Michigan

Police identify Wayne church gunman, say mental health crisis may have played role

Published

6 months ago

June 24, 2025

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Police identify Wayne church gunman, say mental health crisis may have played role

The incident was making national headlines, as police sought to investigate a motive.
Police said the incident may have been a result of a “mental health crisis.”
The suspect did not have a criminal history. His mother is a member of the church.

The heavily armed man who tried to burst into a Sunday morning service at CrossPointe Community Church in Wayne but was thwarted by church security who shot him dead was identified by police as 31-year-old Brian Browning, of Romulus.

What’s more, one worshiper, who asked for prayers and thanked God no one else was killed, told the Free Press the church had trained for such a situation, and credited it with protecting “all those attending,” which included children.

By late morning on Monday, June 23, police said, it was still unclear why Browning, who was single, had targeted the church at 36125 Glenwood Road, but detectives were suggesting that it may have been a result of a “mental health crisis.”

“In today’s society, any training that can preserve life is beneficial,” Wayne Deputy Chief Finley Carter said, adding that in in today’s charged climate people should “remain vigilant and remain aware and prepared for an event.”

Browning, police said, had no previous contact with the Wayne Police Department or criminal history, and his mother, with whom he lived, is a member of the church. In the past year, he had attended two or three services there, police said.

The church, on its website, describes itself as a place where people aim “to serve and love you in whatever situation or stage of life you find yourself in,” and encourages “everyone to explore faith in God” and “connect with Jesus Christ.”

Browning, police said, was carrying several weapons, including an assault-style rifle, more than a dozen fully loaded magazines, a semi-automatic handgun with an extended magazine and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

They were all legally acquired, police noted.

Church security reacted

At a news conference on Sunday, June 22, Wayne Police Chief Ryan Strong said authorities were “grateful for the heroic actions of the church’s staff members,” who he added “undoubtedly saved many lives and prevented a large-scale mass shooting.”

The security team members, police clarified, were not commercial guard service employees.

In a statement to the Free Press, police pointed out that after U.S. airstrikes this weekend on Iran, there was “no evidence to believe that this act of violence has any connection” to the Middle East conflict.

According to the police account of the shooting, a man who a witness said was erratically driving a silver SUV in the parking lot parked the vehicle on the west side of the church building. He wore camouflage clothing and a tactical vest.

He got his guns out of his vehicle.

Then, he headed toward the church entrance.

Based on multiple 911 calls just after 11 a.m., he also started shooting.

To stop him, police said, a churchgoer driving a pickup truck hit him, and a church security team, which heard the gunfire, reacted, meeting him outside the church’s main entrance. They also locked the doors so he couldn’t get in, and then they exchanged gunfire.

At least two other people were armed.

Browning, police said, was shot by church security.

When officers arrived, police said, they tried to save Browning’s life, but could not.

‘We all got out safely’

A search of Browning’s home uncovered rifles, semi-automatic handguns and ammunition.

Police did not, however, offer any theories for why he was so heavily armed.

Law enforcement in recent years has been warning of targeted violence against houses of worship in the United States, in part, because of their symbolic value, perceived lack of security and accessible locations.

Officials have urged faith-based institutions to set up a “robust security plan.”

Hostility and violence against churches in America is at a high, according to a report by the Family Research Council, which found more than 430 incidents nationwide in 2023 — more than double the number in 2022 and an 800% increase in incidents since 2018.

Don Schlamb, who emailed the Free Press not long after the shooting, briefly described what unfolded in the church, and said: “There’s a lot of hurting people out there right now. We must pray for everyone.”

He was, he wrote, in the front row for Sunday’s service, and helped move the children to safety.

“Praise the Lord, we all got out safely,” he added. “I was one of the first people who helped set up the security team at our church. We trained for situations like this. The program we put in place worked perfectly to protect all those attending the church.”

There were, police estimate, more than 100 people there.

According to some accounts, the service included a Vacation Bible School presentation.

A video recording of the worship service, which was streaming online, has been removed.

In addition to the shooter, there was, however, one other injury.

One church security member, whose name was not released by police, was hit in the leg by gunfire and taken to a local hospital, where, police said, after a successful surgery, he was in stable condition.

Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com.

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Michigan

Bullough’s back: Ex-linebacker to be Michigan State co-defensive coordinator

Published

3 hours ago

December 12, 2025

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Bullough’s back: Ex-linebacker to be Michigan State co-defensive coordinator

A fan-favorite Spartan is coming back as an assistant coach.Max Bullough, a former MSU linebacker who has spent the past two seasons coaching linebackers at Notre Dame, is coming back to East Lansing to be a co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach, Bullough confirmed in a biography change on X (formerly Twitter).

