smoore@lsj.com

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Michigan

2 Smoothie King employees fired for refusing to serve customer in Trump hoodie

Published

15 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

2 Smoothie King employees fired for refusing to serve customer in Trump hoodie

Two employees who refused to serve a man and his wife because he was wearing a hoodie with President Trump’s name on it were fired after a video of the heated encounter went viral.

Erika Lindemyer and her husband, Jake, were forced out of a Smoothie King franchise location in Ann Arbor, Michigan, following a fiery clash with two young female workers on Sunday.

The employees claimed they didn’t “feel comfortable” serving the couple because of Jake’s pro-Trump hoodie, as captured by Erika in a viral video.

Jake and Erika fired back at the pair and insisted that they were being “discriminated” against based on their “political views.”

“We were just wanting a smoothie and you literally looked at us and I asked you if everything was OK and you said ‘We don’t feel comfortable serving you’ because of my husband’s hoodie. That is discrimination,” Erika spat.

“Okay, well, have a great day,” the first employee said.

“That is illegal,” Erika tried to insist again.

“I said Trump discriminates [against] us,” another employee chimed in.

“Okay, well that has nothing to do with us getting a smoothie!” Erika guffawed.

“OK, well that’s who you support though, that’s who you love,” the first employee chided.

“What’s embarrassing is that we’re American citizens and I wanted to get a smoothie,” Erika huffed.

The second employee noted that they “have a right to refuse service” and directed the couple to the exit.

“You asked a question and [the other employee] gave you an answer. Have a great day. Have a great day. The door’s right there,” the second worker said.

Erika threatened to call the police while storming out, but it’s unclear if she did.

In a separate video shared Monday, one of the workers joked that she might’ve “accidentally started a race war” and called on the public to help remove Erika’s video.

“I am a minor and she recorded me without my permission. The people in the comments are all white and they’re all being hella racist, guys, please help me get this video taken down,” she implored.

Smoothie King confirmed that the girls involved in the viral confrontation “are no longer with the business” as of Monday.

“As a brand, Smoothie King is committed to ensuring our stores are a place free of discrimination of any kind, where every guest and team member is treated with care and respect,” the company wrote on X.

The owner of the Ann Arbor franchise location will also enforce “mandatory retraining for all employees that outlines our guest experience standards.”

In early December, a woman who worked at a Target in California was berated by a customer for wearing a Charlie Kirk “Freedom” T-shirt.

When the employee insisted she was allowed to wear the red shirt, the irate customer accused her of supporting “a racist.”

The medical center where the agitated customer worked was bombarded with upwards of 6,000 “profanity-laced” phone calls after online sleuths doxxed her personal information.

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Michigan

Opportunity knocks for Michigan’s guards with L.J. Cason out

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Opportunity knocks for Michigan’s guards with L.J. Cason out

Ann Arbor — The Wolverines won the outright Big Ten regular-season title with two games to go, but it came at a great cost.

L.J. Cason, Michigan’s backup point guard and a key piece of the rotation, tore his right ACL in the championship-clinching win at Illinois. Just like that, Cason’s season was over and Michigan was hit with a brutal blow.

But when adversity strikes, opportunity knocks. While the team won’t be the same without Cason, coach Dusty May believes Michigan has backcourt pieces who can step up and make up for the loss.

“This is a great opportunity for Roddy (Gayle Jr.), Trey (McKenney) and Nimari (Burnett) to play more, and those guys are really good players,” May said Monday. “Our rotation has been nine and nine, I think, is too deep. It’s playing too many guys, if you want to optimize everyone. But we felt like we had nine guys that deserved to play, that gave us a different element.

“We look at this as another challenge, but it’s also an opportunity for guys to play a little bit more, to play longer periods, to play through a mistake, to play a little bit different role. We do feel like these guys are a lot better than they were earlier this year, so we’re prepared to handle whatever comes at us.”

May said he doesn’t know exactly when Cason tore his ACL, and neither does Cason. The sophomore guard fell to the court and got up favoring his right leg on two separate occasions against Illinois.

The first instance came in the final minute of the first half, when Cason tipped a long rebound ahead and chased it down to start a fast break. After he grabbed the ball in the air and bounced it backward between his legs to a trailing teammate, Cason went down. He got up hobbling, was subbed out and went back to the locker room.

Cason briefly checked back in during the second half and scored a driving layup a minute into his shift. But on Michigan’s next possession, he fell down after trying to score through contact and got up limping again. Shortly after that, Cason motioned to the Michigan bench to be taken out of the game and he exited for good.

“At halftime, the training staff came and said basically he’s passed all of his jump test. He just did the bike. He says he’s 100% ready to go. I was surprised, because I was expecting him to be out,” May said. “I said, ‘What about the test?’ They said both of his knees are loose, so it’s hard. We don’t feel that anything is torn.

“He comes back in. He lands funny again. … It’s unfortunate for him because he was playing so well. When an ACL pops on a noncontact injury, you’re like, ‘Man, what could we have done different?’ When it happens on a funny, quirky play, usually those are the ones that aren’t preventable.”

May added it hasn’t been determined yet when Cason will undergo surgery. Given the typical recovery timeline for a torn ACL ranges anywhere from nine to 12 months, May said Cason redshirting next season is a possibility that’s “on the table.”

“That’s certainly been discussed as well, and then that impacts the recruiting decision-making,” May said. “But right now, we’re still trying to figure out when he’s going to have it. What’s the timeline? Does it make sense to go ahead and sit out next year? … We haven’t made any definitive decisions, because all the information is so inconclusive.”

Moving forward, the plan isn’t to have just one guy replace Cason, who averaged 8.4 points and 2.4 assists in 18.6 minutes per game, shot 40.2% from 3-point range and served as a facilitator when starting point guard Elliot Cadeau wasn’t on the court. It’ll be a by-committee approach.

That said, Cason’s absence is certainly going to put much more on Cadeau’s shoulders. The Wolverines can ill afford to have Cadeau commit unnecessary fouls and miss long stretches at a time. Without Cason, Cadeau is the one guard who can break down opposing defenses off the dribble and create for others.

“This will force Elliot to be much more solid with his defensive decision-making when it comes to fouling,” May said. “He doesn’t have that insurance policy anymore named L.J. behind him, because L.J. came in and carried the load several games for our group. That’s not there anymore.”

While Burnett, Gayle and McKenney haven’t had to be facilitators in their roles this season, May expressed confidence all three can take on minutes with the ball in their hands and initiate the offense.

Even beyond the guards, May noted the team has “other capable weapons” who can serve as triggers on offense depending on the matchup, like forwards Yaxel Lendeborg and Morez Johnson Jr. and big man Aday Mara.

Add it all together, May feels the Wolverines can find a way to absorb the blow, fill the void and forge ahead with Cason sidelined.

“We have enough to overcome what L.J. brought to the team,” May said. “I don’t know if he’s the best backup point guard in the country, but I can’t think of one that’s better. We’re losing a lot, but once again, we’re not going to sit here and look at it from that angle.

“This is an opportunity for all these other guys to do a little bit more, and they’re more than capable. It’s on us to find the right rotations and situations. Without a doubt, we have a lot of confidence in our roster.”

jhawkins@detroitnews.com

@jamesbhawkins

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