The Herald-Palladium
TUESDAY, December 10, 2013
HAGAR TOWNSHIP
A3
LOCAL
BERRIEN COUNTY TRIAL COURT
Bicycle rider hit by truck, killed
By ANDREW LERSTEN
HP Staff Writer
COLOMA — State police are investigating the
death of a Hagar Township
man who was struck by a
pickup truck over the weekend while riding his bicycle
in Hagar Township.
Merle Dowling, 54, was
pronounced dead around
1:30 a.m. Sunday at Lakeland Regional Medical
Center, St. Joseph, about
four hours after the crash
on Riverside Road at Broderick Road, said Lt. Melinda Logan of the Niles
state police post.
The initial investigation
shows Dowling was westbound on Riverside at
Broderick when he turned
southbound into the path
of the westbound truck,
driven by a 25-year-old
Benton Harbor man.
Police said Dowling was
not wearing a helmet. In
addition, the initial investigation showed he was under the influence of alcohol, Logan said.
When police arrived at
the crash site, they found
Dowling on the side of the
road in critical condition,
and he was rushed to the
hospital. Assisting state
police were Pride Care ambulance, the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department
and North Berrien Fire
Rescue.
The roads were dry at the
time.
The crash remains under
investigation. While it does
not initially appear the
truck driver was at fault,
his name is not being released by police until the
report is reviewed by the
county prosecutor’s office.
That is standard procedure
in the case of a fatal crash,
Logan explained.
Email: alersten@TheHP.com
Twitter: @HPLersten
Attorney
alleges
ex-doctor
not treated
properly
in jail
By DEBRA HAIGHT
HP Correspondent
A bridge to history
Bridge Academy
project strives to
bring history alive
By LOUISE WREGE
HP Staff Writer
BENTON HARBOR —
The Civil Rights Movement,
Holocaust, Tuskegee Airmen
and Japanese-American internment during World War
II came alive Monday as
trainees from the Bridge
Academy at Kinexus in Benton Harbor presented and
acted out history projects for
the Historical Society of
Michigan.
One student created a website for the Tuskegee Airmen.
A pair of students showed
an exhibit about the letter
Martin Luther King Jr. wrote
while he was jailed in Birmingham, Ala.
Another group acted out
monologues they wrote about
different people during the
Holocaust.
The project was done in
partnership with the Historical Society of Michigan,
which received a grant to help
actively engage students in
minority and underserved
communities to learn about
history in a more dynamic
way.
“Their goal is to get into
minority and urban schools
and engage the students,”
said Charity Garcia, curriculum and instruction manager
at the Bridge Academy.
Garcia said the students
have been working on their
projects for the past six weeks.
The presentations were videotaped so the society can use
them as examples when explaining Michigan History
Day to school leaders
throughout the state, according Tamara Barnes, assistant
director for diversity and outreach with the society.
“History Day is a great way
for teachers to engage their
students in history stories
that are relevant to them,”
Barnes said.
Phtoos by Louise Wrege / HP staff
Michael Alejandre (right) and Kevin Yarbrough answer questions Monday about their National History Day project. They were among
the almost 20 students from the Bridge Academy at Kinexus in Benton Harbor who showcased presentations Monday. Alejandre
and Yarbrough did their exhibit on letters written by Martin Luther King Jr. while he was in jail in Birmingham, Ala., during the civil
rights struggle.
Barnes said Michigan History Day, which is part of
National History Day, actually isn’t a day, but a competition similar to a science fair.
She said students first compete within the district, and
then at the state level. After
the state level, she said the top
students move on to the national competition, which is
held mid-June near Washington, D.C.
Barnes said a study done
by the national organization
found that participating in
the program improves the
students’ job skills and helps
prepare them for college.
The Bridge Academy was
started in 2010 to help youth
who were no longer in school
to get a GED and learn workforce skills, Garcia said.
Kinexus is the new name
for Michigan Works in
Southwest Michigan, which
was made a sub-brand of
Kinexus in April.
Email: lwrege@TheHP.com
Twitter: @HPWrege
Bridge Academy student Brian McGhee presents his Tuskegee Airmen website project on Monday.
He was one of almost 20 students presenting exhibits for National History Day.
NILES — A former
area doctor was resentenced Monday in Berrien
County Trial Court after it was
discovered
there was a
problem
with
the
original
sentencing
done in late
MILUK
July. Meanwhile, his
attorney alleged in court
Monday that his client
has not been treated properly in jail.
Defense attorney Paul
Jancha said Paul R. Miluk has suffered during
his time in the Berrien
County Jail with not being treated with the same
high blood pressure medicine he used in the past,
and also being malnourished. He said Miluk, who
he called “a mild man,”
has lost 60 pounds in the
jail because other inmates
have taken food away
from him.
“He dedicated his life to
treating veterans,” Jancha
said. “Now he has lost his
medical license and found
himself without a career.
He couldn’t be more remorseful. He wants to
dedicate the rest of his life
to helping others.”
Berrien County Trial
Judge Dennis Wiley said
Miluk’s treatment in jail
was “not appropriate,”
but said the concerns are
ones for the jail captain
and the sheriff to address
and not part of his jurisdiction.
Miluk, 55, of River
Pointe Boulevard in Buchanan Township, was
again sentenced to five
years probation and 180
days in jail – the same sentence he received in July –
with the only difference
being that he is now convicted of delivery of a
controlled
substance,
rather than attempted delivery of a controlled substance to commit criminal
sexual conduct. He now
has credit for 137 days
served.
