George James

Port Huron taxpayers are picking up most of the tab for President Trump’s October rally, a bill that came in just under $98,000. City Manager James Freed says the money mostly paid overtime for police, firefighters and public works crews. The Republican Party’s McMorran Arena rental brought back more than ten-thousand dollars, and the Secret Service paid for the barricades. Still, Freed says the city got off easy. He notes Port Huron budgets about $140,000 a year for the Blue Water Festival. Around six-thousand people attended the rally.

Reporting for WGRT – JP bZet

Sanilac County families are being urged to check their shot records after the health department confirmed the county’s first measles case in years. Health officials are working with the state to trace where the resident caught the illness and whether anyone else in the community may have been exposed. Measles spreads through the air and brings a high fever and a rash that starts on the face. Officials say two doses of the MMR vaccine are 97 percent effective, and anyone with symptoms should stay home and call a doctor.

Reporting for WGRT – JP bZet

A man accused of breaking into a Port Huron home ended up wounded by his own gun. Assistant Police Chief Jeremy Young says officers were called to the 1300 block of Chestnut Street sometime after 9 p.m. Thursday. Police say the man went into the house and was confronted by the homeowner, and investigators believe his own weapon went off, hitting him in the arm. He was treated at McLaren Macomb and released, then booked into the St. Clair County Jail. Charges are pending as the investigation continues.

Reporting for WGRT – JP bZet

Folks in St. Clair are invited to help one of the city’s oldest landmarks blow out 100 candles. The St. Clair Inn opened along the St. Clair River in 1926, during Prohibition, and has hosted generations of weddings, travelers and family celebrations ever since. Anyone can stop by a free open house this today from 4 to 6 p.m. to tour the historic inn. The party continues Saturday night with a centennial gala featuring dinner, live music, a champagne toast and dancing. Gala tickets are 200 dollars per person.

Reporting for WGRT – JP bZet

A Port Huron teacher’s love of hockey put about 20 Woodland Developmental Center students on skates, many for the first time. Special education teacher Mark Morley pitched the idea, and players from the Port Huron Prowlers and St. Clair County Community College hockey team helped them skate at McMorran Place on Thursday. The students, ages 18 to 26, are part of Woodland’s transition program, which builds life skills and independence. School leaders hope to plan more skating trips, since other students and staff want to join.

Reporting for WGRT – JP bZet

A Marysville-area man who was already on parole is facing new drug charges after a raid at a Busha Highway home. The St. Clair County Drug Task Force searched the property Tuesday as part of an ongoing investigation into local drug sales. Investigators say they found what they call a dealer-level amount of crystal meth, along with digital scales and packaging materials. Fifty-year-old Jason Durham was arraigned Thursday on three felony charges, including maintaining a drug house, and his bond is set at 50-thousand dollars.

Reporting for WGRT – JP bZet