State Roundup

Detroit
Man convicted in dismemberment case from 2012

DETROIT (AP) - A jury has convicted a man accused of killing a Detroit-area couple and dumping their body parts into the Detroit River.

Roger Bowling was found guilty Tuesday of first-degree murder, dismemberment and other charges in the 2012 slayings of 32-year-old Danielle Greenway and 42-year-old Chris Hall at their home in Allen Park. The trial began in mid-August.

Bowling faces a mandatory term of life in prison without parole when sentenced Oct. 10 in Wayne County Circuit Court.

Authorities found the bodies of Greenway and Hall floating in the Detroit River and an adjoining canal on July 17, 2012.

Authorities say Bowling knew Greenway from a previous relationship and had been living with her and Hall for about a month before the killings. Police say the victims were shot and dismembered.

Taylor
Authorities: Deaths of 2 ruled murder-suicide

TAYLOR, Mich. (AP) - Authorities have ruled that the deaths of a man and woman found fatally shot in a suburban Detroit home were a murder-suicide.

Taylor police say the bodies of 48-year-old Renee Lutton and her 59-year-old boyfriend James Walker were found Monday night after Lutton's son was unable to contact them and stopped at the home.

Police say autopsies conducted Tuesday determined that Lutton had numerous gunshot wounds and Walker had a self-inflicted wound.

The deaths are under investigation.

Petoskey
Quill worker receiving national art honor

PETOSKEY, Mich. (AP) - A Native American quill worker from Petoskey is receiving the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.

Yvonne Walker Keshick will be designated a National Heritage Fellow by the National Endowment for the Arts on Wednesday at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Keshick's work reflects natural and cultural images decorated with quills. Along with realistic designs of flora and fauna, her work includes depictions of cultural symbols and folk tales.

She teaches the art form and played a key role in the successful campaign in the 1980s to have her Odawa tribe recognized by the federal government.

Michigan State University Museum honored Keshick in 1982 with a Michigan Heritage Award. Her work is included in the collection of the National Museum of the American Indian.

Lansing Township
Marker for boy killed by 1927 school explosion

LANSING TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - An anonymous donor from California has commissioned a granite marker for the grave of a boy fatally injured in the bombing of a Lansing-area school 87 years ago.

The Lansing State Journal says a ceremonial unveiling took place Tuesday at Mount Hope Cemetery in Ingham County's Lansing Township.

The newspaper says Richard Fritz had his eighth birthday the day the Bath School exploded on May 18, 1927. The bombing was part of a series of attacks by school board member Andrew Kehoe that killed 45 children and adults and injured 61 others.

Richard died a year later from injuries sustained in the blast. He's buried near his 10-year-old sister Marjorie, also a victim of the bombing.

Richard's grave marker includes an angel representing his teacher, Hazel Weatherby.

Lansing
Michigan House OKs anti-human trafficking bill

LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Michigan lawmakers have targeted human trafficking with a bill to make it easier for the government to seize property linked to suspected illegal activity.

The legislation passed the state House passed 93-13 Tuesday. It allows for the forfeiture of homes, cash and other assets in home invasion and rape cases and aims at human trafficking cases.

The bill lets law enforcement take property and not give notice of forfeiture for 28 days. The current deadline is seven days.

Supporters say changes in the law would give police more time to investigate intricate human trafficking cases. Critics say innocent people could go a long time without the use of a car and house while wondering if police will return the items or seek forfeiture.

The legislation now goes to the Senate.