Recalls, murders and haircuts
Looking back at mid-michigan’s top stories of 2021
2021 was a tumultuous year in mid-michigan. For the last day of the year and first of 2022, we’re looking back at the top 10 stories from the area. Today, it’s stories 10-6.
10 . Alma refugee center controversy
After five months of controversy in the community, Alma city commissioners in October approved a conditional rezoning agreement and ordinance change that is allowing the former Warwick Living Center to be converted into a temporary home for young refugees.
Talk of the former assisted living facility being converted into a home for refugees prompted recall efforts against the commissioners who voted to approve the ordinance change and agreement.
Michigan Masonic Home, the owner of the property, plans to lease it to Grand Rapids-based Bethany Christian Services for a transitional assessment center for as many as 36 unaccompanied male refugees ages 12 to 17 from the southern United States border and house them for up to 45 days.
9. Gratiot boy sentenced for killing sister
A Gratiot County judge in August sentenced a 17-year-old boy to probation with several provisions after the shooting death of his sister roughly two years earlier.
Judge Shannon Schlegel of the 29th Circuit Court in Ithaca handed down Corbin Redman’s sentence following roughly two years of hearings and delays.
Redman, now 17, admitted to accidentally shooting his 11-year-old sister, Addison, at his family’s Arcada Township home Aug. 29, 2019.
While Redman initially maintained his innocence, his plea deal was changed to allow the judge to decide whether to sentence him as a juvenile or adult.
In sentencing Redman, the judge included 23 provisions determined by the Michigan Department of Corrections.
There will be a hearing prior to Redman’s 19th birthday to determine if he has been rehabilitated or if he remains a risk to society, Gratiot County Prosecutor Keith Kushion said.
8. Farwell woman charged with four murders
A competency examination is pending for Judy Marie Boyer, who is accused of murdering her father and three others at a home in Grant Township northeast of Farwell in late October.
Boyer was on the run briefly after two gunshot injuries were reported at the home.
When police arrived, they found Zachary Allen Salminen dead, and Wade Harlan Bacon, who died after being taken to a local hospital.
While investigating, police found the bodies of Boyer’s father, Henry Lee Boyer, and her sister, Patricia Ann Boyer, in an outbuilding on the property.
A competency evaluation was ordered after Boyer behaved erratically and was unresponsive at her arraignment.
Clare County Prosecutor Michelle Ambrozaitis charged Boyer with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and four felony firearms violations.
Boyer, whom police said had a hit list of other potential victims when she was arrested, allegedly had help: her 39-year-old nephew, Ryan P. Beatty of Weidman, is charged with accessory after the fact and a felony firearm violation.
7. Mt. Pleasant haircut controversy
A Mt. Pleasant man filed a $1 million lawsuit against Mt. Pleasant Public Schools, a librarian and a teacher’s assistant after his daughter’s hair was cut twice without permission. The Mt. Pleasant Board of Education called media reports inaccurate after Ganiard Elementary student Jurnee Hoffmeyer’s haircut aftermath went viral on social media and gained national media attention in March.
Jurnee said a classmate used scissors to cut her hair on the school bus; two days later, after her father, Jimmy Hoffmeyer, had her hair styled in an asymmetrical cut, the girl came home from school with more of her hair cut, according to news reports.
When Jurnee told her father her teacher cut her hair to even it out, he talked to school officials but was unsatisfied, and filed the suit in federal court in Grand Rapids in September.
In July, the board of education said the staffer who cut Jurnee’s hair was reprimanded and an independent third-party investigation determined that despite “good intentions” from the worker who cut the girl’s hair, doing so without permission from her parents and without the knowledge of district administrators violated school policy.
6 . Gratiot man charged after shooting spree
An Alma man with a long criminal history was back behind bars after allegedly shooting at police officers in October, on the day he was supposed to be in court on drunk driving and other charges.
Tyler Joe Moreno, 28, is scheduled to be in court for a probable cause hearing Jan. 13. Moreno is accused of firing at officers outside the Alma Department of Public Safety. He is charged with attempting to kill three officers, six counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony, two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, firing a weapon at a building, firing from a car, three counts of felonious assault and other crimes. Moreno allegedly first fired at officers outside and continuing to fire as he drove away and officers gave chase.
Many of his prior run-ins involved Alma officers, including felonious assault linked to the court date he failed to keep and various traffic offenses dating back to 2011.