HOMES/10A
Berkley resident arrested in sexual assault case
BY MIKE KOURY mkoury@candgnews.com
BERKLEY — A 24-year-old Berkley man was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor.
The Berkley Public Safety Department arrested Darren Bradford on Feb. 21 after he was accused of sexually assaulting a minor over the course of a few months.
According to Berkley police, they received a tip on Feb. 5 that a number of teens were seen entering an apartment complex in the city. Witnesses reportedly told police that the minors frequently visit the building.
Detective Lt. Andrew Hadfield, of the Berkley Public Safety Department, stated that, through an undercover investigation, officers found that Bradford allegedly distributed illegal substances and alcohol to the minors.
“The investigation (showed) that there were several minors that were going to the home and were obtaining either nicotine or marijuana vape products,” Hadfield said. “During that investigation, one of the teens came out and identified that other things had occurred, which led to an investigation into a sexual assault that occurred with the suspect.”
Bradford was arraigned on Feb. 21 in the 44th District Court on one charge of third-degree criminal sexual conduct.
Mother of murdered teen still seeks justice one year later
ABOVE: The Southfield Police Department held a press conference Feb. 19 to address the unsolved murder of Tyler Johnson, a teenager who was fatally shot last year. Pictured, from left, are Southfield Police Department Deputy Chief Aaron Huguley, Chief Elvin Barren and Oakland County Assistant Prosecutor Justin Davis.
Photo by Kathryn Pentiuk
RIGHT: Tyler Johnson was 15 years old when he was fatally shot in a hotel room last February. His mother, Tomika Alexander, misses her son every day. She described him as a funny sportslover who enjoyed spending time with his friends and family.
BY KATHRYN PENTIUK kpentiuk@candgnews.com
SOUTHFIELD/FERNDALE
—
One year later, Tyler Johnson’s mother, Tomika Alexander of Ferndale, refuses to let her son’s murder case go cold.
“Whether I’m alive or dead, we will get justice for Tyler, and that’s a promise,” she said. Alexander said that her son was funny and loved sports and spending time with friends and family.
After being shot in an unsupervised hotel room in Southfield Feb. 11, 2024, the 15-year-old Detroit Loyola High student died four days later, on Feb. 15.
Four other teenagers were also in the hotel room.
The room was rented by the uncle of one of the teens, who left them unattended. According to the Southfield Police Department, it was one of the teenagers who placed the 911 call.
When police arrived at the scene, they located two juveniles trying to flee at the hotel elevator on the seventh floor and detained them for questioning.
Police recovered two handguns from one of the teenage suspects, who is a resident of Detroit.
The handguns were located in his
See TYLER on page 12A
Photo provided by Tomika Alexander
New Ferndale city manager ready to work with eye on government efficiency
BY MIKE KOURY mkoury@candgnews.com
FERNDALE — The new city manager of Ferndale said she is ready to get to work.
On Feb. 10, the Ferndale City Council approved the selection of Colleen O’Toole as its next city manager. Her contract officially was approved by the council at its Feb. 24 meeting.
Compensation between the city of Ferndale and O’Tolle was agreed at $166,272.
O’Toole already has started with the city on a part-time basis, as she and her wife welcomed their third child and she’s on parental leave. Her first full day will be March 10.
O’Toole has been familiar with Ferndale since she first moved to Michigan and saw it as a welcoming community with a great reputation. It’s something she kept in mind as she applied for the open city manager’s position.
“That’s something that, as a professional, I look for communities that align with my core values, and so that the service that I’m doing feels like I have a personal connection to it as well,” she told the Woodward Talk. “Arguably, I can’t think of a better com-
tant city manager and previous interim city manager, James Krizan, who has affirmed his intention to stay in Ferndale.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “I’m 100% committed to the city.”
Krizan is excited to work with O’Toole on future issues and to help her as she gets acclimated to Ferndale.
