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2017 in Michigan

Events from the year 2017 in Michigan.

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The state's top news stories of 2017 included continuing political fallout and criminal charges in connection with the Flint water crisis; Larry Nassar and the USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal; the December 5 retirement of John Conyers amid claims of sexual harassment; the re-election of Mike Duggan to a second term as Mayor of Detroit with 72% of the vote; and the revitalization of Downtown and Midtown Detroit.

In sports, the state's top stories included the return of the Detroit Pistons to Detroit; the opening of Little Caesars Arena as the home of the Pistons and Detroit Red Wings; the election of three former Detroit Tigers (Iván Rodríguez, Alan Trammell, and Jack Morris) to the Baseball Hall of Fame; the firing of Jim Caldwell as head coach of the Detroit Lions and Brad Ausmus as head coach of the Tigers; and Claressa Shields of Flint winning female middleweight and super middleweight boxing titles.

Office holders

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State office holders

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Rick Snyder

Mayors of major cities

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Mike Duggan

Federal office holders

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Debbie Stabenow
 
Gary Peters

Population

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In the 2010 United States Census, Michigan was recorded as having a population of 9,883,640 persons, ranking as the eighth most populous state in the country. By 2017, the state's population was estimated at 9,962,311, and the state had become the 10th most populous state.

The state's largest cities, having populations of at least 75,000 based on 2016 estimates, were as follows:

2017
Rank 		City County 2010 Pop. 2016 Pop. Change 2010-16
1 Detroit Wayne 713,777 672,795 −5.7%  
2 Grand Rapids Kent 188,040 196,445 4.5%  
3 Warren Macomb 134,056 135,125 0.8%  
4 Sterling Heights Macomb 129,699 132,427 2.1%  
5 Ann Arbor Washtenaw 113,934 120,782 6.0%  
6 Lansing Ingham 114,297 116,020 1.5%  
7 Flint Genesee 102,434 97,386 −4.9%  
8 Dearborn Wayne 98,153 94,444 −3.8%  
9 Livonia Wayne 96,942 94,041 −3.0%  
10 Troy Oakland 80,980 83,641 3.3%  
11 Westland Wayne 84,094 81,545 −3.0%  
12 Farmington Hills Oakland 79,740 81,129 1.7%  
13 Kalamazoo Kalamazoo 74,262 75,984 2.3%  
14 Wyoming Kent 72,125 75,567 4.8%  

Sports

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Baseball

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Brad Ausmus

American football

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Jim Caldwell

Basketball

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Andre Drummond

Ice hockey

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Henrik Zetterberg

Boxing

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Claressa Shields

Racing

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Other

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Music

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Big Sean
 
Eminem

Chronology of events

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January

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Gretchen Whitmer
  • January 3 - Gretchen Whitmer, former minority leader of the Michigan Senate, filed paperwork as a candidate in the 2018 election for governor.
  • January 4 - Ford Motor announced a $700 million investment to improve its Flat Rock, Michigan, plant to build self-driving and electric cars.
  • January 8 - Fiat Chrysler announced plans to invest $1 billion at its Warren and Toledo Jeep plants.
  • January 10 - A lawsuit was filed in Grand Rapids against Larry Nassar and Michigan State University by 18 women alleging they were sexually abused by Nassar.
  • January 13-22 - North American International Auto Show in Detroit
  • January 16 - A second group of tapes was released purporting to have the voice of Warren Mayor James R. Fouts denigrating black people and older women. Fouts denied the voice was his.
  • January 18 - Iván Rodríguez, catcher for the Detroit Tigers from 2004 to 2008, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
  • January __ - 61 Muslim refugees set for resettlement in Detroit had their travel restricted by President Donald Trump's Muslim travel ban.

