Detroit lost a giant this week: the diminutive David DiChiera died at 83. He founded Michigan Opera Theatre just a few short years after the ’67 riots, prompting friends to question his sanity.

He envisioned transforming a decrepit Roaring Twenties movie theater into a European-style opera house long before Comerica Park or Ford Field became reality near Madison Avenue.

The state Department of Treasury says almost 250 communities in Michigan had underfunded pension or healthcare systems last year.

That’s about 28% of all communities in Michigan. Combined, their total liabilities tally up to almost 19 billion dollars.

Rod Taylor is with the Treasury Department. He says it’s a problem for those local governments and Michigan as a whole, as it could affect credit ratings and the state’s overall economic vitality.

A former Michigan State University field hockey player has alleged former MSU sports doctor Larry Nassar raped and impregnated her in 1992 when he was a graduate student, and that former athletic director and head football coach George Perles covered it up.

In Flint Monday, a judge will hear arguments over dismissing a lawsuit concerning police car chases.

In 2014, a state police trooper tried to conduct a traffic stop on a vehicle in Flint, which sped away. A high speed chase ensued. It ended when the fleeing vehicle caused a chain reaction crash that left one person dead and another permanently injured.

A former Michigan corrections officer has sued the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC), alleging the agency discriminated against her based on sexual orientation and race.

The Livingston Daily Press & Argus reports that Ashley Menchaca, who is Hispanic and gay, worked at the Woodland Center Facility in Whitmore Lake from January 2016 until she resigned May 2017.

The Michigan Attorney General’s office is investigating the state’s Catholic priests. A response to a Freedom of Information Act request says the AG’s office has been looking into alleged sexual abuse and assault of children from 1950 to present. It also says the office started the investigation in August.

This comes after an investigation in Pennsylvania revealed hundreds of priests had sexually abused children.

Michael Diebold is with the Diocese of Lansing.

Starting October 1, Michigan Medicaid will expand coverage for a new class of hepatitis C drugs. A twelve week course of treatment with the new direct-acting antiviral drugs clears the virus completely in most patients.

Michigan's Medicaid system limits access to the drugs to those who have later stage liver scarring. Liver scarring is staged from F0 to F4. Currently, only patients with scarring from F2 to F4 were eligible for the drugs. Beginning on October 1, patients with milder F1 liver scarring will also be able to receive treatment.

Another complaint has been made against the Westland Police Department for excessive use of force involving a taser. Westland Police are already investigating the use of a taser on a man holding an infant. Now another man, Jerry Shingles, says he was tased when police came to his house at 2:30 in the morning looking for his father, Jerry Dickinson.