“I would assume we’re both going to bring different strengths to the relationship and to the city,” he said. “I’ve now got a year under my belt, so I’ve got some experience in the city that will help her as she starts to build relationships within the community and with staff. Everybody’s different, so I’m sure we’ll find exactly where we fit together, for sure.”
suit of mine. Understanding the financial impacts of our programs and the fiduciary responsibility that we have to residents to deliver the most impactful programming and policies is very much in my wheelhouse,” O’Toole said.
munity than Ferndale to align my personal interests and values with the community’s.”
O’Toole comes to Ferndale from Saline, where she was the city manager since December 2020. Before that, she was the city manager in Durand for three years.
She was picked over the current assis-
O’Toole spoke in her interview process about future issues that Ferndale has on the horizon, including the upcoming Headlee restoration millage vote and union contracts. She stated that how to efficiently operate a local government is very important to her and something that has a lot of attention right now.
“There’s a lot of attention on government operations and government efficiency right now, good or bad, however you choose to look at it, but that is definitely a strong
“I would say absolutely those two things (the Headlee millage and union contracts) are very, very much close to the top of my list, as well as just our lead service line replacement program,” she continued. “That is another project that is going to be very costly over the life of the program, and we need to be smart about how we pursue those change outs. There’s a lot of lead services in Ferndale, and we have a responsibility to residents to make sure that we have a clear and consistent plan for how we’re going to help address those replacements.”
O’Toole also commented on what Ferndale as a community has to offer.
“There’s so much to build on here, and it’s really an opportunity to kind of show not just southeast Michigan, but the state and the country, what kind of community we can be by leading with our values and putting people first when we’re making decisions,” she said.
Colleen O’Toole officially will start with Ferndale as its city manager on a full-time basis on March 10.
Photo provided by Colleen O’Toole
Room rental issue sparks debate in Huntington Woods
BY MIKE KOURY mkoury@candgnews.com
HUNTINGTON WOODS — At its Feb. 18 meeting, the Huntington Woods City Commission decided to table a decision regarding the establishment of a moratorium on room rentals and reservations at city facilities.
The moratorium, which would have been for 90 days, would have been for room rentals and the reservation policy at both the Recreation Center and the Huntington Woods Public Library while the city reviews its policies for potential changes.
While it’s been a discussion within the city for more than a month, a recent rejection of a room rental at the Recreation Center brought a number of residents to the meeting to discuss the topic.
The room rental was to hold a discussion on the conflict in Gaza by the Huntington Woods Peace Group. Member Linda Ashley said the group, which she stated has never had any disruptions at any of its meetings, was told it couldn’t have the reservation because of the content of the meeting.
See RENTAL on page 8A
FERNDALE TO CELEBRATE ART WITH MONTHLONG CELEBRATION
BY MIKE KOURY mkoury@candgnews.com
FERNDALE — Downtown Ferndale is about to get very artsy in the month of March.
The Ferndale Downtown Development Authority, along with the Downtown Ferndale Public Art Program and the Ferndale Arts & Beautification Commission, will be hosting a monthlong celebration of art called Art March.
Art March will feature dozens of events centered around and highlighting art in the community, from re-
ceptions for local artists to celebrating public art that was installed in the downtown last year.
“We are celebrating the creativity and artistic expression that really brings people together in Ferndale,” DDA Executive Director Jennie Beeker said. “When people think of Ferndale, they think of our creative spirit. They look at our murals that are outside in downtown. They look at the artisans in the Rust Belt. They look at just sort of this maker spirit that flows throughout Ferndale, and we have a legacy of that going back to 2012, and so this is
The side of Syndicate Ferndale features a large mural that was painted last year.
Photo by Patricia O’Blenes
See ART on page 9A
Ringwald Theatre tackles relationships, labels in new show
BY MIKE KOURY mkoury@candgnews.com
FERNDALE — A new production from Ferndale’s Ringwald Theatre with an intriguing name will premiere this month.
