Rewind: News from the last 7 days

U-M head football coach Sherrone Moore was charged with felony third-degree home invasion and two misdemeanors — stalking in a domestic relationship and breaking and entering — after he was fired with cause by the university last Wednesday following an investigation that found evidence he was engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. The alleged actions took place hours after the firing. Prosecutors said Moore broke into the staff member’s apartment, grabbed knives and scissors, and threatened to kill himself and said his blood would be on her hands. The woman had broken up with Moore two days earlier, prompting calls and texts from him that led her to report the affair to U-M officials. Moore is married to another woman and has three children. Assistant Biff Poggi was named interim coach.

 

Moore was arraigned, then released Friday after he posted a $25,000 bond and was ordered to not have any contact with the victim, wear a tether and continue mental health treatment. His next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 22, 2026. In the wake of Moore’s firing and charges, the U-M Board of Regents met with Athletic Director Warde Manuel to discuss the latest scandal in the department, which includes sign-stealing by off-field analyst Connor Stalions, recruiting violations by former head coach Jim Harbaugh and computer hacking by co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Matt Weiss — as well as those involving coaches of other sports. The university reported that the law firm of Jenner & Block, which did an initial probe into allegations against Moore months earlier but didn’t discover anything, is investigating the athletic department to find out if there was a cover-up.

East Lansing police are investigating a homicide that appeared to have happened early Sunday. Officers were dispatched to Arbor Glen Apartments, near W. Lake Lansing Road and Abbot Road, around 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 14. A male, identified as St. Johns resident Feng Lin, 37, was found dead. Peiyun Qin, a 23-year-old East Lansing resident, has been charged with open murder, armed robbery and several weapons offenses, according to a statement from Ingham County Prosecuting Attorney John Dewane. Lin has entered a not guilty plea and is scheduled for hearings later this month, according to Dewane. Police have said the homicide did not appear to be random and there was no indication of an ongoing public safety risk.

Lansing’s planned Mod Pod/NOVA community, with 50 modular housing units, may be further delayed. Officials have struggled to get a site picked for the housing units intended for homeless individuals. After coming up with a list of five final locations, the city may be trying to identify additional potential sites. A joint committee meeting — with the Human Relations and Community Services Advisory Board and The Mayor’s Neighborhood Advisory Board — is planned for 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 18 at the Alfreda Schmidt Community Center. A site selection process identified dozens of potential sites. Four of the five final sites announced by the city are in city parks; the fifth site is the former Shabazz school building, which is privately owned. The meeting could end up identifying new locations, according to a statement signed by Mayor Andy Schor and Kim Coleman, director of the city’s Human Relations and Community Services department.

A renovation of 20 apartments in the Cherry Hill neighborhood by Okemos developer PK Companies is finishing up, with 6 already online. The apartments fall under the state’s “Missing Middle” program, which provides affordable housing for households making 60-120% of the area median income ($42,360-$84,720 for a one-person household in Ingham County). The apartments do not fall within the Cherry Hill local historic district, and the historic buildings were heavily remodeled. PK’s marketing director, Kristen Guel, told City Pulse the remodel upset the neighborhood, but that the cost of preservation was prohibitive.

Lansing’s Code Blue status has been extended for a fourth week, until at least 7 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 17. The city’s Code Blue declarations allow local shelters to have more flexibility during extreme cold, or snow. The Letts Community Center will be open from 6:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. as an overnight warming center during Code Blue periods. Many public buildings — including the Foster, Gier, Letts and Schmidt community centers, libraries, and the Capital Area Transportation Authority Transportation Center in downtown — will be open during the day as well. CATA will offer free rides to warming centers. For more information, visit LansingMI.gov/coldweatherplan or call 311 (a city information line distinct from 911).

The Lansing School District high school sports events could have emptier stands. The district is now restricting student attendance at games and contests to Lansing students or students from the opposing school, according to reports in the Lansing State Journal and other news outlets. The district changed its athletics code of conduct last week to require identification. Younger students are allowed with a parent or guardian. School officials were quoted as saying the changes came after “minor incidents” involving people who were not Lansing students.

MSU’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved the hiring of Pat Fitzgerald as new head football coach in its meeting Friday. His contract with the university has a starting annual salary of $4 million, with an additional $1 million in supplemental income that rises after each contract year. His initial contract runs through January 2031. Various reports say that among the moves to fill out his staff, Fitzgerald is retaining co-defensive coordinator Joe Rossi and hiring former MSU All-American linebacker Max Bullough as another co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Meanwhile, former MSU starting quarterback Aidan Chiles and star receiver Nick Marsh are among the players having entered the transfer portal.

Ingham County deputies were called to the 5200 block of Walker Road near Leslie in Onondaga Township Thursday for a reported shooting. A release from the Sherriff’s Office said a husband and wife died in the shooting and that it was a targeted incident. It is investigating the incident as a “murder-suicide.” Anyone with information is asked contact Det. Sgt. Brandon Doerr at 517-676-8251.