6/18/14 - Officials in Conway Township expressed their regret as they issued a decision yesterday to turn the four young men who vandalized Benjamin Cemetery over to county prosecutors. A total of 11 monuments were damaged by the vandalism over Memorial Day weekend, including some large monuments that were toppled. The young men, all of them recent Fowlerville High School graduates, later confessed to the vandalism, and at yesterdayâs meeting of the Conway Township Board they each apologized and asked for forgiveness. The board went into closed session to decide whether to turn the young men over to the prosecutor for charges or to have them make restitution themselves through repayment and community service in the cemetery. After discussing the issue, the board informed the young men that due to the part-time nature of township employees, they could not adequately supervise any community service themselves. They regretfully said they must turn the case over to prosecutors, but that Supervisor Mike Rife would go to the court dates with the young men to ask the judge to show leniency and sentence the young men to community service. The board also selected a bid by a company that would repair and restore the headstones for a total cost of just under $2,600. (TD)
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