The Morning Heat: Wednesday’s Trending Topics
4 kids home alone when 2 men tried to break into Detroit home
Four kids are OK but shaken up after being home alone when two men tried to break into their house through a window. The break-in happened on Faust Avenue not far from the Southfield Freeway on Detroit’s west side. The mother said she told her mangers at work this was a call on her cell she had to take.
“It just kept ringing and ringing,” she said. “When I got up to take the call, it was my son saying someone had just broken in the house while they were here.”
The four boys, ranging from ages 8 to 16, were home alone Tuesday night when they heard a knock at the door, but they knew not to open it. That’s when the two intruders tried breaking in through a window.
The boys made as much noise as they could with all of them running to a different neighbor for help. Then it was neighbors to the rescue, scaring the men away. The intruders took off running empty-handed. The plan worked and mom said she is proud.
Family of Amiracle Williams receives helping hand from community group
A group dedicated to stopping the violence in Detroit has stepped up to help Amiracle Williams’ family. The Williams family is relying on faith to get them through the tragedy of 3-year-old Amiracle’s murder last Thursday. She was shot and killed when a teenage Facebook feud turned into a fist fight and then – gunfire on Mogul on Detroit’s east side.
Pastor David Bullock and the Change Consortium donated $500 to Amiracle’s family, while Chlora Funeral Home donated it’s services. Amiracle’s mother and father are still recovering from being shot in the melee. It was Amiracle’s 17-year-old sister and her friends who had been involved in the initial Facebook feud..Now 23-year-old Donnie Everett is charged with Amiracle’s murder. Williams says violence has visited this family far too often.
Mariana Williams has advice for parents.
“I don’t care how old that child is,” Williams said. “You have a right to know what they are doing at all times. You have a right to to look on their Facebook. You have a right to look in their room, you have a right to monitor their friends.”
The pastors say Amiracle’s funeral, or home-going is Saturday, but they are also inviting everyone who wants to see change in the city to a Live In Peace rally on Nov. 8. For more information about the upcoming peace rally, see the Change Consortium’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/actioncacVisitation.
Amiracle Williams is at Clora Funeral Home, 5801 E. 7 Mile, Detroit, from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Oct. 24 and is open to the public.
The funeral is at Little Rock Baptist Church, 9000 Woodward, Detroit on Oct. 25. Family hour is 10:30 a.m., the funeral is 11 a.m. Interment is at Sacred Heart Cemetery, 17219 Mound Road. The family of Amiracle Williams has a GoFundMe account set up online for those who would like to show their support and make a donation. Go to HotHipHotDetroit.com for the link.
‘Bait-and-switch’ thefts reported at MGM Grand Detroit
The MGM Grand Detroit, one of the city’s premiere casino and entertainment centers, is now on alert after hearing reports of a suspicious woman working the casino floor and targeting big spenders. The Local 4 Defenders have learned the woman may be involved in up to three different incidents that led to a casino patron becoming the victim of a crime.
Here’s how it works: The woman approaches a man, flirts and asks to head back to her car. Once inside, two guys appear, pulling out weapons.
In one instance — Sunday, Oct. 19 — one suspect was armed with a knife and the other a Taser. They took the guy’s winnings and then took off. The Defenders are being told investigators are looking at two other similar incidents.
Here are descriptions for those involved:
Perpetrator one: White man, 45, unshaven; dark colored hoodie, a sweater shirt; armed with knife
Perpetrator two: Black man, 25, dark brown complexion; black hoodie sweatshirt; armed with a Taser
Perpetrator three: White woman, 30, 5 feet 8 inches, 160 pounds; braided, medium length hair
Vehicle: gray older model Chrysler Sebring with Michigan plate No. DBQ 1119
A spokesperson for the MGM Grand told the Defenders this:
“The safety and security of our guests and employees is a top priority at MGM Grand Detroit. Our full-time security staff and surveillance department work closely with local law enforcement agencies to maintain a safe environment. However, individuals must also exercise personal responsibility for their own safety. Nothing can replace sound judgment and awareness of your surroundings.”
The casino has 24-hour security both in and around it. They are working with Detroit police to investigate these reported thefts.