The move is a promotion for Bullough, who was a linebackers coach at Notre Dame the past two seasons. Bullough will serve alongside incumbent MSU defensive coordinator Joe Rossi, who The Detroit News confirmed last week is staying on Pat Fitzgerald’s first staff in East Lansing. Fitzgerald replaced Jonathan Smith, who went 5-19, 4-14 Big Ten in two seasons.Bullough, 33, played for Michigan State from 2010 to 2013, under head coach Mark Dantonio and defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi. He played immediately as a freshman and appeared in 53 college games, logging 284 tackles, eight sacks and three interceptions.

He missed his final game — the 100th Rose Bowl against Stanford in 2013 — because of an unspecified violation of team rules. He never spoke publicly on the issue, though he was asked at the NFL Combine.Michigan State went 42-12 in Bullough’s four seasons with the Spartans, and 25-7 in Big Ten play, including the conference title in 2010 and 2013.After a brief NFL career with the Houston Texans and, in 2018, a stint on the Cleveland Browns’ practice squad, Bullough got into coaching. He served as grad assistant for Cincinnati in 2019 under Luke Fickell, Alabama from 2020 to 2022 under Nick Saban (winning the College Football Playoff in his first year) and Notre Dame under Marcus Freeman in 2023. Freeman kept Bullough on as his linebackers coach last year, a season in which the Irish made it to the national championship game before losing to Ohio State.

Earlier this season, Bullough went viral in August for a video of him describing his detail-oriented approach during fall camp, citing knee bend and square tackling “when the s—‘s hard.”

Notre Dame finished the season 10-2, on a 10-game win streak, when it was left just outside the College Football Playoff bracket. Freeman and his team opted out of a bowl game, after terse words on the snub from AD Pete Bevacqua.Bullough coached a number of NFL draft picks in his career, including Dallas Turner (Minnesota Vikings), Christian Harris (Houston Texans), Henry To’oTo’o (Houston), Drew Sanders (Denver Broncos) and Jack Kiser (Jacksonville Jaguars).

Bullough won’t be the first in his family to coach at Michigan State. His grandfather, Hank, was an MSU guard and linebacker who won a national championship in 1952. Hank was also a well-regarded assistant coach on Duffy Daugherty’s staff from 1959 to 1969, including the national title teams in 1965 and 1966. He then went onto a pro coaching career that included stops with seven teams, including a head coaching tenure with the Buffalo Bills from 1985 to 1986.

After a year as the Detroit Lions’ defensive coordinator in 1993, he finished his coaching career with a homecoming to Michigan State, where he was an assistant on George Perles’ final team. He died in 2019.

cearegood@detroitnews.com

@ConnorEaregood

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Michigan

Greg McElroy reveals two coaches for Michigan search if Kalen DeBoer turns down job

Published

15 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Greg McElroy reveals two coaches for Michigan search if Kalen DeBoer turns down job

With what transpired yesterday regarding Sherrone Moore, the latest opening on the coaching carousel now belongs to Michigan. Now, several names once thought to no longer be candidates elsewhere could be again with this availability as of yesterday in Ann Arbor.

Greg McElroy also discussed possible names who could be hires for the Wolverines in appearing on ‘SportsCenter’ on Thursday morning. That began with him addressing the candidacy of Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer, whose name has reportedly come up to an extent this cycle, but certainly so after yesterday in this search specifically, depending on how he may feel about his future with the Crimson Tide.

“I’d start with Kalen DeBoer,” McElroy said. “You gotta wonder, though, is Kalen DeBoer really interested, and what do the optics look like? Kalen DeBoer is the ultimate competitor. Would he leave Alabama? It would look like he was running? I don’t know if he’s truly going to consider it, but it is Michigan. It’s a great job, and you have to listen to what they’re proposing.”

Through two seasons in Tuscaloosa, DeBoer is 19-7 (.731), including being 10-3 this season in making the SEC Championship and returning the Crimson Tide to the College Football Playoff. That’s not to mention all the successes he has had elsewhere coaching in college, namely as a head coach at Sioux Falls, Fresno State, and Washington, in which he led the Huskies all the way to an appearance in the national title game against, ironically, Michigan. However, despite some of his successes at ‘Bama, DeBoer did have his name come up to some point in rumors during the search at Penn State, and is seeing it come up even further now in this new one at Michigan.

From there, McElroy named three other possible candidates for the maize & blue. He first said two other college options in Louisville’s Jeff Brohm, who’s 27-12 (.692) the past three seasons with the Cardinals, and Washington’s Jedd Fisch, who’s 14-11 (.560) the past two seasons with the Huskies while also having ties to the program having spent two years on the offensive staff for the Wolverines. He then also named another option with connections to the program in Jesse Minter, who was their defensive coordinator for two seasons under Jim Harbaugh and is still with him now with the Los Angeles Chargers, but with McElroy noting that it may be time for Michigan to move on from those involved in or connected to their past two tenures.

“Ultimately, I think this will come down to either Jeff Brohm at Louisville or Jedd Fisch at Washington. I think those are probably the two best candidates,” said McElroy. “They have an elite quarterback in Bryce Underwood. They want someone that has a history of developing that position. Both Jedd Fisch and, if you look at what Jeff Brohm’s done in (his) career? They’ve done a great job.”