The theatre’s production of “Cock” will start March 7 and run until March 31. The shows will be held at the Affirmations Community Center, 290 W. Nine Mile Road.
The play “Cock,” also known as “The Cockfight Party,” is about a man named John who, while on a break from dating his boyfriend, meets and falls in love with a woman and the conflicting feelings that follow.
Miles Bond, who plays the boyfriend of John in the production, has been performing in shows at the Ringwald for around 10 years, and what he loves most about the play is how it’s about queerness and identity.
“In this play, more so than a lot of the stuff that I’ve done just generally everywhere else, it really just tackles the stigma with identity and the pressures that we have to identify as things, but mostly I just love doing work that heavily features queer artists and queer people,” Bond said.
Director Joe Bailey said the play is interesting as it is performed with no sets and no props.
“It’s actually proving to be so different,” he said. “There’s nothing. There’s no chairs, no cubes, nothing. Just the actors on the stage. So it’s been challenging, but in a good way and an experience that I’ve never had
before directing a show in all of my many years.”
The play’s topics, which include one’s sexual identity, were something they wanted to touch on, said Bailey.
“It says a lot about identity, sexual identity and just identity in general, which is a big issue that we’re facing right now and has gained traction over the last few years,” he said. “It just seemed as though all of the signs were pointing that this was the time for us to do it.”
Bond said the subject matter of “Cock” is about how much people give to labels and identity, and how it calls out the ridiculousness of labels and the damage they can cause.
“Also, in a way, it tackles the importance of them, too,” Bond said. “They’re all important because we have to learn how to identify things and stuff like that just for a better understanding of them and for other people who aren’t familiar, but also it’s just not as important as we think it is, I guess, like to just to be and to let people be. This play really shows the potential damage in putting pressure on having to identify as one thing over the other.
Performances will be at 8 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays and 3 p.m. on Sundays. Tickets cost $25 for shows on Friday through Sunday and $15 for Monday shows.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit theringwald.com.
Call Staff Writer Mike Koury at (586) 498-1077.
The new play from the Ringwald Theatre, “Cock,” features Grace Jolliffe, Stebert Davenport and Miles Bond in the lead roles. The production will begin March 7 and run until March 31.
Photo provided by the Ringwald Theatre
NEWS & NOTES
Recreation director honored
PLEASANT RIDGE — The Michigan Recreation and Park Association recognized the recreation director of Pleasant Ridge during its recent awards.
Band celebrates 10th anniversary
FERNDALE — The Ferndale Community Concert Band will be hosting its 10th anniversary concert this month.
Stamper
The organization recently announced its 2025 mParks Professional Awards, which recognize “exemplary professionals who have demonstrated outstanding commitment, leadership, and innovation in the parks and recreation industry,” a news release states.
Shawnie Stamper, the recreation director of Pleasant Ridge, was honored with the Recreation Leadership Award.
“For over 25 years, Shawnie Stamper has dedicated herself to building inclusive, engaging, and innovative recreation programs,” the release states. “As the Recreation Director for Pleasant Ridge, she has expanded youth leadership opportunities, championed adaptive sports, and played a key role in professional development initiatives for recreation professionals across Michigan.”
Road repair grant
HUNTINGTON WOODS — Huntington Woods will be receiving a major grant to improve one of its roads. At its Feb. 18 meeting, the Huntington Woods City Commission approved a resolution of support for the grant, which the city obtained from the Michigan Department of Transportation. The grant is in the amount of $250,000 and will be used to repair Newport Boulevard.
The show will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, March 30, at Orchestral Hall, 3711 Woodward Ave. in Detroit. Conducted by Artistic Director Ed Quick, the concert will feature euphonium soloist Robert Benton performing “Migration Concerto” by Ian Lester.
The band also will play “Wiener Philharmoniker Fanfare” by Richard Strauss; “Adoration” by Florence Price; “Caribana Afterparty” by Omar Thomas; “Tuebor” by Andrew David Perkins; “Pas Redouble” by Camille Saint-Saens; and “The Sound of Music — Selections for Concert Band” by Richard Rodgers.