See MILUK, page A4
Businesses, residents step for Good Fellow Fund
By HP STAFF
The annual Good Fellow Fund drive got off to a
strong start Friday, as
$24,766 was raised via the
Newsie sale.
But the fund drive continues, as residents may
contribute to The Good
Fellow Fund in care of
The
Herald-Palladium,
P.O. Box 128, St. Joseph,
MI 49085.
This year’s goal is to
reach $35,000. Better yet
would be topping last
year’s record haul of
$36,959.
On Friday the total was
driven by a host of business and personal contributions, including:
Abonmarche
Consultants,
$50;
Advanced
Alarms, $123.45; Alsup
Painting, $100; Anderson
Building Materials, $100;
Anjana Gupta, $50; Arnt
Asphalt Sealing, Great
Lakes Coatings, $25; August Pohl Auto Parts, $100;
Barrett and Driscoll MD’s
PC, $200; Barry and Jody
Conybeare, $100; Beaudoin Electrical Construction, Inc., $100; Beverly
Parnell, $100; BH Awning
and Tent, $910; Bittner,
Hyrns, Daly and Riemland, $100; Brammall Industrial Supply, $250;
Bruce Conybeare, $100;
Burton and Laura Pearson, $50.
Chet Nichols Inc, $25;
David and Deborah Slavicek, $122.21; Delong Inc,
$200; Delong Inc, $175;
Dennis and Christy Taylor,
$25; Diane and Ned Wol-
lenslegel, $50; Dick
and Judy Baute, $100;
Donald and Rheta Peters, $100; Ed Stacker,
$25; Edward and Alice
Atwood, $50; Engineered Polymer Products, $100; Employer
Advantage, $100; Exchange Club Collections, $2,309.06; Exchange
Club
Collections, $771.62;
Far Ahead Advertising,
Inc., $50; Floor Art, LLC,
$50; Gaishin Manufacturing, $300; Georgia Blough
and Bradley Johnson, $75;
Gerbel and Company
CPA’s, $200; H Paul Florin
In Memory Henry P Florin, $3,000; Hanson Logistics, $100; Higher Power
Hydraulic Doors, $100.
Insurance Management
Service, $300; James and
Lois Ashbrook, $200; Janet and Syed Husain, $5;
JCD Limited LLC, $55;
John C. B. McDonald
Clinic, P.C., $40; John’s
Custom Countertops, $75;
Judith Felland In Memory
of D. Felland, $100; Kalin
Construction Co, Inc.,
$100; Kepner’s Precision
Auto Krafters, $200; K-O
Products Co., $50; Lillian
Ferguson, $100; Lois Ashbrook, $100; Lynn AvaraStover and Carol Akins,
$150; M&C Home and
Apt Rental, $125; Mach
Mold, $25; Mark and Leslie Miller, $20; Martins
Brothers Mill and Foundry
Supply, $100; Mid-County
Lawn and Garden, LLC,
$100; Milt Zoschke in
Memory of Betty Lou Zoschke, $50; Mr. Mrs. J. W.
Stuber In Memory of B.
Stuber, $100; Old Europe
Cheese, Inc., $150; Paul
and Cynthia Wilford,
$123.45; Pearson Construction, $75; PriMar Petroleum, $250; Rapid Print,
$25; Richard and Janice
Brandt, $200; Richard
Brame, $125; Robert and
Mary Kynast, $50; Roger
and Ann Wilschke, $51;
Roger and Barbara Bitt-
ner, $300; Sanitary Dry
Cleaners, $100; Signature
Automotive Group, $50.
Slowik
Refrigeration,
$100; Sodus Hard Chrome,
Inc., $100; Southwestern
Michigan Car Collectors,
$100; Stacker, Inc., $25;
State Tool and MFG Co,
$50; Tech Nickel, $50; Temple B’Nai Shalom, $50;
Thayer Inc, $50; Thelmaco,
Inc., $50; Tri-County Bookkeepers, $50; United Federal
Credit Union, $500; Velma
Skelley, $20; Velma Skelley,
$25; Vomela Harbor Graphics, $100; William and Jo
Ann Nichols, $100; Dr. R.
Rademacher, $25; Lakeshore Lions, $2,168.18; St.
Joe Lions, $5,819; Lloyd
and Michelle Allen, $15;
Schaffer and Layher PLLC,
$100; Lincoln School Student Council, $100; Lloyd
and Michelle Allen, $25;
Cory Flaugh, $50; Dave
Clark Insurance Agency,
$50; James and Ann Alderink, $100; St Joe Township Lions, $1,279.22; Dan
and Suzanne Fortenbacher,
$75; Batson Printing, $70;
Gallery on the Alley, $50; R
H. Liskey, Inc., $50; Roberty and Janice Fischer, $50;
The John DeVries Agency,
Inc., $25.
Jack and Diane Lents,
$25; Reinhard and Donna
Lippert, $100; James A.
Christen, $76.97; John C.
Postellli Law Office, $50;
Postelli and Postelli, PLC,
$50; Lawrence and Meryle
Merritt, $150; Alfred Opas,
Jr., $50; Core Real Estate
Inc., $25; Phil Medo, $25; T
N Howard, $50; Raemond
and Verna German, $10;
Stephen and Patricia Nordberg, $50; Vail Rubber
Works, $100; Donald and
Karen Brown, $300; Ivan
and Darlene Kiessel, $100;
Club 18, $36; Colleen Burt,
$100;
GJ
McNees/S.
Snodgrass, $100; Harry and
Norma Reeves, $25; John T.
Hammond, $50; Linda
Hyde and James Brooks,
$100; Mark and Janet Zielke, $150.