Campaign Finance Violation Complaint Made Against Sheriff Candidate: State Officials Investigating

Correction: This article was corrected to reflect the correct total donation limit imposed on local candidates who run for Sheriff.

by P.D. Lesko

May was Derrick Jackson’s personal mensis horribilis.

On May 17, 2024, an Ypsilanti resident, who asked not to be identified, filed a campaign finance violation complaint against Derrick Jackson. (Download a redacted copy of the complaint above.) The 18-page complaint, which was shared with The A2Indy on the condition that the complainant remain anonymous, alleges multiple campaign finance violations, including the use of public resources to run for office, campaigning while in uniform, and campaigning during work hours. Below, is a portion of the complaint:

Edward Queen, who works as a professor and for the Emory Center for Ethics in Georgia, when asked about any ethical concerns about a Sheriff candidate who uses public resources to run for office, said that it’s concerning when a Sheriff’s candidate “promotes himself more than the safety of the people.” He called it “damaging to the electorate.”

State Campaign Finance law is clear: public employees may run for elected office. However, they are strictly forbidden from using any public resource to do so. For example, if a public employee has a cell phone paid for by taxpayers, that candidate is forbidden from using that cell phone to make calls to donors, or any calls related to the candidate’s campaign. Likewise, if a candidate who is a public employee has a car paid for by taxpayers, the candidate is strictly forbidden from driving the car to campaign events, or meetings pertaining to the candidate’s campaign.

The complainant is not the first person to allege Derrick Jackson has been violating Michigan’s Campaign Finance Act. One of his opponents has repeatedly done so. At the May 2024 Washtenaw League of Women Voters Sheriff candidate event, in the video clip below, Alyshia Dyer can be seen sharply criticizing Derrick Jackson for campaigning while making use of public resources, and during work hours.

The campaign finance violation complaint filed May 17 identifies multiple instances of Jackson campaign videos uploaded to Facebook during the hours of a normal work day, and evidence of campaign videos uploaded to Facebook and YouTube from the web servers operated by the Sheriff’s Dept. The complaint also alleges that Jackson made videos for his campaign while in his office at the Sheriff’s Dept.

Also in May, a licensed social worker filed a complaint against Derrick Jackson for impersonating a licensed social worker. That complaint was filed with the State, the Michigan AG’s office, and the County Prosecutor—an investigation was launched.

State records show that Derrick Jackson has never been a licensed social worker. But he has identified himself as a licensed social worker, and as the “Social Worker that became a police officer,” for over a decade. He solicited over $140,000 in campaign donations by telling prospective donors he is a “social worker.” Derrick Jackson faces a host of penalties if found to have violated Michigan laws, including misdemeanors, felonies, jail time, and fines.

On May 31, 2024, the Executive Dir. of the National Association of Social Workers, Michigan Chapter (NASWMi), said in an email to The Ann Arbor Independent that he had contacted Derrick Jackson to instruct him to remove language from his campaign website where he identifies himself as a “social worker.”

“He doesn’t have a license,” said Duane Breijak, Executive Dir. of NASWMi. “He can’t use the title.” The candidate has not yet complied with the request of the NASWMi.

In June 2020, Derrick Jackson participated in a Congressional Briefing sponsored by the national office of the National Association of Social Workers. In that briefing to Congressional members, Jackson repeatedly identified himself as a “social worker,” despite having no license and being barred by Michigan law from using the title. Officials from the national office of the association are investigating Jackson’s fraudulent use of the title “social worker” while addressing members of the U.S. Congress. He faces being barred from ever again participating in NASW panels, conferences or events and having his membership, if he has one, permanently revoked.

The Ann Arbor Independent recently identified a donor to Jackson’s campaign who donated thousands of dollars in the name of another. The named donor, an employee of the actual donor, said she was “given money to donate in multiples of $1,000, and told to whom the donation should be made.” In doing so, the actual donor made multiple campaign donations secretly.

According to the Michigan Campaign Finance Act 388 of 1976, MCL 169.241, “A person who knowingly violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable, if the person is an individual, by a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or imprisonment for not more than 90 days, or both, or, if the person is other than an individual, by a fine of not more than $10,000.00.” Likewise, a candidate who accepts such donations, in violation of MCL 169.242 Acceptance of contribution by intermediary, “…is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable, if the person is an individual, by a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or imprisonment for not more than 90 days, or both, or, if the person is other than an individual, by a fine of not more than $10,000.00.”

Campaign finance law allows the Secretary of State’s Elections Bureau to turn over those found guilty of violating campaign finance regulations to the Michigan Attorney General for prosecution.

Derrick Jackson and Sheriff Jerry Clayton were both asked to comment on the alleged misuse of public resources and the resulting complaint. Neither man responded.

County Administrator Greg Dill was asked if Jackson would be put on leave and investigated for misuse of County resources, as was done to the County’s Racial Equity Officer Alize Asberry Payne. The Ann Arbor Independent reported that Asberry Payne, like Derrick Jackson, fabricated her educational qualifications and professional achievements. She was placed on leave in May 2024, and is currently being investigated. Asberry Payne is not expected to return to her job with the County.