“Known for its world-class acoustics, Orchestra Hall will provide an astounding setting for this milestone performance, showcasing the talents of over seventy volunteer musicians from across the Ferndale and Metro Detroit area,” a news release states. “We hope you will join us and help us celebrate 10 years of performing free concerts for our audience and community.”
The M-1 Jazz Collective will start the concert at 3 p.m. For more information, visit fcconcertband.org.
Grants for low-income and senior residents
FERNDALE — The city of Ferndale and the Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency announced a grant program for residents.
The Home Chore grants are for qualified low-income residents and seniors who can use the funds for home repairs and yard cleanup. The amount given can be up to $5,000.
OLHSA and city staff narrowed down the project areas to porch repairs, roof repairs, plumbing, furnaces and yard cleanup.
“The City is thrilled to present this program. City Council and staff worked tirelessly to secure this $380,000 OLHSA Senior Chore Program grant,” Community and Economic Development Director Roger Caruso said in a statement. “This grant will help disabled and low-income members of the community invest in their homes — which means they can stay in Ferndale much longer.”
“It is my honor and privilege to work with City staff and Councilmembers who are committed to increasing the quality of life for our seniors and adults with disabilities,” Mayor Raylon LeaksMay said in a prepared statement. “Generous grant funding from organizations like OLHSA allows us this opportunity.”
For more information on how to apply and what the qualifications are for the grants, visit ferndalemi.gov.
Photo provided by Ferndale Community Concert Band
GROWING YOUR MONEY WITH HIGH-YIELD ACCOUNTS
BY DEAN VAGLIA dvaglia@candgnews.com
METRO DETROIT — This may be news to some, but money doesn’t grow on trees. It can grow, however, if you know how and where to plant it.
Money is handy in a checking account or kept as cash because it can easily be spent. Investing what you don’t need to spend immediately in stocks, mutual funds and other long-term investments can see a high return when it is time to cash out — if you have years or decades to see it through.
For those looking to grow their unused cash but are not interested in waiting years to see the pay off, there are high-yield savings account options.
Banks and credit unions offer savings accounts as a way for customers to grow deposited funds through compounding interest at a rate known as an annual percentage yield. The ability to build upon deposited funds through interest serves as a tradeoff for often not being able to directly use funds as they would be in a checking account.
Using money in a savings account requires transferring funds to a checking account, and the frequency and amount of transfers is governed by federal regulations and often by policies set by individual banks and credit unions.
While savings accounts at large brickand-mortar institutions have APYs in the 0.01-0.05% range, the growth of online banking options has seen the rise of a more aggressive way to save — the high-yield savings account.
“A lot of (high-yield savings accounts) are offered by institutions that mainly do online services,” said Sam Taube, lead investing writer at NerdWallet. “They have fewer or no branches and the way that they work, in a business model sense, is that those financial institutions have much lower overhead costs because they’re not renting storefronts to operate branches, and they pass those savings along to the consumer in a higher APY.”
By cutting the overhead costs and funneling the savings into the accounts of mem-
Checking in with your banker — a professional like Breanna Long, a relationship banker at First State Bank — is a good place to start if you’re exploring available high-yield savings options.
Photo by Patricia O’Blenes
Money
bers, high-yield savings accounts from online institutions can have APY rates anywhere from 3-5%. However, the lack of overhead that leads to some banks being able to provide high-yield savings accounts can create problems for some savers.
“On one hand they offer a much higher APY than you would get from a traditional bank, but on the other the branchless model can mean that they offer slightly more limited customer service options than a traditional bank,” Taube said. “If you really want the ability to physically go to the bank and talk to someone if you have a problem, that may not be available through every highyield savings account provider.”
If the virtual nature of online banking is not attractive and the inability to directly pull from savings accounts seems stifling, brick-and-mortar banks and credit unions offer money market accounts as an alternative.