February

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Betsy DeVos
  • February 6 - Developer Dan Gilbert's Rock Ventures proposed building a soccer stadium and entertainment district on a downtown site slated for construction of a new jail. In exchange for the site, Gilbert would also build a new jail on another site.[15]
  • February 7 - Betsy DeVos of Michigan was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Secretary of Education. The vote in the Senate was evenly split, requiring Vice President Mike Pence to cast the deciding vote.
  • February 10 - Mike Ilitch died.
  • February 19 - Three gymnasts appear on 60 Minutes to describe their experiences with Larry Nassar in the USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal.
  • February 22 - An additional 22 sexual assault charges were filed against Larry Nassar arising out of his Michigan State University Sports Medicine practice.
  • February 22 - Developer Dan Gilbert proposed construction of Detroit's tallest building, a 52-story structure including 250 rental apartments, on the former site of the Hudson's department store.
  • February 23 - Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan accused former emergency manager Kevyn Orr of keeping him in the dark with respect to calculations of the city's future pension payments. The discovery required the city to place an additional $50 million into a trust account. Duggan threatened to sue Orr's law firm, Jones Day, over the undisclosed calculations.
  • February 25 - A record pressing plant operated by Jack White's Third Man Records held its grand opening in Detroit.
  • February 26 - The Detroit Pistons retired the jersey (No. 22) worn by Rip Hamilton.

March

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  • March 8 - An airplane carrying the Michigan Wolverines basketball team skidded off the runway at Willow Run Airport, crossed a road, and crashed into a ditch. The team went on to win the Big Ten Conference Tournament and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA basketball tournament.
  • March 15 - President Donald Trump visited the American Center for Mobility in Ypsilanti, accompanied by Gov. Rick Snyder, EPA administrator Scott Pruitt, General Motors CEO Mary Barra, Ford Motor CEO Mark Fields, and Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne.
  • March 22 - Census Bureau estimates for 2016 show that Michigan's fastest growing counties were Kent (+ 6,078), Washtenaw (+ 3,862), and Oakland (+ 3,696). Wayne County's population declined by 7,696 persons.
  • March 23 - Michigan lost to Oregon in the Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA basketball tournament.
  • March 31 - Wayne County assumed ownership of the former McClouth Steel plant in Trenton for failure to pay taxes.

April

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Red Berenson
  • April 9 - The Detroit Red Wings played their final game at the Joe Louis Arena. The Red Wings played at Joe Louis Arena for 38 seasons, winning four Stanley Cup championships.
  • April 10 - Red Berenson announced his retirement after 33 season's as head coach of the Michigan Wolverines hockey team.
  • April 10 - The Detroit Pistons played their final game at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
  • April 19 - Michigan rockers Ted Nugent and Kid Rock visited with Donald Trump at the White House.
  • April 21 - Two doctors (Jumana Nagarwala and Fakhruddin Attar) and a third person from a Livonia, Michigan, clinic were charged with violation of a federal genital mutilation law for allegedly performing or facilitating religious ritual on seven-year-old Indian-Muslim girls.[16][17][18]
  • April 26 - Jim Harbaugh and his wife met with Pope Francis as Harbaugh and the Michigan football team visited Rome.

May

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Jim Hackett
  • May 4 - Catholic officials announced that Solanus Casey who co-founded the Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit would be beatified.
  • May 9 - State Rep. John Kivela was found dead from an apparent suicide after being arrested suspected drunk driving.
  • May 12 - Two women testified in court that they were sexually abused by Michigan State University doctor Larry Nassar when they were teenagers.
  • May 12 - Detroit's QLINE streetcar service opened for business along Woodward Avenue from Campus Martius to Grand Boulevard.
  • May 16 - Ground was broken on redevelopment of Detroit's abandoned Packard plant into an office complex.
  • May 19 - Ford Motor announced a $350 million investment in its Livonia transmission plant that would add 800 new jobs.
  • May 22 - Jim Hackett, formerly CEO of Steelcase, took over as CEO of Ford Motor.[19]
  • May 23 - The U.S. Department of Justice sued Fiat Chrysler for selling diesel engines that violate the Clean Air Act.
  • May 24 - The 2016 Census estimate showed a 0.5% decline in Detroit's population to 672,795, dropping to the 23rd largest city in the United States. Detroit reached a peak population of 1,849,568 in 1950. The 2016 population represented a decline of 63.6% of the city's 1950 level.[20]

June

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Chevrolet Bolt
  • June 5 - Three Michigan State football players were dismissed from the football program after being charged with sexually assaulting a woman in a bathroom at a party in January.[21][22]
  • June 13 - General Motors announced that it had manufactured 130 autonomous Chevrolet Bolts at its factory in Lake Orion, Michigan.
  • June 14 - In connection with the Flint water crisis, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette charged five officials with involuntary manslaughter in the death of a Legionnaire's disease patient. The five charged included Nick Lyon, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. In addition, the state's top medical executive, Eden Wells, was charged with obstruction of justice.[23]
  • June 29 - Rock Ventures, owned by Dan Gilbert, proposed a new $520 million jail complex in Detroit.

