DETROIT – It’s a big night for some men across Detroit.

Every year, the Michigan Chronicle selects a group of African American men to recognize for their commitment to community service and helping others.

This celebration is part of the publication’s annual Men of Excellence awards.

This year, Local 4’s own Demond Fernandez is among the honorees.

Fernandez said, “I’m so honored to be among this year’s group of honorees.”

These men are making it their mission to motivate, inspire, and serve the Metro Detroit community.

Dion Williams, director of community relations for DMC, said, “Every single day, to me, it’s resources to the people and people to the resources.”

Williams and Alphonso Wallace are among the 50 men being honored this year.

Wallace, president of Vestco Management and Midwest Resource Development Agency, said, “There’s a responsibility for all of us as men, not only as men of excellence. So, the responsibility to me is to make my community better than what I received. To do more for the community, to do more for our youth, or for our seniors in our community.”

Wallace’s organizations focus on investment and youth mentoring. Williams, a lifelong Detroiter, is passionate about ensuring neighbors have convenient access to quality health care.

Wallace said, “What I consider to be my job is making sure that they have actual access, being able to gain those resources that are actually there for them.”

For 18 years, the Michigan Chronicle and Real Times Media have celebrated the achievements of African American leaders—community champions and change-makers honored with the Men of Excellence distinction.

Many honorees quietly do the work behind the scenes.

Cathy Nedd, president of Real Times Media News Group, said, “It’s significant because, like the saying goes, if we don’t celebrate ourselves, who will? And there are just so many people in our community who have contributed so greatly.”

Hundreds of men are nominated each year, and so far, 900 have received the Men of Excellence award.

Conrad L. Mallett, corporation counsel for the city of Detroit and a member of the Men of Distinction’s inaugural class, is receiving this year’s esteemed Legacy Award.

Mallett said, “These are people whose contributions could not be denied. The idea that they would be recognized by one of the oldest Black newspapers in the country, really, really, at the time, then and now, seemed terrifically important.”

Mallett said, “You want to make a difference. You want to make it better. You want to leave a mark. You want to make people know that you were present.”

The Michigan Chronicle is hosting an induction ceremony for the Men of Excellence class of 2025.

On a personal note, Fernandez thanked those who nominated him, his colleagues at Local 4, and the teams at Michigan Chronicle and Real Times Media for the recognition.

Michigan police are investigating whether rock musician and avid sportsman Ted Nugent brought a concealed firearm into the Michigan Capitol building Wednesday. 

Nugent was at the statehouse Wednesday to testify at a joint committee hearing about the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, requesting accountability over DNR actions relating to hunting regulations.

When arriving, Nugent entered the building at the north entrance, a Michigan State Police spokesperson said in their statement. 

“The weapons detection system functioned correctly and alerted to a possible weapon; however, the trooper staffing the entry point did not see the alert until after Mr. Nugent left the screening area,” state police said. 

“How did this happen?” state Rep. Laurie Pohutsky (D-Livonia) said in a video posted to Instagram. She was among the legislators attending the hearing that Nugent participated in. 

Pohutsky said early in the proceedings, she was among those who realized Nugent was carrying a firearm at the time. She and others flagged the attention of the Capitol sergeant and the state police. 

“We are still evaluating how the weapons detection alert was missed and will be following up to ensure this does not happen again,” a statement from the Michigan State Police spokesperson said in response to the circumstances. 

Nugent’s arguments included what some hunters, anglers and residents consider to be overreach in the state’s conservation laws. 

The state Capitol has bans on open carry and concealed weapons, policies that went into effect in recent years. There are exceptions for on-duty law enforcement officers and legislators who have a concealed carry permit. Nugent would not have met either of those requirements as a citizen who was on site to testify. 

Nothing was done during the meeting, she added. 

“Upon completing his meeting, MSP personnel contacted Mr. Nugent and notified him of the weapons policy, and he complied,” state police said.  

“I don’t think anything is going to be done about it, but it’s obviously not acceptable,” Pohutsky said after learning that the firearm actually was detected at the scanner check-in.  

CBS News Detroit has reached out to Nugent’s team for comment. 

The above video originally aired on June 25.

A federal appeals court has reversed a 2022 ruling that found parts of the state’s newborn blood screening program unconstitutional.

The program collects blood samples from newborn babies and screens them for diseases. Three years ago, a district court judge ruled in favor of four parents who raised concerns regarding the leftover dried blood spots, which are kept at the Michigan Neonatal Biobank in Detroit. Scientists can pay a fee to use the spots for research.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that those practices do not violate constitutional protections regarding privacy and illegal searches and seizures.

“The Newborn Screening Program saves lives,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement. “I want to thank the Court for its decision and the dedicated attorneys in my office who litigated this case for years to ensure Michigan can continue early detection of serious diseases while also advancing medical research through privacy-protected de-identified data.”