State Roundup

Manistee Police: Woman in trailer fire homicide victim MANISTEE, Mich. (AP) -- Police say a woman found dead inside a burned-out trailer in northern Michigan was a homicide victim. The Manistee County Sheriff's Department reported earlier that 56-year-old Joan Marie Miller and 51-year-old Douglas Brian Nichols died of gunshot wounds. They were found after firefighters responded to a call Friday and found the home in flames. It was in Springdale Township, just outside Thompsonville and about 25 miles southwest of Traverse City. The Traverse City Record-Eagle reports that investigators consider Miller's death a homicide. The Ludington Daily News says she had a gunshot wound at the base of her neck. Detroit Michigan man sues movie theater over snack prices DETROIT (AP) -- A suburban Detroit man is suing his local AMC theater over what he says are its too-high snack prices. The Detroit Free Press reports Joshua Thompson filed a lawsuit last week in Wayne County Circuit Court. The suit accuses AMC of violating the Michigan Consumer Protection Act by charging grossly excessive prices for snacks. It seeks refunds for customers who were overcharged and a civil penalty against the theater chain. A message seeking comment from AMC Theatres was left by The Associated Press before business hours on Wednesday. Thompson is a security technician from Livonia. The suit says that on Dec. 26, he paid $8 for a Coke and a package of Goobers at the Livonia theater. Rochester Meadow Brook Hall named National Historic Landmark ROCHESTER, Mich. (AP) -- Meadow Brook Hall in suburban Detroit has been named a National Historic Landmark. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar on Tuesday announced the designation for the estate in Rochester and 12 other sites around the country. Meadow Brook is located on the campus of Oakland University. The home was built by Matilda Dodge Wilson, the widow of automobile pioneer John Dodge, and her second husband. Constructed between 1926 and 1929 for $4 million, Meadow Brook is an example of Tudor-revival architecture. Sault Ste. Marie Bridge holds contests to mark 50th anniversary SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. (AP) -- Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge officials have announced the creation of two contests to mark the span's 50th anniversary. The International Bridge Administration this week launched a coloring book contest that calls for children to create line drawings of the bridge that links Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The second contest seeks models of the bridge. The drawing contest concludes June 1 with eight winning entries selected for inclusion in a coloring book available this summer. The bridge modeling contest deadline is Sept. 29, and the winning entry will be displayed at the IBA's offices. Top entries in both contests also will garner cash prizes and commemorative bridge gifts. The bridge's anniversary theme is "Celebrating International Friendship." Published: Thu, Mar 8, 2012