July

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Kid Rock
  • July 9 - Michigan State University doctor Larry Nassar agreed to enter a guilty plea to federal child pornography charges.
  • July 12 - Kid Rock teased about running against Debbie Stabenow for her U.S. Senate seat.[24]
  • July 14 - The Michigan Parole Board voted unanimously to parole Richard "White Boy Rick" Wershe Jr. who had been in prison since 1988 for possession of cocaine with intent to deliver.
  • July 18 - The Detroit Tigers traded J. D. Martinez to the Arizona Diamondbacks for three prospects.
  • July 21 - The Detroit Red Wings signed Tomáš Tatar to a four-year $21-million contract.
  • July 23-27 - The 50th anniversary of the 1967 Detroit riot.
  • July 25 - The film Detroit based on the Algiers Motel incident during the 1967 Detroit riot, was released.
  • July 29 - The final ticketed event was held at Joe Louis Arena, a WWE professional wrestling event featuring John Cena.

August

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Matt Stafford
  • August 9 - Marygrove College in Detroit announced it was terminating its undergraduate program.
  • August 12 - The Detroit Red Wings announce that they are examining legal remedies to prevent use of a modified team logo by white supremacists at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville.
  • August 19 - Woodward Avenue Dream Cruise
  • August 25 - Volkswagen engineer James Liang was sentenced in federal court in Detroit to 40 months in prison for his role in the diesel emissions cheating scandal.
  • August 26 - A Michigan State Police trooper tasered an unarmed 15-year-old, Demond Grimes, as he rode an ATV, causing a crash that resulted in Grimes' death.[25] A wrongful death suit followed with Geoffrey Fieger representing Grimes' family.
  • August 28 - The Detroit Lions signed Matthew Stafford to the richest contract in NFL history, a five-year extension worth $135 million.

September

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Justin Verlander
  • September 1 - The Detroit Tigers traded Justin Verlander to the Houston Astros.
  • September 5 - Ribbon-cutting ceremony for Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, built at cost of $863 million.
  • September 12 - Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced he would run for governor in 2018.
  • September 13 - Little Caesars Arena opened in Detroit with a Kid Rock concert.
  • September 18 - The mayor and a councilman of Fraser, Michigan, were removed from office for alleged sexual harassment of female city workers.[26]
  • September 23 - Brad Ausmus was fired as manager of the Detroit Tigers.
  • September 26-29 - Michigan State Police director Kriste Kibbey Etue came under fire after a Facebook post in which she referred to NFL players kneeling during the national anthem as "ungrateful, anti-American degenerates." Gov. Rick Snyder rejected calls to remove her.

October

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  • October 3 - Ford Motor CEO Jim Hackett announced plans to focus on electric vehicles and to manufacture fewer models.
  • October 4 - Ferndale mother Rebecca Bredow was jailed for refusing to comply with a court order requiring her to vaccinate her nine-year-old son.
  • October 5 - The Detroit Red Wings played the first game at Little Caesars Arena. Anthony Mantha scored the first goal.
  • October 9 - Dr. Eden Wells, chief medical officer of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, was charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the Flint water crisis.[27]
  • October 18 - Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney stated that she was among the sexual abuse victims of Michigan State physician Larry Nassar.
  • October 18 - The Detroit Pistons played their first game in Little Caesars Arena, marking their return to Detroit after 40 years of playing in Pontiac and Auburn Hills.
  • October 19 - The Detroit Tigers hired Ron Gardenhire as their new manager.
  • October 23 - Detroit was named by Lonely Planet as the second best city in the world to visit in 2018.[28]
  • October 26 - Demolition began on the historic Northland Center shopping mall in Oakland County, Michigan
  • October 27 - Women's Convention opens in Detroit.

