Dog helps save elderly owner who fell through the ice: 'Better give the dog a ribeye'



A 65-year-old man walking his dog across a frozen lake Thursday in East Bay Township, Michigan, fell through the ice and into the frigid depths below. Shoreside witnesses called 911, prompting a rapid response by Michigan State Police officer Kammeron Bennetts.

While quick to the scene, Bennetts, 30, still had to figure out how to mount a rescue without similarly ending up trapped on the wrong side of the lake. Fortunately, the waterlogged man's Brittany bird-hunting dog was more than willing to help.

Bodycam footage shows a bystander point out a dog-shadowed gap on Arbutus Lake where the Traverse City man went under. The officer grabs a rescue disc from his cruiser, fastens a rope to it, then heads out onto the ice.

Although able to venture roughly 40 feet away from shore, Bennetts nevertheless falls short of the man's position due to his uncertainty about the solidity of the ice ahead. The officer tosses the rescue disc to the man. While unsuccessful, the initial attempt excites the dog, giving Bennetts an idea.

"You revert to the tools in front of you. I only had a dog in front of me, so use the dog," Bennetts later told People. "I saw she was ready to go to work."

"Send your pup here. Will she come to me?" Bennetts can be heard yelling to the man steeped in freezing water.

The man indicates the dog's name is Ruby.

"Ruby, come here! Come here, Ruby!" yells the officer.

After some whistling and another summons, the dog comes bolting over to Bennetts.

"Will she get ahold of this?" asks the officer, coiling the rope. Ruby quickly indicates she's ready to do that and more.

After fastening the disc and rope to Ruby's collar, Bennetts yells, "Call her! Call her!"

Bennetts, who has been on the force for two years, later indicated, "Within a minute your dexterity in your fingers goes, you lose speech, you lose everything."

Although ultimately in the water for 16 minutes, the Traverse City man nevertheless manages to call Ruby. The dog brings the disc over to her master. With a direct line to the man, Bennetts tells him to take the disc and begin kicking his legs.

The MSP officer begins pulling the man to shore with Ruby providing emotional support. A firefighter from Grand Traverse Metro Fire Department soon leaps into action, joining Bennetts in the rescue.

After the incident, the officer suggested to the Traverse City man, "You better give the dog a ribeye."

According to the MSP, the man was transported by ambulance to Munson Medical Center and later released.

The MSP Seventh District stated on X, "Great team work and well done!"

The MSP Sixth District noted, "What a good girl!!! ... Creative thinking helped save a life!!!"

— (@)

Michigan State Police Lt. Derrick Carroll told People, "Everyone is impressed by [Bennetts'] ability to take control of the situation and his ability to think outside the box to rescue the man in such a timely manner."

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Michigan State Police releases footage of gunman's efforts to shoot down police helicopter, final moments



A 33-year-old Michigan man could have ended up with a fine or jail time for pointing a laser at a police helicopter. For having swapped out the laser for a rifle, he ended up dead.

The gunman recently moved into a derelict home on Terry Street, north of Detroit's downtown. He can be seen in newly released footage peering out a second-floor window just before 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, pointing a laser at a police helicopter, which had been patrolling the neighborhood.

"If the pilot had been blinded and crashed into this neighborhood, it would have been a lot worse," 1st Lt. Mike Shaw, MSP, told WJBK. "Anybody that thinks that that’s a joke or you’re just trying to see what would happen, the potential there is bringing that aircraft down."

Aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft is a federal crime (18 U.S. Code § 39A) carrying a maximum penalty of five years in prison or a $250,000 fine.

According to the Michigan State Police, officers in the airborne unit notified Detroit Regional Communication Center that they were being hit by a green laser.

The man quickly swapped out the laser for bullets and made made his way outside.

"Now there’s somebody standing at the back door. Right now, they’re in the backyard,” the pilot said. “He actually might — he might be armed. He almost looks like he’s holding a long gun pointed at us right now. Yeah, he’s shooting at us right now. He’s firing rounds. He’s got a long gun, extended magazine."

The gunman fired at the helicopter multiple times. Hot shell casings and muzzle flashes appear pronounced in the police footage owing to the helicopter camera's thermal imaging.

The gunman then retreated inside and reportedly resumed firing at police from the second floor of the house.

Troopers from Metro South post responded, approaching the residence on foot, said police. The suspect reportedly turned his fire on them, but the troopers proved to be the better shots.

Neither the troopers nor the helicopter were hit in the incident. The suspect's apparent last stand was final.

Shaw said, "The suspect was hit and went down. We had our emergency support team show up, and went up to approach the house. There were concerns because he was still armed and was laying there."

KTXS reported that six firearms, including the one the suspect had used to fire on the police chopper, were found at the scene.

Shaw noted that they also found "ammunition stashes throughout the home as if it were set up for some type of ambush or security purposes or whatever."

MSP noted that the two troopers involved in the incident have nine and two years of service experience respectively, and both are presently on leave.

\u201cThere were no injuries to troopers or members of the public. Trooper Two (Helicopter) was not hit in the incident. Below is part of the video in the incident. It may be disturbing to some. 3/\u201d
— MSP Second District (@MSP Second District) 1674672667

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Man reportedly throws hot coffee in cop's face during traffic stop, speeds off with children in car. Police get their man after ramming the vehicle.



A suspect allegedly threw hot coffee in a Michigan police officer's face during a recent traffic stop.

The suspect then reportedly fled, crossing three counties with three children in his vehicle, and ended up engaging in a standoff with Michigan State Police.

What are the details?

The incident took place Thursday after an officer responded to a call about a pick-up truck reportedly swerving on an Emmet County road.

The officer reportedly spotted a vehicle that matched the description of the one in the call at a BP gas station near the highway.

The officer approached the vehicle to spot a man behind the wheel. Three children were passengers in the truck. Authorities say that the man was uncooperative in his conversation with the officer, and indicated that he would leave the scene before the officer permitted him to go.

In an attempt to stop the man from fleeing the scene, the officer said he reached into the truck to turn off the man's vehicle when the driver threw just-purchased coffee at the officer's face and drove off.

A short while later, a Michigan State Police trooper saw the truck and began following it, later engaging with the suspect in a standoff.

At the time of the standoff, the state police announced that the suspect had "several children in the vehicle with him and is not communicating with police."

The suspect was reportedly phoning media outlets.

According to the Traverse City Record-Eagle, officers clad in body armor converged on the suspect's truck as it sat in the parking lot of the Antrim Church of Christ and tossed a stun grenade.

Two armored vehicles then rammed the vehicle from both the front and back ends of the truck — only then were authorities able to wrestle the man out of the vehicle and pin him to the ground.

MLive reported that the children were safely removed from the vehicle and were not harmed as a result of the incident.

Authorities arrested the suspect and transported him to the Antrim County Jail.

The officer — later identified by the Record-Eagle as Officer Brock Kimball — was taken to a nearby hospital and treated for first-degree burns on his face. He was released shortly after treatment.

The Record-Eagle reported that police have yet to release the suspect's name or any details about pending charges.

(H/T: The Police Tribune)