FLINT, Mich. — A Grand Blanc, Michigan man has been charged with felony embezzlement for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars from a local nonprofit youth football organization over a span of several years.

According to a felony complaint filed in Genesee County's 67th District Court, Richard Merrell is accused of embezzling between $1,000 and $20,000 from the Grand Blanc Youth Football Club, a nonprofit organization, between 2019 and 2024.

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The complaint alleges that Merrell, who was acting as an agent, servant, or employee of the organization, converted money or property to his own use without the consent of the nonprofit. The funds were allegedly taken while under Merrell’s control by virtue of his role within the organization.

The felony charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison and/or a fine of $15,000, or three times the amount embezzled—whichever is greater. If convicted, Merrell may face a consecutive sentence if the court determines the nonprofit status of the victim warrants additional penalties.

The warrant for Merrell’s arrest was authorized on March 27, 2025, by the Genesee County Prosecutor's Office.

No further details have been released regarding the specific amount allegedly taken or how the embezzlement was discovered. Merrell’s first court appearance has not yet been scheduled.

The case is being handled by the 7th Judicial Circuit Court and the 67th Judicial District Court in Flint.

I have reached out to Merrell and thge youth group for comment but have not yet heard back from anyone.

This is a developing story.

The Detroit News reports a recent review by the Michigan Secretary of State’s office found that 15 individuals who are likely not U.S. citizens voted in the November 2024 presidential election.

The News reported, the review, conducted since December, is the most comprehensive of its kind in Michigan in years and adds to the case of Haoxiang Gao, a Chinese student already facing felony charges for allegedly voting illegally.

The Secretary of State’s office has referred 13 of the 15 cases to Attorney General Dana Nessel for further investigation. One of the individuals is deceased, and the other is under further review. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, has argued that non-citizen voting is rare and can be addressed without imposing harsh voter ID laws.

The article also notes that similar reviews in Iowa and Ohio found a small number of non-citizen voters, reinforcing the point that while rare, enforcement is key to keeping it that way.

Click here to read the entire article.

 

 

CHICAGO, IL - An Illinois bill that could drastically change homeschooling rules in the state would create "a pipeline to the criminal justice system for parents," a state Democratic lawmaker warned Thursday.

Rep. La Shawn Ford, who represents a district that includes parts of Chicago, made the remark as parents, students and opponents of HB 2827, the Homeschool Act, rallied in the city’s downtown.

The bill, which is advancing through the Illinois state legislature, would charge parents with a misdemeanor if they fail to register their kids in a "homeschool declaration form" to the nearest public school they would otherwise be attending. It also requires documentation of immunizations and health examinations for children who wish to participate in public school activities. Click here to read more.

 

TAMPA, FLA — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis expressed his support for a bill banning what he called weather modification “nonsense” before it hits the Senate floor on Thursday.

SB-56, dubbed the so-called “chemtrails bill” after its sponsor pointed to the conspiracy theory while defending the bill in committee, prohibits “the injection, release, or dispersion, by any means, of a chemical, a chemical compound, a substance, or an apparatus into the atmosphere within the borders of this state for the express purpose of affecting the temperature, weather, climate, or intensity of sunlight.”

“Many of us senators receive concerns, complaints on a regular basis regarding these condensation trails, aka chemtrails,” bill sponsor Ileana Garcia said in a committee hearing last month. “There’s a lot of skepticism.”

The bill would also require the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to set up a system allowing residents to report “suspected geoengineering activities” and directing the FDEP to investigate those claims. Click here to reasd more.

 

The U.S. economy is staring down the barrel of a tax increase to the tune of several hundred billion dollars. If the Trump administration follows through with its threats (never a sure thing), we will this week see the imposition of so-called reciprocal tariffs to ostensibly match the burden placed by other countries on U.S. exports.

As President Donald Trump and administration officials tell it, the move is rooted in a desire to stop foreign countries from ripping Americans off through unfair trade. But such claims warrant considerable skepticism.

The administration’s words and actions make it increasingly clear that this reciprocity talk is just a fig leaf for higher tariffs. They aren’t a means to an end but the end themselves. And unless Congress acts − an unlikely proposition − American businesses and consumers alike will suffer.

On its face, the pursuit of tariff reciprocity may seem a commonsense approach. Although not exactly the golden rule, it seems darn close. Why not give U.S. trading partners a taste of their own medicine?

But the seductive logic of reciprocity falls apart upon even cursory examination.

Tariffs are a tax on American consumers

Tariffs are a costly and inefficient tax usually borne by the importing country’s consumers. Click here to read more.

 

LANSING, Mich - General Motors is planning to ramp up its production of light-duty trucks in the United States after President Donald Trump imposed a 25% tariff on auto imports, Reuters reported on Thursday.

In a message sent to employees, GM said it will increase the truck production at its assembly plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The auto company based in Detroit said in a statement that it “will be making operational adjustments at Fort Wayne Assembly, including hiring temporary employees, to support current manufacturing and business needs,” according to The Detroit News.

Plant Director Dennys Pimenta told employees that the change could add more overtime days to the schedule for workers, and a company source told Reuters that hundreds of temporary workers could get hired at the plant, which currently employs around 4,150 workers. GM’s plants in Canada and Mexico that also focus on making light-duty and full-size trucks will not see any changes to production schedules, a source told The Detroit News. Click here to read more.

 

I once stood within the halls of academia, benefiting from the generous funding of the National Institutes of Health. I was part of the system, a researcher fueled by grants that were supposed to propel scientific progress.

But after years inside the machine, I have come to a sobering conclusion: The NIH is fundamentally broken and morally corrupted. Corruption, waste, and fraud are not occasional lapses but systemic failures. The agency must be gutted and reformed if we are to salvage scientific integrity.

One of the most damning indictments against the NIH is the reproducibility crisis. Science is supposed to be built on verifiable, repeatable results, yet the vast majority of research funded by the NIH fails this basic test. Click here to read more.