November

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Solanus Casey
  • November 7 -
* Mike Duggan was reelected as Mayor of Detroit. He received more than 71% of the votes cast.
* Andy Schor was elected as Mayor of Lansing. He received 72% of the votes.
  • November 9 - The University of Michigan Intrafraternity Council suspended all social events at the school's 27 fraternities. The suspension was triggered by allegations of sexual assaults involving fraternity members and hazing incidents.
  • November 9 - A Marine drill instructor was found guilty in a court martial for mistreating three Muslim recruits, including Raheel Siddiqui of Taylor, Michigan, who died in 2016 after falling down three flights of stairs after being slapped by the drill instructor.
  • November 10 - Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman joins the group alleging that she was sexually abused by Larry Nassar.
  • November 18 - The Catholic Church beatified Solanus Casey who co-founded the Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit.[29]
  • November 20 - A coalition turned in 400,000 signatures to place an initiative on the 2018 ballot to legalize recreational marijuana.
  • November 21 - The University of Detroit Mercy announced it was reducing tuition by 30% in the fall of 2018, from $41,158 to $28,000 per year.
  • November 25 - Michigan loses to Ohio State in the annual Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry game.
  • November 28 - Lt. Gov. Brian Calley announced his candidacy for governor in the 2018 election.
  • November 30 - Leaders in the House of Representatives, including Paul Ryan, Nancy Pelosi, and Jim Clyburn, called on John Conyers to resign over allegations of sexual harassment.

December

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John Conyers
  • December 2 - Sander Levin, a Michigan Congressman for 35 years, announced at age 86 that he would not run for reelection in 2018.
  • December 2 - Four teenagers were shot outside the Detroit Institute of Arts during the city's "Noel Night" celebration.
  • December 4 - The implosion and demolition of the Pontiac Silverdome began.
  • December 5 - John Conyers resigned his seat in Congress amid allegations he had sexually abused members of his staff. Conyers had represented Detroit in Congress since first being elected in 1964. His tenure was the sixth longest in congressional history.[30]
  • December 7 - Ford Motor announced that it would build electric vehicles to Mexico. The company also announced plans to create 850 new jobs in Flat Rock, Michigan, to build autonomous vehicles.
  • December 8 - Gov. Rick Snyder announced that he would not set a special election to fill John Conyers' vacant seat in Congress until November 2018, leaving the 13th District unrepresented for 11 months.
  • December 11 - Ole Miss quarterback Shea Patterson announced he would transfer to Michigan.
  • December 13 - Detroiter Bernard Young was released from prison after 28 years. He had been convicted of molestation based on testimony from a five- and six-year-old who later recanted.[31]
  • December 14 - William Strampel, dean of the Michigan State College of Osteopathic Medicine, who had been Larry Nassar's boss, stepped down as dean, citing medical reasons.
  • December 15 - Michigan State University president Lou Anna Simon apologized for the misconduct of Michigan State doctor Larry Nassar in the USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal.[32]

