Michigan Coronavirus Numbers Continue To Climb, Albeit Slowly

MICHIGAN — The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus continues to climb in Michigan, but at a slower pace due to a lower number of new cases being reported.

As of Tuesday morning, the state had confirmed more than 44,000 cases of the virus and over 4,100 deaths attributed to the virus. The state's daily coronavirus update brought statewide totals to 44,397 confirmed cases and 4,179 reported deaths with 447 new cases and 44 new deaths reported.

Those numbers, however, are among the lowest the state has reported. In recent days, the state has seen a shift to fewer and fewer new cases, with 447 on Tuesday and fewer than 200 new cases reported on Monday.

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Between April 27 and May 1, Michigan reported more than 1,000 new cases twice. In the week preceding that, the state reported more than 1,000 new cases twice as well.

However, the state reported more than 1,000 new cases five times in the first week of April and three times in the second week. More than 900 but fewer than 1,000 new cases were reported several times during the course of the first three weeks of April.

State numbers are released daily at 3 p.m. but are indicative of what has been reported by 10 a.m. that day.

Numbers are sometimes altered as public health officials investigate individual cases. Case numbers sometimes do not match numbers provided by respective counties due to several variables, including testing done by private organizations that report to either the state or the county but not both.

Deaths are reported by health care providers and recorded by local health departments. Other data, such as the number of individuals who have recovered at the state level, are released on Saturdays.

Southeast Michigan Coronavirus Numbers

The city of Detroit, which reports individually and separately from Wayne County, is home to 9,424 confirmed coronavirus cases, according to state data. The city has also had a reported 1,108 deaths resulting from the virus, according to state data. Both statistics are the highest of any county or community in Michigan.

The number of coronavirus cases in Wayne County is nearing 8,000. As of Tuesday, 7,967 cases had been confirmed in the county. There were 837 deaths attributed to the virus as well, according to state data.

Oakland County has had 7,522 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, state data shows, with 772 deaths reported.

More than 5,000 cases have been confirmed in Macomb County, according to state data. The county has 5,789 cases and 647 deaths, the data shows.

Coronavirus In Michigan Prisons

According to the statewide data, nearly 2,000 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed among those housed in Michigan Department of Corrections facilities. As of Tuesday, 1,898 cases had been confirmed in such facilities. Data shows there have been 48 reported coronavirus deaths among inmates.

The state recently added Federal Correctional Institute numbers to its daily update. As of Tuesday, 98 federal prison inmates in Michigan had tested positive for the coronavirus. Of those, two had died.

Coronavirus Crime

The effects of the coronavirus pandemic have been felt by nearly everyone, but tensions continue to grow. An example of such tensions may be a number of crimes committed relating to the enforcement of state orders meant to protect people from the spread of the virus.

In Holly, a man was arrested after he allegedly wiped his nose on a store clerk's shirt, police said. The man was upset, police said, because the employee had told him he needed to wear a mask when in the store.

The man, according to police, walked up to the clerk and wiped his nose and face on her shirt before telling her, "Here, I will use this as a mask." Police said he was loud and disruptive before leaving the store.

On Friday, police said a man fatally shot a security guard at a Flint Family Dollar store after the security guard asked the man's mother to wear a mask when in the store. Three people were charged with first-degree premeditated murder among other charges in connection with the murder, prosecutors announced Monday. Two of them are still on the run, police said.

Capitol Gun Ban Discussed

Following protests last week by hundreds of people — some carrying guns and in bulletproof vests — at the state Capitol, conversation has developed surrounding a ban on firearms within the Capitol building.

The Detroit Free Press reported Tuesday that the Michigan Capitol Commission is seeking legal advice on whether guns should be banned inside the Capitol. A decision, the Free Press reported, could come as soon as Monday.

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