“It’s more like a hybrid between a checking and a savings account,” said Amy Persyn, chief marketing officer at First State Bank, on Groesbeck Highway in Clinton township. “This acts like a checking account
because you can write checks off of it.”
Unlike high-yield savings accounts from online banks, money market accounts can be directly used to make up to six transactions in a calendar month via checks or a debit card per federal regulations. APYs on money market accounts can rival those of high-yield savings accounts on an institution-by-institution basis.
Financial institutions offer other kinds of ways to build savings through accrued interest.
Certificates of deposit are savings accounts where money is held without being withdrawn and they have a fixed APY. Institutions may offer various themed savings accounts, such as those built around saving for holidays, vacations and taxes.
“Sometimes they (savings accounts) are about the rate you’re getting and sometimes it’s about creating a behavior that ends up benefiting you in the long run,” Persyn said.
Terms, conditions, fees, rates and other critical details for savings and money market accounts vary by institution. Prospective savers are encouraged to look around and see which institutions offer more agreeable conditions.
Call Staff Writer Dean Vaglia at (586) 498-1043.
CRIME WATCH
Teen attempts to purchase marijuana
BERKLEY — Police were called to a local marijuana shop for someone who attempted to make a purchase with a fake ID.
According to police, officers were called at 3:58 p.m. Feb. 9 to Quality Roots, 3916 W. 11 Mile Road. Police were told that a 19-year-old Detroit man attempted to use a fraudulent Michigan operator’s license to purchase marijuana.
A manager at the store knew the identification was fake and confiscated it, while the teen left the business. Police were able to identify the teen, contacted him and issued him a citation. Police said the teen agreed to identify websites where people could purchase fake IDs.
— Mike Koury
Rental
“The content of the meeting is to discuss the current political climate, which we consider repressive, and what we can do to combat it,” she said. “We were told that the meeting is apt to attract too many people as well as demonstrations against it. We have never had too many people at our meetings, I’m sorry to say, and we have never had disruptions at our meetings.”
“The American Library Association says a public library that opens its facilities for public use may not exclude a group from its facilities to avoid controversy or public disapproval,” she continued. “To our families and neighbors, we say peace and justice are not abstract concepts to read about in the newspaper, but tangible goals we can and must pursue in our daily lives without fear of intimidation or censorship. We have always assumed that the city of Huntington Woods is the type of community that also expresses those beliefs.”
The city has stated that the issue with the meeting was that it was open to the public with no attendance limit, which concerned officials.
“We have a right to know roughly how many people you’re talking about having, because there’s a limit to what that room can accommodate,” Commissioner Jules Olsman told the Woodward Talk. “It’s a public library, so you’ve got people in there using the library, and what happens if all of a sudden a couple hundred people show up that aren’t going to fit in the room? This just goes to the city’s ability to provide a safe environment for our residents and the other people using the library and the rights of the people that want to have a meeting, pull a permit and have a meeting.”
Olsman said he initially wanted the moratorium to look at Huntington Woods’ ordinance, ordinances in other cities, and to see to what extent it needed to be changed and what information needed to be provided, such as how many people would be in attendance at a meeting or its length.
Olsman decided against the moratorium, agreeing to table it with the rest of the commission until the next meeting, which is scheduled to take place at 7:30 p.m. March 18 at City Hall, 26815 Scotia Road.
“I might have thought that that was a good idea, but in listening to the debate, I don’t think we need a moratorium,” he said. “We just need to consider whether or not our ordinance is good enough as it is or whether it needs to be tweaked in some way to make it more specific as to the person that pulls the permit and so people know exactly what they can do and what they can’t do with public space.”
“What we’re really trying to do is carefully balance everybody’s rights with the idea that the First Amendment comes first and that we still have an obligation to balance public safety and things like that,” he continued. “But what’s important is we’re not talking about subject matter or content. We’re just talking about the process of getting the permit.”
