Latest news with #WOODTV8
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Yahoo
Man arrested for home invasion also charged with murdering parents in Kansas City
COVERT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — A man arrested on home invasion charges in Southwest Michigan is also accused of killing his parents in Missouri, police say. The break-in happened on March 29 around 12:45 a.m. at a home on Blue Star Highway, police said. Covert Township police say Jason Sessoms went into the home and was confronted by the homeowner, who was armed. Sessoms tried to flee but was met outside by officers. Officers say Sessoms fought back when they tried to arrest him and to disarm an officer. Sessoms was found with two handguns, police said. After his arrest, officers found a juvenile family member traveling with him. Investigators questioned the juvenile to try and locate family, at which point they learned Sessoms had shot and killed his own parents in Kansas City, Missouri. Clay County, Missouri, prosecutors have charged Sessoms with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of armed criminal action, WDAF, WOOD TV8's sister station in Kansas City, reports. WDAF reports the killings happened at an Extended Stay motel. Talking to investigators, Sessoms said he couldn't find some of his money and found out his mother spent it on the motel room, which 'disappointed him,' WDAF said, citing court documents. Sessoms told investigators he 'crept' up to his mother while she was sleeping and shot her twice in the head, the documents said. His father woke up and tried to disarm Sessoms, but was shot in the back of the head, WDAF reports. Sessoms is being held at the Van Buren County Jail on charges of first-degree home invasion, attempting to disarm a police officer, car theft, carrying a concealed weapon and resisting and obstructing a police officer. He was arraigned on those charges Sunday in South Haven. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Thursday at 7 p.m.: Honoring Black History
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — For Black History Month, News 8 is examining and celebrating the past, present and future of the Black community in West Michigan. Our Honoring Black History special report airs at 7 p.m. Thursday. You can watch it on WOOD TV8 and streaming in this article. The News 8 team looked at sites from the 'Negro Motorist Green Book,' a vital tool that helped Black Americans travel during the era of segregation; visited a West Michigan artist's exhibition at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History Detroit; listened to a lost and found tape that shares the story of Martin Luther King Jr.'s visit to Kalamazoo; and more. Find more of our . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lost and found, tape preserves Martin Luther King Jr.'s visit to Western Michigan University
Join News 8 for our special report, Honoring Black History,' at 7 p.m. Thursday on WOOD TV8 and streaming on KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) — For 30 years, a recording of Martin Luther King Jr's speech at Western Michigan University was lost. Then in 1997, it was found. The recording and related items at the Zhang Legacy Collection Center preserve a glimpse of the 1960s. 'I believe that we will be able to emerge from the bleak and desolate midnight of man's inhumanity to man into the bright and glittering daybreak of freedom and justice,' King said during his Dec. 18, 1963, visit to the Kalamazoo campus. Which Green Book sites are still standing in Michigan? His presence was the culmination of decades of WMU students challenging racial discrimination on stage and on the air. In the late 1940s, the Western Michigan College Players performed 'Deep are the Roots.' The stage drama centered around a Black World War II veteran returning home to the South and his experience challenging the status quo, said Sharon Carlson, former director of the Zhang Legacy Collection Center. She said it was the first nonprofessional performance of the play using a mixed-race cast in the United States. 'I know that there were rumblings, even back in the late '40s into the '50s. But I think by the time you get into the '60s, students are questioning a lot of things about culture and society,' Carlson said. As protests against segregation were at a height around the country, students invited then-Mississippi Gov. Ross Barnett, a staunch segregationist, to speak on campus that September. King was invited for an early December visit. Carlson said WMU President James Miller received pressure from then-Michigan Gov. George Romney to reconsider the visit. 'Too much to Dr. Miller's credit, he upheld the students' wishes to bring both of these speakers to campus. The campus prepared in both instances. I think there was some thought that both speakers might bring demonstrations, might bring possibly disruption,' Carlson said. 'I think in both instances, that didn't happen.' King's visit had to be postponed to later in the month instead of Dec. 2. Carlson said his dedication to keeping the WMU appointment was significant. 'Both Ross Barnett, the governor of Mississippi, and Dr. King were both trying to visit a lot of college campuses. But I've always thought that Dr. King must have been particularly committed to this appearance at Western,' she said. Before Washington: MLK's famous 'I Have a Dream' speech debuted in Detroit King's speech echoed in the Read Fieldhouse, where 2,000 people lined the bleachers. It was just four months after his 'I Have a Dream' speech in Washington D.C. A transcript shoed he called for the passing of the Civil Rights Act a year before it was ultimately signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson. In 1968, King was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee. His voice was heard on the airwaves again when public radio station WMUK rebroadcasted his speech in the aftermath. That recording would be lost until 1997, when Carlson says it was found at an eastside Kalamazoo grocery store. Phillip Novess, grandson of the store owner, restored the recording with another audio production business owner. It then made its way back to the university and WMUK. 'They were actual tapes. They created a cassette tape for me, and we were doing the transcriptions from the cassette tapes, so we had the speech, we had the introductory remarks, we had the question-and-answer session,' Carlson said. Interest in transcribing the event soon turned into an operation to further preserve the visit in the form of a website. 'We were trying to put this together and it was rather a quick affair. We'd had the access to the tape, just to give you a sense of the technology, WMUK took these, they were actual tapes. They created a cassette tape for me, and we were doing the transcriptions from the cassette tapes, so we had the speech, we had the introductory remarks, we had the question-and-answer session,' said Carlson. She said the idea was to put the transcription with photos of the visit. 'Then it became a librarywide effort. The university libraries added to this website. We put some books there. We put some links to other sites regarding Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It was a website that we frequently referred people to over the years,' Carlson said. The 1999 website later became inactive due to age, but its content would move on to a . Paul Collins exhibit on display at Wright Museum in Detroit While King's Kalamazoo visit was brief, Carlson said it established a legacy. Students were quick to demand aid that made college accessible for everyone, efforts that turned into scholarship programs that continue to this day, like the Martin Luther King Jr. Students Scholars Academy, which provides scholarships and structure for students that leads them to graduation. 'It wasn't really surprising that students, when he was assassinated, were clearly shocked and wanted to try and make some positive things come out of this very unfortunate situation,' Carlson said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Genesee County sheriff says he would ‘build relationships' as governor
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson is making a bid for the Michigan governor's office. The , a Democrat, was first elected in 2020. He gained national attention that year for marching with protesters. He was invited to speak at the Democratic National Convention in August. Genesee County sheriff announces campaign for governor In an interview today at the WOOD TV8 studios, Swanson said it is time for a different type of candidate. He believes his background in law enforcement could boost his appeal in a general election, especially as immigration remains a top voter concern this year. Swanson said he would look to find common ground with Republican President Donald Trump. 'You have to build a relationship so that Michigan doesn't suffer. But if there is an issue that goes against Michigan, you stand up and you need to push back,' Swanson said. What's in Gov. Whitmer's $83.5 billion Michigan state budget proposal? Swanson said federal funding is too important to the state to jeopardize and that the next governor needs to build a consensus. 'You don't always have to agree, but as governor you have to make those relationships work,' Swanson said. The race for governor in Michigan is quickly becoming one of the most contested political battles of 2026. Swanson is the second Democrat to announce a candidacy after Michigan . Republican state has announced he is running. announced he would run as an independent. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
