By Judy Reed

What started out as four teens joyriding in golf carts turned into more than $50,000 worth of damage done to the local golf course where the Cedar Springs golf team plays its home matches.

According to investigation records from the Kent County Sheriff Department, four Cedar Springs teens entered the Cedar Chase Golf Course one evening in early October and decided they wanted to drive the golf carts. The teens said they started them with a screwdriver, and then played “bumper cars” with them, smashing into each other. When one would get damaged, they would just go get another one. According to Michael Card, manager at Cedar Chase, they damaged 22 carts in all, as well as tearing up the turf.

After causing the damage, they also took pop cans from a shed and cashed them in at Meijer for $60, got food, and then returned to the golf course parking lot to eat it.

The four teens—Zachary Zenker, 17, Taylor Homrich, 19, Gregory Endes, 18, and Michael Shellito, 17—all pled guilty to malicious destruction of property over $20,000 as part of a plea deal. They will be sentenced in the next few weeks.

According to Card, it took three weeks to repair the turf. “We will not know until spring if the seed germinated and sod took hold, so there may be more work to do. The carts are still being fixed. The time it is taking to fix the damages made us postpone or cancel other course projects, like a planned bunker renovation and tree pruning and removal,” he explained.

Branden Miller

A Montcalm County man was arrested on Thursday, December 31, and remains behind bars, for breaking into a family member’s home and damaging property.

According to the Montcalm County Sheriff’s Office, the call came in to Montcalm Central Distpatch at 9:34 p.m., December 31 (New Year’s eve). The caller, a 67-year-old Crystal woman, said that a family member, later identified as Branden Miller, 26, of Crystal, had broken into her home, in the 8000 block of East Sidney Road, in Crystal Township.

Police said the investigation showed that Miller was intoxicated and tried to find the woman’s car keys. When she tried to stop him, Miller shoved her to the floor, causing her to suffer some minor injuries. Police said that Miller took a bottle of alcohol from the home when he left, and went to a nearby home where he was apprehended without further incident.

Miller has been charged with First Degree Home Invasion and Malicious Destruction of Property Less than $200.00. He remains behind bars on a $5500.00 cash/surety bond.

Montcalm County Sheriff’s Deputies were assisted in the arrest by Carson City Police and the Michigan State Police.

Cody Steven Quay

The name has been released of the 19-year-old arrested last week for vandalism in Cedar Springs. Cody Steven Quay, a homeless Cedar Springs teen, was arraigned on Thursday, April 3, in 63^rd District Court on a charge of Malicious destruction of property—building, $1,000 or more but less than $20,000 (a felony), and one count of malicious destruction of property—personal property, $200 or more but less than $1,000 (a misdemeanor). Bond was set at $1,000 on the felony and $500 on the misdemeanor. He has a preliminary examination set for April 16 at 2 p.m.

At least two or three others were also arrested in the case, but all were juveniles.