Arsonist Sentenced To 5 Years + 1 Stabbed, 2 In Police Custody

Good day, neighbors! It's me again, Miranda Fraraccio, your host of the Grand Rapids Daily.

First, today's weather:

Partly cloudy throughout the day. High: 74 Low: 50.

Here are the top stories today in Grand Rapids:

1. A Grand Rapids man has been sentenced to five years in prison after admitting to setting a business on fire. Kevin Daniel Baker admitted to breaking into Austin Jordan Engines, stealing items to support his drug addiction, setting the business on fire to hide evidence of the burglary, and driving away from the scene in a stolen car. He was sentenced to 60 months in prison with two years of supervised release and ordered to pay back $1.6 million in restitution by U.S. District Judge Janet T. (Fox17)
2. Grand Rapids police announced a person was stabbed on Wednesday around 4 p.m. on Century Avenue SW near Plett Street SW north of Burton Street. The situation leading up to the incident was not immediately known, but Grand Rapids police said a man was stabbed and the victim’s condition is also unknown. The Grand Rapids Fire Department assisted police on scene. (WOODTV.com)
3. Justice for Black Lives blames Grand Rapids police for a disturbance that led to two arrests during a weekend protest. (MLive.com)
4. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed a state budget for the new fiscal year that includes hundreds of millions of dollars for childcare and talent development, as well as more than $23 million in one-time spending for various Kent County developments. (MiBiz: West Michigan Business News)
5. A man was injured in a shooting in Grand Rapids’ Baxter neighborhood Tuesday night on Bates Street SE east of Eastern Avenue. (WOODTV.com)

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Today in Grand Rapids:

• Frankenmuth/Simon & Garfunkel - Plainfield Senior Center - Northview Senior Citizens (7:45 AM)
• Back To Work Job Fair - Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce (8:00 AM)
• Partnerships, Mergers, & Acquisitions: What to Know About Where to Start (2:00 PM)
• Celebrating the Huston-Rausch-Paprocki Reserve (5:00 PM)
• Raising Bilingual Children - Grand Rapids Public Library (6:00 PM)
• Saladin Shrine Circus Presented by Jordan World Circus | Grand Rapids MI (7:00 PM)

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That's it for today. I'll see you around! If you're liking these newsletters, consider inviting some of your friends and neighbors to follow along. You can send them this link to subscribe.

— Miranda Fraraccio

About me: Miranda Fraraccio is a born and raised Rhode Islander. She works as a freelance copywriter for content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and as an assistant producer for a live-lit storytelling show in Chicago. She holds a degree in Writing & Rhetoric and Communication Studies from The University of Rhode Island. In her free time, you can find her traveling, hiking, or photographing her neighborhood as a street photographer.