Deaths

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Mike Ilitch
 
Della Reese
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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "2017 Detroit Tigers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  2. ^ "Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2018: Take Two!". Detroit Free Press. December 11, 2017. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "2017 Detroit Lions Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  4. ^ "2017 Michigan State Spartans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  5. ^ "2017 Michigan Wolverines Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  6. ^ "2016–17 Detroit Pistons Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  7. ^ "2016-17 Michigan Wolverines Roster and Stats". SR CBB. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  8. ^ "2016-17 Michigan State Spartans Roster and Stats". SR CBB. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  9. ^ "2016–17 Detroit Red Wings Roster and Statistics". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  10. ^ "Hearns on Kronk Gym Fire: 'It's Really Pitiful'". Detroit Free Press. October 9, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Looking Back at Mackinac". Port Huron Times Herald. July 25, 2017. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Aretha thrills fans at music festival". Detroit Free Press. June 11, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Streaming Seger". Detroit Free Press. March 30, 2017. pp. A1, A10 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "ICP, Juggalos lose appeal on harm from FBI's 'gang' title". Detroit Free Press. December 19, 2017. p. A3 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Gilbert swap: Jail for soccer". Detroit Free Press. February 7, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "FBI: Metro Detroit girls possibly mutilated, too". Detroit Free Press. April 14, 2017. p. A1.
  17. ^ "Judge: Doctor a danger to the public". Detroit Free Press. April 18, 2017. p. 1A – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "2nd doctor, wife arraigned in Livonia genital mutilation". Detroit Free Press. April 22, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "CEO Switch Aims To Spark a Revolution". Detroit Free Press. May 23, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "No population turnaround for Detroit: City falls to No. 23 in the country". Detroit Free Press. May 25, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Charges for 3 MSU football players". Detroit Free Press. June 6, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ "MSU ousts 3 charged in sex assault". Detroit Free Press. June 7, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ "2017". Detroit Free Press. 15 June 2017. pp. A1.
  24. ^ "Kid Rock teases about running for U.S. Senate seat against Debbie Stabenow". Detroit Free Press. July 13, 2017. p. A3 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Tasing of boy, 15, broke rule, police say". Detroit Free Press. August 29, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "Fraser mayor, councilman are out of office". Detroit Free Press. September 19, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ "Doctor accused of manslaughter". Detroit Free Press. October 10, 2017. p. 1A – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "'This is gigantic': Detroit named world's 2nd-best city to visit". Detroit Free Press. October 24, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ "The Beatification of Father Solanus Casey". Detroit Free Press. November 19, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ "An icon steps down". Detroit Free Press. December 6, 2017. pp. A1, A9 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ "'Nothing to be angry about'". Detroit Free Press. December 14, 2017. pp. A1 A9.
  32. ^ "MSU's Simon apologizes for Nassar victims' pain". Detroit Free Press. December 16, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. ^ "Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum founder dies". Detroit Free Press. January 10, 2017. p. A8 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ^ Mitch Albom (January 15, 2017). "'Marvelous' Marvin a champion of fun". Detroit Free Press. p. A15 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. ^ "Mike Ilitch 1929-2017: Champion for Detroit". Detroit Free Press. February 11, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. ^ "George 'The Animal' Steele: Wild man of the wrestling ring". Los Angeles Times. February 18, 2017. p. B6 – via Newspapers.com.
  37. ^ "Abused Michigan wife inspired 'Burning Bed'". Detroit Free Press. April 1, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  38. ^ "Rich Fisher, longtime news anchor and Emmy Award winner, dies at 67". Detroit Free Press. March 25, 2017. p. A6 – via Newspapers.com.
  39. ^ "Detroit TV commercial star 'Mr. Belvedere' dies at 95". Detroit Free Press. March 28, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  40. ^ "Sylvia Moy 1938-2017: Motown pioneer a songwriter, producer". Detroit Free Press. April 18, 2017. p. A4 – via Newspapers.com.
  41. ^ "Versatile player an ace pickoff artist, punter". Detroit Free Press. May 13, 2017. p. B6 – via Newspapers.com.
  42. ^ "Chris Cornell's Last Show: Something wasn't right". Detroit Free Press. May 19, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  43. ^ "Jack McCloskey, architect of Bad Boys champs, dies at 91". Detroit Free Press. June 2, 2017. p. B5 – via Newspapers.com.
  44. ^ "Teddy P. Topor". The Times. June 8, 2017. p. A12 – via Newspapers.com.
  45. ^ "One of greatest jazz pianists of her time, Detroit native dies at 60". Detroit Free Press. June 29, 2017. p. A9 – via Newspapers.com.
  46. ^ "Former U.S. Rep. Vern Ehlers dies at age 83". Detroit Free Press. August 17, 2017. p. A5 – via Newspapers.com.
  47. ^ "Gunnar Birkerts 1925-2017: Acclaimed Midwestern architect and professor". Chicago Tribune. August 16, 2017. p. 2-6 – via Newspapers.com.
  48. ^ "Jud Heathcote 1927-2017: MSU Loses an Icon". Detroit Free Press. August 30, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  49. ^ "Michigan State, Packers standout Currie dies at 82". Detroit Free Press. September 16, 2017. p. B2 – via Newspapers.com.
  50. ^ "Anna Diggs Taylor 1932-2017: Trailblazer judge shunned spotlight in 6-decade career". Detroit Free Press. November 7, 2017. p. A3 – via Newspapers.com.
  51. ^ "Della Reese 1931-2017: 'Touched by an Angel' star grew up immersed in music in Detroit". Detroit Free Press. November 21, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
  52. ^ "Pete Moore 1938-2017: Miracles bass singer co-wrote Motown hits". Honolulu Advertiser. November 27, 2017. p. B4 – via Newspapers.com.
  53. ^ "Arbor Drugs founder Eugene Applebaum dies". Detroit Free Press. December 16, 2017. p. A8 – via Newspapers.com.
  54. ^ "Dick Enberg 1935-2017: Mt. Clemens native truly touched them all as broadcaster". Detroit Free Press. December 23, 2017. p. A1 – via Newspapers.com.
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