Call Staff Writer Mike Koury at (586) 498-1077.
from page 3A
just a time for us to really come together and celebrate that in the month of March.”
From painting classes to musical exhibitions, art of all kinds will be celebrated this month. For more information on Art March and a list of events, visit downtownferndale. com/publicart.
“The concept sort of comes from, if you think of a gallery crawl that might be just a one-time thing, this is a way for people to explore art and creativity throughout Ferndale and throughout the month of March,” Beeker said.
Leah Sweeting, a painter and subcontractor at Painting with a Twist, will be taking part in Art March with a reception on March 22 where she will walk people through how to make an upcycled art piece, along with her journey in art.
Sweeting said she loved the idea of Art March when she first heard of it, as it was
something art groups had been looking to make to help cultivate the art community in the slow winter months.
“We were kind of planning things, we had suggested filling in the slower months of the year, the colder months of the year, with more art activities in relation to the month,” she said. “We had suggested Valentine’s Day events or St Patrick’s Day events, and then I believe that … kind of snowballed that into an entire month of celebration in March.”
Sweeting said art is at the core of what Ferndale is and stands for, and of just having a creative mindset.
“To be there, you kind of have to appreciate that, want to be part of it,” she said. “I think it is Ferndale. It’s a very artsy community and I don’t think it would be even close to the same city without it.”
The Art March website will be continuously updated with more events as the month progresses.
Call Staff Writer Mike Koury at (586) 498-1077.
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LEFT: A number of downtown Ferndale businesses received new murals last year that will be celebrated during Art March, including this mural at Western Market. BELOW: Sneakers Pub & Grill shines with a mural constructed at one of its entrances.
Photos by Patricia O’Blenes
HOMES
PUSH PLAY ON A MICHIGAN SOUNDTRACK TO JUMP-START SPRING CLEANING
BY NICK POWERS npowers@candgnews.com
METRO DETROIT — Recording artists in Michigan know cold weather. Maybe that’s why it’s easy to feature them on a playlist designed to start spring cleaning and chase away the winter blues.
Former Record Time owner Mike Himes said the best bet is to steer clear of mellower or depressing music when you’re cleaning.
“You want something that’s upbeat,” he said. “You want something that’s familiar to you, so you can sing along, make the chores a little more enjoyable to where you’re distracted enough so you’re not thinking, ‘Oh, I don’t want to clean this bathroom.’”
Amber Teunis, a clinical therapist trained in music therapy at Reset Brain and Body, said familiar music can help when trying to complete tasks like cleaning. Teunis has been involved in music therapy for nearly 16 years. She said that there is science and studies behind the idea that music has
the ability to affect a person’s brain.
“If you make a playlist of your songs, stuff you can sing and dance to, that’s going to be more effective,” Teunis said. “If you play things that are more upbeat, you may complete tasks faster, for example. If you pick things with more interesting drums and melody, you might be more concentrated on the task. Music is part of our primitive culture. All cultures have always had it; everyone has a little bit of musician in them.”
Ultimately, Teunis said a playlist should make you feel good. This can vary from person to person.
“If you hate classical music and you want to get stuff done, it’s probably going to have a negative effect,” Teunis said.
Cleaning can seem like drudgery, but with the right soundtrack, it’ll fly by in no time. These songs are all widely available on streaming sites. Put them in order or pick and choose what works for your own playlist.
1.
The Marvelettes, “Twistin’ the Night
Away”: This 1962 song from the Inkster group is the epitome of warmth. The Mickey Stevenson production gives this Sam Cooke cover the classic Motown sound. While Cooke’s version is an undeniable classic, the Marvelettes add something that’s sure to get you moving as you spruce things up.
2.
Honey Ltd., “Silk N’ Honey”: This unheralded Detroit-based group released this dreamy song in 1968. The song was produced by frequent Nancy Sinatra collaborator Lee Hazelwood. Unlike Sinatra, who hit it big with “These Boots are Made for Walkin’,” this group remained relatively obscure until Light in the Attic Records put its material back in print.
