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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Genesee County sheriff says Flint lockup 'not the answer' to crime problem, calls for 'relentless pursuit' of criminals
By Ron Fonger | rfonger1@mlive.com
on January 16, 2013 at 12:10 PM, updated January 16, 2013 at 2:21 PM
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UPDATE: Flint state police post commander disagrees with Genesee County sheriff on lockup, violent crime strategy
GENESEE COUNTY, MI -- Less than four months after the Flint lockup opened, county Sheriff Robert Pickell says it is "not the answer to solving violent crime" in the city of Flint.
Speaking to the county Board of Commissioners, Pickell said he will send Gov. Rick Snyder a letter today, Jan. 16, advising him that the state's strategy for fighting violent crime here "may be fundamentally flawed."
"We need a relentless pursuit of violent criminals," Pickell said, calling on the state to fund a mobile violent crime unit made up of select officers from his office, Michigan State Police, city of Flint, and townships of Mt. Morris, Genesee and Flint townships.
The sheriff first proposed an 18-officer mobile crime response team a year ago, saying it stood the best chance of slowing chronic violent crime here. Cost of the program has been estimated at $3 million in the first year.
Pickell said a mobile response team staffed by officers familiar with the city of Flint would deter crime far better than random stops by an increased number of Michigan State Police troopers.
"That strategy is not working," he said. "I'm going to send (Snyder) a letter today (asking that he) revisit the strategy."
Snyder caused a splash in Flint last year when he announced in March that the state would pay for new anti-crime initiatives, including the reopening of the city lockup and an increased number of MSP troopers.
Pickell said no more than 53 inmates have ever been in the city lockup at one time and said MSP officers are appreciated but being misused. His department runs the lockup with the state paying the bill for the operation.
"It (isn't) working because Flint has, I think, 100 (officers fewer than it should)," he said.
The sheriff's comments come after a year in which Flint tied its all-time record for homicides and after a blood-soaked first two weeks in 2013.
On Saturday, Jan. 12, Steven E. Lawson, 28, was shot to death at a church funeral -- a new low for the community, according to county Commissioner Brenda Clack, D-Flint.
"This weekend shows just how low we've gone," Clack said. "We're at the bottom ... rock bottom.
"We're so low, I'm afraid this community is going to be destroyed (because criminals) are running wild.
"When you take crime to church ... the only person who would do that is someone who believes nothing is going to happen" in response.
Clack said she supports construction of a team of "professional crime eliminators" such as Pickell is proposing. |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:00 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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The flint Journal did a story on how few prisoners were in the lock up. Suddenly the state Police have a much higher number.
Pickell is right about more than one thing. The federal task forces in recent years got a significant number of the "hard-core" criminals off the sreets. The task force model was effective in Flint even though criminals have gotten more sophisticated. Flint Law Enforcement Officials need new tools.
Brenda Clack had a murder almost on her doorstep and other violence near her. She has chased drug dealers out of her block.
Woodrow Stanley had a murder on the block behind his home and more than one shooting within a block of his home.
My neighbors and the neighbors of many of my friends are moving or will move within the next year because of the uncontrolled shooting. Watch the revenue decline even more because this so called plan is not working. Snyder says we need to give the full three year program time to work. Will many be left to find out?
Barnett Jones was a "volunteer" helping to put this plan together. Then the state forces Flint to hire him. He is a political ally to Snyder as he ran for an office as a Republican. Jones tells the Pastors and others he is a "full time volunteer". He tells Detroit he is on an "as needed basis" and tells the media he is "sort of a consultant " that Flint gave a "fancy title" to.
And the State wants us to believe they have our best interests. |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:15 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Ron Fonger | rfonger1@mlive.com
Here is a comment from the office of Gov. Rick Snyder:
"Governor Snyder feels strongly that the current actions being undertaken by the Michigan State Police and the Flint Police Department, including the re-opening of the city jail, is the right strategy to protect the citizens of Flint and combat the violent crime which has plagued the city for decades. Over a thousand criminals have been lodged in the city jail since its opening, criminals who would have otherwise remained on the streets. The crime problem in Flint didn’t occur overnight, and the solution will not take place overnight. The work being done by public safety officials is beginning to create positive change. This is the right strategy to protect the citizens of Flint and we need to stay the course." |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:17 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Flint state police post commander disagrees with Genesee County sheriff on lockup, violent crime strategy
By David Harris | dharris5@mlive.com
on January 16, 2013 at 1:15 PM, updated January 16, 2013 at 1:16 PM
FLINT, MI – The commander of the Michigan State Police Flint post said he disagrees with Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell's claims that the opening of the city lockup was not the answer to fighting violent crime.