“And Jesse Minter is the other name to keep an eye on, the defensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Chargers,” McElroy added. “But, like what Paul (Finebaum) just said, I think distancing themselves from the Harbaugh era? That’s what many Michigan people want at this point, given some of the hurdles that they’ve had the last two years in the court of public opinion.”

We’re less than day since this job even came open, although, based on the details, it may have been trending this way for some time, at Michigan. That leaves a lot to still unfold, including more major names like some of these ones, who could become targets in the coming time for the Wolverines.

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Michigan

Michigan Senate votes to block pursuit of COVID jobless aid overpayments

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Michigan Senate votes to block pursuit of COVID jobless aid overpayments

Lansing — The Michigan Senate voted unanimously this week in favor of a bill that would prevent the state’s Unemployment Insurance Agency from continuing to try to recoup jobless aid overpayments that were made during the COVID-19 pandemic, affecting as many as 350,000 people.

Many lawmakers have reported receiving a deluge of calls from constituents, in recent weeks, after the agency began sending out letters, wanting money back from people whom state officials believe received more assistance than they should have during the pandemic. The messages came after the settlement of a three-year court battle over the repayment effort, which allowed the agency to resume collections.

Sen. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, contended that the Unemployment Insurance Agency was demanding money back from low-income and gig workers who were simply trying to access a financial support system that was available to them in 2020.

“Somewhere along the line, in the maze of boxes that they have to check every week to stay compliant, there was one box that was unchecked,” Irwin said. “And now, the UIA comes after them alleging fraud, turning their life upside down, sending them threatening letters.”

The Senate bill, which passed Tuesday in a vote of 35-0, would require the agency to waive the recovery of improperly paid benefits if they were distributed more than three years ago. The first cases of COVID-19 in Michigan were identified in March 2020, five years ago. The pandemic and government efforts to combat the spread of the virus spurred a rush of unemployment claims and a wave of fraud.

The bill still allows the state to seek repayments that were “the result of the claimant’s fraud.”

Both Democratic and Republican senators — Democrats have a majority in the Senate — voted for the measure Tuesday. However, it will have to be approved by the GOP-controlled House and signed by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to become law.

Jason Palmer, the Unemployment Insurance Agency’s director, said in a statement on Sept. 8 that his staff was “legally obligated” to seek the repayments from the pandemic if they were improper. Roughly 350,000 workers with claims in collections dating back to March 2020 would be required to return the unemployment benefits they received, the agency has said.

The value of the overpayments, many of which lawmakers believe were made or sought by accident, has been estimated at $2.7 billion. The Unemployment Insurance Agency faced a tidal wave of claims and fraudulent activity during the COVID-19 pandemic, as the state’s jobless rate reached as high as 22.7% in April 2020.

Palmer has said the overpayments primarily resulted from claimants not providing the requested or required proof of employment or income, starting a job but continuing to certify for benefits as if they were unemployed and not satisfying the required work search activities.

“In these situations, we have a legal and fiduciary duty to recover the funds,” Palmer previously said. “The unemployment trust fund is taxpayer money, and we must be responsible stewards of it.”

Much of the unemployment money in question flowed through the federal government. Many business groups, like the National Federation of Independent Business, have voiced concerns that the U.S. Department of Labor might try to force the state to reimburse the federal government for the overpayments if they’re specifically forgiven by the Legislature.

“We would still like to see a waiver or waiver language because we don’t want to see the state end up with a budget crisis,” said Amanda Fisher, Michigan state director for the National Federation of Independent Business.

Lawmakers attempted to address that concern in the bill by adding a provision that says the new policy doesn’t obligate the Unemployment Trust Fund for any amount of money.

Brian Calley, president and CEO of the Small Business Association of Michigan, called the new language an improvement. But Calley said he wants to see a specific statement in the bill that makes it clear that employers will not be assessed any additional liability because of the policy.

Forgiving the overpayments isn’t the problem, Calley said. It’s the potential liability to the small businesses that fund the Unemployment Trust Fund, he said.

“You could inadvertently create a massive obligation for small businesses,” said Calley, a former lieutenant governor.

Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt, R-Porter Township, who’s running for governor, was among 16 Republicans who voted for the bill Tuesday. He said it was a shame that lawmakers were still dealing with the “ineptitude” of Whitmer’s administration.

From the other side of the aisle, Irwin said the Unemployment Insurance Agency was acting “irresponsibly” in seeking the repayments from the pandemic.

“They bully our residents,” Irwin said. “I’ve had residents … who have paid UIA back money, not because they owed, but because they’re scared. They’re bullied. And they’re harassed by the agency.”

Sen. Darrin Camilleri, D-Trenton, the proposal’s sponsor, called on the House to pass it next week before the holidays.

“They should do the right thing,” Camilleri said Wednesday in an interview.

cmauger@detroitnews.com

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