News Update For Friday, March 16, 2012

Marquette City Police are warning residents about another phone scam making its way around the area.  They were contacted yesterday afternoon about an 89-year-old Marquette woman who had been possibly scammed out of a large sum of money.  Police say a caller told the woman she had won a new vehicle and 2 and a half million dollars and all she had to do to receive the winnings was to send cash to cover the taxes.  The woman had sent out two packages containing a total of $50,000 to addresses in New York and Florida.  Police were able to stop one of the packages, containing $20,000 before it was mailed out from the Marquette Post Office, but the other one, containing $30,000 had already been delivered.  The investigation is now being handled by U.S.Postal Inspectors.  Marquette Police say there has been an increase in phone scams of this type recently and citizens need to be aware of them, especially if you or someone you know can easily be taken advantage of.

——–

An Upper Michigan man has been arraigned in Federal Court in Marquette on a felony firearm charge connected to a shooting last fall.  32-year-old Joseph Paul Jaukkuri of Marquette was arraigned on a charge of knowingly providing a firearm to a convicted felon.  The indictment alleges that Jaukkuri provided a 12-gauge shotgun to Tyler John Wolf last September 20-th or 21-st.  Wolf has been convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the killing of John Bradbury in Marquette on September 21-st, 2011.  Wolf was sentenced to 7 to 15 years in prison.  Jaukkuri’s trial has been set for May 21-st.  If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in federal prison.

——-

Legislation offered by a U.P. lawmaker giving authorities a better tool for identifying and eliminating illegal designer drugs regardless of name or form they take is moving ahead in Lansing.  108th District State Representative Ed McBroom’s bill was approved by the House Judiciary Committee. House Bill 5338 allows the Michigan Department of Community Health to temporarily categorize substances posing imminent danger to the health or lives of Michigan residents as a controlled substance, making the substance subject to existing state drug enforcement laws.  The Vulcan Republican says the designer drugs called ‘K2’ in the past or ‘bath salts’ now are dangerous and police can’t be put on hold every time the drug dealers come up with a new name to stay ahead of the law.  McBroom said he has been contacted by more than 300 constituents, school and law enforcement officials, expressing safety concerns about these drugs.  A similar Senate bill was voted on by the committee and the two bills now go to the House for consideration.

———

Northern Michigan University has announced the schedule of on-campus interviews of the four finalists for provost and vice president for academic affairs. Each candidate will make a public presentation to the campus and interested members of the community. All will be held from 4-5 p.m.on the following dates:

Barbara Keinath, vice provost and dean of graduate studies at Metropolitan State University in St. Paul, Monday, March 19, Ontario Room, University Center;

Patrick Guilfoile, interim associate vice president of academic affairs at Bemidji State University in Minnesota, Wednesday, March 21, Pioneer Rooms A/B, University Center;

Lance Grahn, most recently provost and dean of faculty/vice president for academic affairs at the University of Central Arkansas, Friday, March 23, Brule Room, University Center;

David Dauwalder, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at the University of New Haven in Connecticut, Monday, March 26, Brule Room, University Center.