Pickell told the Genesee County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday, Jan. 16, that he was sending Gov. Rick Snyder a letter saying the state's strategy for fighting crime "may be fundamentally flawed."
First Lt. Matt Bolger said statistics show the strategy is working.
"Since the Flint city lockup opened up, we locked up a large number of people that otherwise wouldn't have been lodged at the county jail," said Bolger. "I guess I don't see how that would be a failure."
According to Bolger, there were 679 people locked up in the jail in December – 341 from Flint Police and 333 from MSP along with five from Mott Community College and University of Michigan-Flint police.
The MSP increased its presence in the city from 10 to 20 troopers patrolling the city in 2011 and also assigned some to work in the Flint Police Department's detective bureau. More state troopers are also on the way as part of Gov. Rick Snyder's public safety initiative for Flint, Detroit, Saginaw and Pontiac.
Pickell, however, wants the state to fund a mobile violent crime unit made up of area officers to "relentlessly pursue" violent criminals.
Bolger said troopers arrested 227 people on weapon-related charges and 452 for drug related charges and seized 111 firearms last year. There were also 395 felons arrested on 686 criminal counts, he said.
"If the sheriff's position is taking guns and drugs off the street (and) arresting criminals somehow doesn't improve public safety, I guess I would be very confused," Bolger said. |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:22 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Underused Flint lockup gets changes to boost prisoner numbers
By David Harris | dharris5@mlive.com
on November 29, 2012 at 5:30 PM, updated November 30, 2012 at 7:57 AM
FLINT, MI – Changes are being made at the Flint City Lockup to boost the number of prisoners held there.
On the heels of an MLive-Flint Journal article highlighting that the lockup has averaged just nine inmates a day and has not reached more than 23 inmates at one time since reopening Oct. 1, officials are expanding its use.
The lockup had not been used to lodge suspects arrested in the city on fresh violent felonies and warrants.
Under the new rules, anyone arrested in the city of Flint can be lodged in the lockup, said First Lt. Matt Bolger, Michigan State Police Flint post commander.
Numbers at the lockup had doubled by Thursday with 18 inmates being held at the city, said Genesee County Sheriff Major Phil Hart.
And more changes are on the way.
The next step, Bolger said is to lodge anyone with a warrant out of Flint who is arrested anywhere in the county by any police agency. Before that can happen, however, Bolger said there needs to be a change in the contract between the city and the county -- something that he said should happen "soon" although there is no definite timeline.
"There needs to be ramifications for criminal behavior no matter where they are arrested," said Bolger. "If somebody gets arrested on the south side of the road (at the Burton-Flint border) and Burton comes across them, they're not going to jail. If Flint does they are. It's just kind of silly. Crime knows no boundaries."
Flint police Chief Alvern Lock could not be reached for comment.
Bolger said outcounty policy agencies welcome the change and said there also is a possibility that if there is still room in the lockup it may begin accepting those with outcounty warrants.
It would allow more people to get arraigned as opposed to just getting an appearance ticket and released.
There are about 50,000 outstanding warrants in Genesee County.
The lockup costs about $2.1 million a year to operate and can hold 110 prisoners for up to 72 hours. It was money allocated by Gov. Rick Snyder as part of a public safety plan.
The expansion will help ease some of the overcrowding at the Genesee County Jail, which just fell two days short of an emergency that would force them to release prisoners. It faced an emergency earlier this year.
If possible, Bolger said he would like to see people arrested for fresh crimes anywhere in the county able to be lodged in the lockup.
"If there's room, I don't know why not," he said. "That's the ultimate goal is to do everything we can to enhance public safety in not just Flint but all of Genesee County." |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:28 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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"According to Bolger, there were 679 people locked up in the jail in December – 341 from Flint Police and 333 from MSP along with five from Mott Community College and University of Michigan-Flint police. "
Why do you think Bolger used the December statistics? Could it be they were embarassed by the previous article? |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:31 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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New Michigan State Police Flint post commander Matt Bolger has strong Lansing ties
By David Harris | dharris5@mlive.com
on April 30, 2012 at 7:00 AM, updated April 30, 2012 at 10:11 AM
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FLINT TOWNSHIP, MI -- The new commander of the Flint state police post should have no problem getting Lansing's ear.
