Rewind: News from the last 7 days

The Gillespie Group agreed to purchase the City Rescue Mission’s six adjacent buildings on the 600 block of East Michigan Avenue. The mission’s men’s shelter is relocating to a new facility under construction on West Kalamazoo Street. The Gillespie Group seeks to redevelop the six buildings into restaurant and retail storefronts on their first floors and up to 16 apartments above, for an estimated $8 million. The group is seeking approval from the City Council, and CEO Pat Gillespie said it will also request a residential brownfield incentive, which will require approval from both the city and the state.

Downtown Lansing Inc. has been awarded a $100,000 Small Business Accelerator Grant from The Hartford, in partnership with Main Street America, to launch The Macotta Club, a culinary accelerator housed in the historic Knapp’s Centre on Washington Square. The grant will support the club’s initiative to support 16 different concepts by providing a 36-month accelerator program that includes a shared concept kitchen, business training and the production of a variety of dining experiences. The club aims to serve as a launching pad for diverse culinary startups, helping them transition from early-stage businesses to successful ventures poised for market expansion.

MSU education policy Professor Josh Cowen announced he’s entering the 2026 House of Representatives race, the third Democrat planning to challenge Tom Barrett, R-Charlotte, in the state’s 7th Congressional District. Cowen, who is also a visiting senior fellow at the Education Law Center in New Jersey, is an author, researcher and opponent of private school vouchers, which allow the use of taxpayer funds to help pay for nonpublic schools. He has argued that data shows they haven’t improved students’ academic outcomes. Cowen will face former ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink and former Navy SEAL Matt Maasdam for the Democratic nomination in August 2026.

The Michigan Court of Appeals has set Aug. 6 to hear oral arguments regarding whether a felony count of hazing against Ethan Cao and two others, resulting in the death of MSU student Phat Nguyen in 2021, is constitutional. Prosecutors say that Cao and people at a Pi Alpha Phi fraternity party pressured Nguyen and others to drink to dangerous levels, resulting in Nguyen’s death. Cao’s attorney, Edwar Zeineh, argued that the statute that created the hazing causing death felony charge violates the First Amendment because it includes references to specific types of groups or associations — fraternities, sports teams, etc. — that would violate the protection of free association.

An Ingham County Circuit Court jury convicted Christopher Palazzolo of Williamston, 44, of torture and domestic violence in the May 2021 death of his wife, Elise, from a drug overdose. Palazzolo will go before Judge Rosemarie Aquilina for sentencing Sept. 3. He admitted to causing numerous injuries to his wife but produced a handwritten form in which she supposedly gave him permission to physically discipline her for lying. A pathologist said Elise died from ingesting multiple prescription drugs, including antipsychotic drugs. He was unable to determine whether the manner of death was suicide or homicide.

Former Lansing police Lt. Ryan Wilcox racked up $105,000 in charges on a city credit card, reported the Lansing State Journal after a review of documents obtained through public records requests. The city also paid Wilcox $122,000 in overtime between 2020 and 2025, when he retired. State Police records show Wilcox used a city gas card and vehicle for personal reasons, was paid overtime for work he didn’t do and stored lawn mowing equipment for his personal business at the Police Department’s firing range. City Council President Ryan Kost told the Journal that he was surprised by how aggressive the city was about not wanting to release public records involving Wilcox. An internal investigation is ongoing, and Lansing Police spokesperson Jordan Gulkis said the department will not release the findings to the public.

Bath Township police officers arrested a man after an extended chase through a quiet neighborhood Saturday. They say he stabbed a resident inside a home on Nichols Road and later entered properties on English Oak Road before being stopped. They fired their weapons during the encounter, then subdued the suspect with a taser. Emergency medical officers treated the stabbing victim for a nonfatal wound. The department placed the officers involved on paid administrative leave, in accordance with its policy for any officer-involved shooting.

Public safety

An 11-year-old boy helped rescue his mother, another adult, and two children when he called 911 to report they were stranded on an inflatable raft on Lake Lansing. The Ingham County Sheriff’s Office said only one of them had a life preserver and praised the boy for calmly and clearly explaining the situation to dispatchers. … A 44-year-old Charlotte homeowner died when the Bobcat machinery he was operating tipped into a tree trunk, causing it to crash through the windshield of the Bobcat and strike him. EMS personnel pronounced the unidentified man deceased at the scene. … Lansing police responded to a call on Vincent Court in south Lansing Monday and found a 5-year-old boy with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. They believe a firearm went off unintentionally inside the home and struck the child.