1992 in Michigan

Broadcast and newspaper members of the Associated Press voted on the top news stories in Michigan for 1992 as follows:[1]

1. General Motors' problems with plant closings, labor unrest, and management upheaval
2. Presidential candidates in Michigan. In the 1992 United States presidential election between George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Ross Perot, the candidates made repeated visits to the state. The final presidential debate was held at Michigan State University in East Landing on October 19, 1992.
3. Jack Kevorkian's acquittal of murder and his role in assisting five additional suicides during the year
4. The death of Malice Green and prosecution of four Detroit police officers
5. Changes in Michigan's Congressional delegation including the loss of two seats due to reapportionment
6. Leslie Williams case. The arrest and conviction of 38-year-old serial killer Leslie Williams. Williams was paroled from prison in August 1990 and went on a crime spree that included murdering four teenage girls (Cynthia Jones, sisters Michelle and Melissa Urbin, and Kami Villanueva), raping a nine-year-old, kidnapping a woman, and sexually assaulting other women. He was arrested in May 1992 when a witness saw him in the act of abducting a woman in a cemetery. Williams grew up in Garden City, Michigan, where his mother was a prostitute and his father was convicted of sexually molesting two step-daughters. Williams had a long criminal history and had been declared a habitual offender after he was convicted in 1983 of assault with intent to kidnap and to sexually penetrate.[2][3][4][5][6]
7. Welfare reform. Changes in Michigan's welfare system, including a request that recipients work, go to school, or volunteer their time.[7][8]
8. Dow Corning breast implants controversy. Facing mass litigation over leaks from its silicone breast implants, Dow Corning announced in March 1992 that it would cease manufacturing the implants.[9]
9. Conviction of William Hart. In May 1992, a federal jury found former Detroit Police Chief William Hart guilty of embezzling almost $2.6 million from the City of Detroit. Hart in 1976 became the first African-American police chief in a major U.S. city.[10]
10. Magic Johnson's return to the NBA and subsequent retirement and a lawsuit by a woman alleging that Johnson had infected her with the AIDS virus

In the 1990 United States census, Michigan was recorded as having a population of 9,295,29 persons, ranking as the eighth most populous state in the country. By 2000, the state's population had grown by 6.9% to 9,938,444 persons.

Cities

The following is a list of cities in Michigan with a population of at least 50,000 based on 1990 U.S. Census data. Historic census data from 1980 and 2000 is included to reflect trends in population increases or decreases. Cities that are part of the Detroit metropolitan area are shaded in tan.

1990 Rank	City	County	1980 Pop.	1990 Pop.	2000 Pop.	Change 1990-2000
1	Detroit	Wayne	1,203,368	1,027,974	951,270	−7.5%
2	Grand Rapids	Kent	181,843	189,126	197,800	4.6%
3	Warren	Macomb	161,134	144,864	138,247	−4.6%
4	Flint	Genesee	159,611	140,761	124,943	−11.2%
5	Lansing	Ingham	130,414	127,321	119,128	−6.4%
6	Sterling Heights	Macomb	108,999	117,810	124,471	5.7%
7	Ann Arbor	Washtenaw	107,969	109,592	114,024	4.0%
8	Livonia	Wayne	104,814	100,850	100,545	−0.3%
9	Dearborn	Wayne	90,660	89,286	97,775	9.5%
10	Westland	Wayne	84,603	84,724	86,602	2.2%
11	Kalamazoo	Kalamazoo	79,722	80,277	76,145	−5.1%
12	Southfield	Oakland	75,608	75,745	78,322	3.4%
13	Farmington Hills	Oakland	58,056	74,611	82,111	10.1%
14	Troy	Oakland	67,102	72,884	80,959	11.1%
15	Pontiac	Oakland	76,715	71,166	66,337	−6.8%
16	Taylor	Wayne	77,568	70,811	65,868	−7.0%
17	Saginaw	Saginaw	77,508	69,512	61,799	−11.1%
18	St. Clair Shores	Macomb	76,210	68,107	63,096	−7.4%
19	Royal Oak	Oakland	70,893	65,410	60,062	−8.2%
20	Wyoming	Kent	59,616	63,891	69,368	8.6%
21	Dearborn Heights	Wayne	67,706	60,838	58,264	−4.2%
22	Roseville	Wayne	54,311	51,412	48,129	−6.4%
23	East Lansing	Ingham	51,392	50,677	46,525	−8.2%

Counties

The following is a list of counties in Michigan with populations of at least 150,000 based on 1990 U.S. Census data. Historic census data from 1980 and 2000 are included to reflect trends in population increases or decreases. Counties that are part of the Detroit metropolitan area are shaded in tan.

1990 Rank	County	Largest city	1980 Pop.	1990 Pop.	2000 Pop.	Change 1900-2000
1	Wayne	Detroit	2,337,891	2,111,687	2,061,162	−2.4%
2	Oakland	Pontiac	1,011,793	1,083,592	1,194,156	10.2%
3	Macomb	Warren	694,600	717,400	788,149	9.9%
4	Kent	Grand Rapids	444,506	500,631	574,335	14.7%
5	Genesee	Flint	450,449	430,459	436,141	1.3%
6	Washtenaw	Ann Arbor	264,748	282,937	322,895	14.1%
7	Ingham	Lansing	275,520	281,912	279,320	−0.9%
8	Kalamazoo	Kalamazoo	212,378	223,411	238,603	6.8%
9	Saginaw	Saginaw	228,059	211,946	210,039	−0.9%
10	Ottawa	Holland	157,174	187,768	238,314	26.9%
11	Berrien	Benton Harbor	171,276	161,378	162,453	0.6%
12	Muskegon	Muskegon	157,589	158,983	170,200	7.1%
13	Jackson	Jackson	151,495	149,756	158,422	5.8%

• January 7 - Børns, singer, songwriter, and musician, in Muskegon, MI
• February 11 - Taylor Lautner, actor (Jacob Black in The Twilight Saga film series), in Grand Rapids, MI
• June 10 - Kate Upton, model and actress, in St. Joseph, MI

• February 1 - Otto Pommerening, All-American tackle at Michigan, at age 88 in West Bloomfield
• February 20 - Dick York, actor (Bewitched, Inherit the Wind), at age 63 in East Grand Rapids
• March 28 - Ernie Caddel, halfback for Detroit Lions 1934-1938, at age 81 in Roseville, California
• March 31 - Doug Roby, University of Michigan athlete and member of International Olympic Committee, at age 94 in Ann Arbor
• June 6 - E. Harold Munn, Chairman of the Prohibition Party (1955–1971), at age 88 in Hillsdale
• July 26 - Mary Wells, Motown singer (My Guy, Two Lovers, You Beat Me to the Punch, at age 49 in Los Angeles
• September 6 - Pat Harder, fullback for Detroit Lions NFL championship teams of 1951 and 1952, at age 70 in Waukesha, Wisconsin
• September 18 - Earl Van Dyke, main keyboardist for Motown's The Funk Brothers, at age 62 in Detroit
• September 22 - Aurelio López, pitcher for the Detroit Tigers known as "Señor Smoke", at age 44 in Mexico
• October 5 - Eddie Kendricks, member of The Temptations and lead vocalist on "The Way You Do The Things You Do", "Get Ready", and "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)", at age 52 in Birmingham, Alabama
• November 5 - Malice Green, African-American man whose death after police beating sparked controversy, at age 35 in Detroit

• History of Michigan
• History of Detroit