Not only did new post commander First Lt. Matt Bolger spend 10 years as the department's legislative liaison, his brother is state Speaker of the House Jase Bolger, R-Marshall.
Although Matt Bolger said he sees those relationships with state police brass as an advantage, he said he doesn't talk official business too much with his brother.
"We honestly don't talk a lot about work and stuff," said Matt Bolger. "It's more just brother to brother talk than post commander to speaker."
Speaker Jase Bolger described their conversations as "brotherly."
"The last conversation about work we had was when the trooper got shot (in Flint)," Jase Bolger said. "We have brotherly conversations, not about the budget, but about the struggles of being a post commander when one of your troopers is shot."
As legislative liaison, Bolger was had a hand in forming all criminal and traffic laws, along with appropriations bills.
Matt Bolger's ties with the state police run deep.
His father, James Bolger, was in the state police and his aunt, Noreen Hillary, was the first female state trooper, enlisting in 1967.
"They say I was born into the state police," joked Bolger, who replaced retired state police Lt. Phil Hart as Flint post commander this month.
Bolger hired onto the state police in 1995, working in Paw Paw until 2002 when he went to Lansing.
Bolger said he decided to take the post commander position because the Flint post is at the epicenter of what the state police post is trying to do.
Budget cuts have expended the Flint post's role, with expanded oversight of state police operations in Shiawassee County and northen Oakland County.
The wide area calls for different methods of policing.
"The missions are most diverse," he said. "The needs for Shiawassee are different than the needs of Holly, which are different than in the city (of Flint)."
The state police began intense urban policing when it added 18 state police troopers into the city by patrolling in the city during high crime times and in high crime areas. The effort will likely be increased as Snyder's initiative to hire more state police troopers.
Bolger said those efforts could include some "cooperative investigations." He said just what that means still is being developed.
"We want to help the good citizens take their cities back," he said.
Bolger, 38, is married with two kids. |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:43 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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From an M-Live comment!
numero407
It will be difficult to "Help the citizens take back Flint," when your Troopers only patrol the main streets. The key to a successful investigation is information. Do not expect much cooperation from the citizens. Your Investigators do not know anyone in Flint.
I have to agree with this comment. Some Flint officers have extensive networks of information. State Police ride into an area and the thug cell phones go ballistic warning of their presence. They catch those "riding dirty", but they won't catch the "king pins". The state closed so many prisons, what will the criminal justice system do with those caught?Mre probations and plea bargains? |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:49 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Press Releases
MDP Launches Bolgergate.com Website to Keep Michigan Voters Informed
LANSING – The Michigan Democratic Party today launched a new website, Bolgergate.com, to keep Michigan voters informed about Speaker Jase Bolger and Rep. Roy Schmidt’s scheme to rig a House election and the subsequent cover-up, which is now being investigated by a one-person grand jury in Ingham County.
“With new developments emerging every week or so in Bolgergate, we believed it was important to keep the public up to date on the investigation into Speaker Bolger and Roy Schmidt’s schemes,” Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer said. “With Bolgergate.com, we are empowering citizens to get involved and demand action from their representatives in Lansing. Speaker Bolger now has the cloud of a grand jury investigation hanging over his head, and his continuing to cling to power is an embarrassment to the institution. The time for half-hearted apologies is over; the time for him to step down from leadership is now.”
The website includes videos, news stories, editorials from across the state, responses to the scandal from other elected officials, reports and documents on the investigation, as well as citizen action items including a petition and a link to contact legislators.
“This is not just an issue for voters in Kent, Kalamazoo or Calhoun counties,” said Brewer. “This is an issue for all Michigan voters because Bolger is the leader of the House Republican Caucus, fifth in line to become Governor. He sets the legislative agenda, but he also sets the tone. Throughout this process, he has shown contempt for the voters, by first attempting to rig an election, then lying to the public about his involvement and finally trying to blame others for his unethical conduct. When voters head to the polls this November, they should know the whole truth about Jase Bolger, and that’s our goal with Bolgergate.com.”
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:53 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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The Republicans send us Jase Bolger's brother and force Flint to hire Republican Barnett Jones, who is partially responsible for this "safety plan".
The violence is not abating, the citizens are leaving. Who will be left to turn out the lights. |
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Thu Jan 17, 2013 7:56 am |
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