3.
Question Mark and the Mysterians, “Up Side”: Though known more for the hit “96 Tears,” the mid-Michigan band also had
Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground,” a single from his 1973 album “Innervisions,” is sure to pick up your spirits.
some worthwhile deep cuts. This groovy organ-driven track matches Question Mark’s quintessential garage rock vocals.
4.
White Stripes, “Hotel Yorba”: This ode to falling in love from the group’s breakout 2001 album “White Blood Cells” is almost guaranteed to put you in a good mood. No playlist using Detroit artists is complete without the White Stripes; there’s a reason for that.
5.
Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”: This 1967 classic from the duo is sure to keep you moving. The song makes Terrell’s “winter’s cold/can’t stop me, baby” sound like a fact.
6.
Majesty Crush, “Penny for Love”: The sin-
See SOUNDTRACK on page 11A
Photo by Nick Powers
Soundtrack
from page 10A
gle from the group’s 1993 album is a dreamy, wistful song with enough of a driving beat to keep you dusting. This overlooked Detroit band’s material was rereleased in 2024 by the Numero Group, making it easier to find on streaming sites.
7.
Rodriguez, “Can’t Get Away”: Sixto Rodriguez gained more widespread fame with the 2012 documentary “Searching for Sugar Man.” This song from his 1971 sophomore album provides a strong groove to propel Rodriguez’s poetic lyrics.
8.
The Bob Seger System, “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man”: This song by Bob Seger comes from his major label debut released in 1969. A signature song for Seger, it also appeared on his five-times-platinum “Live Bullet” concert album released in 1976. The hardrocking song is sure to get you through washing the dishes stacked in the sink.
9.
J Dilla, “Nothing Like This”: Released on the late producer’s 2003 “Ruff Draft” EP, this dreamy cut was unique. It’s wistful and romantic yet driving, inhabiting a space all its own in Dilla’s legendary catalog.
10.
Aretha Franklin, “Respect”: Sometimes cleaning can feel a bit thankless. This iconic 1967 cover of Otis Redding’s “Respect” by the Queen of Soul is sure to hit home.
11.
The Gories, “Feral”: The opener from the Detroit garage rock legends’ 1989 album “House Rockin’” lives up to its name. This group paved the way for bands like the White Stripes years later.
12.
The Stooges, “No Fun”: A definite highlight from the legendary Ann Arbor group’s 1969 self-titled debut album, this song betrays its name.
13. Shadow Show, “On A Cloud”: This Detroitbased psychedelic rock group put out its debut album in 2024. “On A Cloud” closes the album on an uplifting note.
14.
Stevie Wonder, “Higher Ground”: The single from Wonder’s 1973 album “Innervisions” is sure to pick up your spirits. This song has an additional Michigan connection: It was covered by the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1989 for the band’s “Mother’s Milk” album. Typically known as a California band, the group featured Michiganders Chad Smith and Anthony Kiedis at this stage.
Arrest
from page 1A
Hadfield stated that the criminal sexual conduct allegedly had been going on for the last few months, while the distribution and selling of vapes, tobacco and alcohol allegedly dates back to last summer.
Bradford only is charged with one count at this time, but Hadfield said police are “reviewing other potential witnesses and/ or victims in the matter.”
Bradford was given a $175,000 cash bond, a GPS tether with location restrictions and other bond conditions including no contact with anyone under the age of 18 or who attends Royal Oak or Berkley schools.
tial evidence. What we need is an eyewitness to bring those things together.”
His next court date is scheduled for March 7. He did not have an attorney assigned to his case at press time.
“Berkley Detectives are continuing to investigate and will be pursuing further (requests) for charges for distributing marijuana vapes & cartridges, alcohol, and nicotine vape products to numerous different minors from the area and surrounding
metro communities,” police stated in a social media press release. “The investigation is uncovering the depth of his deceit, length of time, profits, and illegal acts he was committing.”
