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County Government
Chair of County Commission Slams Citizens Who Question Fraudulent $1.2M Grant to Felons’ Non-Profit
This article was made possible by donations to the Ann Arbor Independent FOIA Fund. Click here to donate. Washtenaw County charged a fee to release the pubic records used in this article.
by P.D. Lesko
At…
“Men Like Us” Club Founder Asked County for $70K Grant to “Deter Youth Violence”; His Ypsi Twp. Club the Site of Assaults, Shootings, Attempted Murder
According to police records, since late-2021, the Men Like Us club building owned by Ardis Lewis, Jr. has been the site of shootings, assaults, attempted murder and an alleged sexual assault. In Mar. 2022, Lewis applied to the County for a…
Outages in Washtenaw County Still impacting Almost 40 Percent of all DTE Customers
Note: Updated on Feb. 24 with a statement from City Administrator Milton Dohoney.
by P.D. Lesko
According to an email Ann Arbor Council member Lisa Disch (D-Ward 1) sent Feb. 23, two-third of Ann Arbor residents were without power…
Citizen Requested Info. About County Employee, Chief Asst. Prosecutor Threatened “Criminal Charges”
Note: This article has been updated to include the email sent by Victoria Burton-Harris.
by P.D. Lesko
Emails shared with The Ann Arbor Independent showed that on Jan. 31, 2022, an Ann Arbor man phoned and then sent an email to the…
Updated: County Clerk Refers Sheriff Candidate’s Campaign Committee to Michigan AG for Prosecution
Update: Derrick Jackson's campaign submitted the required statement Feb. 17, 2023. The Clerk's office posted the amended statement Feb. 22. There will be no fine assessed for the amended campaign finance report. The article is updated to…
County Administrator Implicates Himself and Commissioners in Misappropriation of Federal Funds
by P.D. Lesko
Long-time Detroit News crime reporter George Hunter picked up the Ann Arbor Independent's reporting on the fraudulent grant application submitted to Washtenaw County by local non-profit Supreme Felons, Inc. for $1.2…
Non-Profit Supreme Felons, Inc. Owed Thousands in Fines to IRS When County Commissioners Awarded $1.2M Grant
by P.D. Lesko
Supreme Felons, Inc., a local non-profit that was awarded $1.2 million in federal funding by the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners in July 2022, has never filed state or federal tax returns, public records show.…
These Four County Staffers Recommended Funding Fraudulent Grant Proposal for Felons, Including Sex Offenders, to Mentor Kids
by P.D. Lesko
How did a fraudulent $1.2 million grant proposal filled with fabrications, and submitted on behalf of a registered sex offender and a murderer on parole, ever get funded? A grant to fund work with children in and out of…
County Commissioners Defend $1.2M ARPA Grant to Felon Who Executed 24-Year-Old EMU Grad
by P.D. Lesko
In 1976, Billy Cole was found guilty of felony murder and armed robbery and sentenced to life + 60 years by Washtenaw County Judge Ross W. Campbell. In 1985, while in prison, he was found guilty of felonious assault,…
District 4 County Commissioner Caroline Sanders Criticized For Defending $1.2M ARPA Grant to Murderer on Parole, and Registered Sex Offender
Editor's Note: Robert Zimmerman is an accountant and a candidate for the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners in District 4. The seat is currently held by Commissioner Caroline Sanders. In July 2022, Sanders voted in favor of awarding a…