Snyder increases Governor’s race lead, Schuette increases Attorney General race lead
As Election Day draws closer, Governor Rick Snyder is increasing his lead over challenger Mark Schauer. If the voting took place today, Rick Snyder, the first-term Republican from Ann Arbor, would beat Schauer, a Battle Creek/Kalamazoo area Democrat who served in Congress the Michigan Legislature, by 8 points, 47% to 39%.
Ten percent of the voters couldn’t make up their minds when polled and 4% would vote for 1 of 3 third party candidates in the race. That’s the results of an exclusive new WXYZ-TV 7/Detroit Free Press poll conducted by EPIC MRA for our statewide media partners in Detroit, Flint, Lansing and Grand Rapids.
The survey of 600 likely Michigan voters is a snap shot of where the state’s top political contest stands today. However, November 4th is still two weeks away and nothing is certain in politics until all the ballots are cast and counted. Channel 7 pollster Bernie Porn has been surveying Michigan elections for decades and he describes the 2014 governor’s race this way, “This latest poll is consistent with our most previous ones. Snyder’s message is getting across and you can see his numbers moving, Schauer’s messages aren’t connecting which explains why his numbers have remained the same.”
Governor Snyder has picked up 2 points since our exclusive survey in late September when he regained the lead from Schauer 45% – 39%.
More than half of the respondents polled have a favorable opinion of Governor Snyder while only 34% like Schauer. Snyder is also aided by 56% who say “Michigan is headed in the right direction” and 66% who believe the state economy “has already bottomed out and is starting to improve.”
In the race for Michigan’s top law enforcement officer, Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette has increased his lead over Democratic Michigan State University Law School professor Mark Totten 43% – 33%. In our last survey, Schuette was ahead 38% – 32%. About 19% of the people who participated in the current poll are undecided about how they should vote. Similar numbers were registered in the race for Michigan Secretary of State. Ruth Johnson, the current officeholder from Oakland County, is in a good position two weeks out from Election Day. She is nine points in front of Democratic Attorney Godfrey Dillard of Detroit.
U.S. limits airports for passengers from Ebola-stricken region
The United States is doing more to help prevent the spread of the virus. The Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday that all arriving passengers from West African countries that Ebola has hit hardest — Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea — must land in one of the five U.S. airports that have enhanced Ebola screening.
Those airports are New York’s John F. Kennedy International, D.C.’s Washington Dulles, New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International, Chicago’s O’Hare International and Hartsfield-Jackson International in Atlanta. On its website, the Department of Homeland Security shows how many people have been screened and then taken to health care facilities for further checks. JFK appears to be outpacing the other airports in screenings.
In Dallas, where Pham and a second nurse contracted Ebola from Duncan, a Liberian man, officials announced that a state-of-the art Ebola treatment and infectious disease bio-containment facility would be created in north Texas. UT Southwestern Medical Center, Methodist Hospital System and Parkland Hospital System will work together on getting that center up and running. The hospitals are providing equipment and it will be staffed according to need, Gov. Rick Perry’s office said.
Perry’s task force on how to prepare the state for handling infectious diseases like Ebola had earlier recommended such a center be created. The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston has also been designated an Ebola treatment and infectious disease bio-containment facility, Perry’s office said.
Also Tuesday, the World Health Organization announced that testing was underway at the NIH for an Ebola vaccine. A trial for a second vaccine, developed in Canada, has started at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Silver Spring, Maryland. The goal is to launch vaccine trials in West Africa by January, said Dr. Marie Paule Kieny, the WHO’s assistant director general for health systems and innovation.
The initial vaccine tests are being given to volunteers in countries such as Mali, the United States and England. It is impossible to get Ebola from the vaccines, Kieny said, because they do not contain enough of the virus’ genetic material. But “there is no vaccine that has no side effects at all,” she added.
It’s not clear when vaccines could be distributed to the masses. That won’t be determined until after test results come in. When the testing reaches West Africa, candidates could include relatives of infected Ebola patients, Kieny said.
Written by LBeasley (Lauren Beasley), Digital Producer of The Morning Heat and Sports Editor of Radio One Detroit
Keep up with the Morning Heat on Instagram and Twitter at @hiphopdetroit
Trending Topics: Thefts at MGM Grand Detroit, Community Group Provides Help For Amiracle Williams Family and More was originally published on hothiphopdetroit.com