The department is asking anyone who might have been a victim or have information on the case to contact police at (248) 658-3390 or at DB@berkleymi.gov.
waistband, one of which was hidden in his groin area.
One of the weapons was a Glock 22 .40-caliber handgun with a 22-round extended magazine equipped with a laser light. That weapon was reportedly stolen in Flint in 2022.
The second weapon was unregistered.
Southfield police also found a .40-caliber shell casing, 20 live rounds inside a 9mm extended magazine, marijuana, hallucinogenic mushrooms and a scale.
According to Southfield police, photos found on the teenagers’ phones revealed multiple photos of them at the hotel, with a few of them handling weapons. However, none of the images point to who fired the weapon that killed Johnson and why.
On Feb. 19, the Southfield Police Department held a press conference about the unsolved case and addressed concerns of the community.
“We have four witnesses to this senseless crime, and at this time, none of them have come forward to give us an understanding of what transpired,” Southfield Police Department Chief Elvin Barren stated. “We have physical evidence. We have circumstan-
Barren said that the four teenagers who witnessed Johnson’s death have lawyered up and won’t speak with police.
Barren empathized with Alexander.
“I had a brother in 2007 murdered in Detroit. Case never solved. Why? Because his friends failed him,” Barren said. “So I can relate to friends not providing information.”
Barren said that no developments have been made in the case because of the lack of cooperation from witnesses.
“We have an idea who did it, absolutely,” he said. “But to move this case forward, there are four people who witnessed this. I need at least one of the four to have the courage to come forward and give us the information that we need. … The mother is grieving, and right now, she has a lot of frustration for law enforcement (and) the (Oakland County) Prosecutor’s Office as to why her son’s case has not moved forward, and she gets to grieve.”
Motherhood was stripped away from Alexander. She said that now she will never see her son graduate high school, attend college, get married, or become a parent.
Alexander said that she is mad every day that the killer walks free and she doesn’t want to be having the same conversation in 2026.
“We need to hold these parents ac-
countable, and their children,” she said. “It’s just ridiculous that the murderer is out here living in society as if nothing happened, around innocent kids. … I gotta go visit my son at the cemetery when his birthday comes up April (1) of this year.”
Alexander said that she once considered the families of the four other teens as close friends, but has since cut ties with them.
“At the end of the day, as a parent, if you know your child is not the person that shot Tyler, why is it a problem to come forward to tell who did shoot Tyler? So that’s why I feel like every parent is just as responsible as the kids,” she said.
Alexander expressed her frustrations with the lack of cooperation from the other parents and their children.
“I want the parents and the children to be locked up, and that’s still not going to give me closure because when I go home and go through those doors … my son is not upstairs,” she said. “He’s not calling my name; he’s not texting me to tell me what he wants to eat. So yeah, I still have a problem with it.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Southfield Police Department at (248) 796-5500 or Crime Stoppers at (800) SPEAK-UP.
Homes For Rent
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OFFERINGS AROUND MICHIGAN
AMISH FURNITURE
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AUCTION
Epic Spring Firearms Auction, 10 a.m., Sat, March 15. Long guns, Handguns, ammo, sporting collectibles, and more! View the catalog and bid at EpicAuctionsAndEstateSales.com. Questions? Call 517-927-5028.
More great online auctions! Bid now. Firearm, reloading supplies, wood working tools, tractor, mowers, household items, antiques, collectibles and much, much more! To bid, see catalogs visit Bid. SherwoodAuctionServiceLLC.com. Questions? Call 1-800-835-0495.
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March online consignment auction! Vintage tools. Electric and air power tools, coins, currency, watches, jewelry, GI Joes, collectibles. Over 200 lots and growing! Visit NarhiAuctions.com for information, to bid. Call 810-266-6474.
Published: March 5, 2025
BUILDINGS
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Plumbing
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Professional Services
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Roofng
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BROTHERSROOFING
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Tree Service
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Roofng
Painting
