Cocktails & Popcorn: Watch Then Squirm In Detroit In The LARP

ML Elrich should sit down, with his computer, his phone, a nice IPA and a big bowl of popcorn, with a napkin, of course, and look into to the property and development financial records of that destination of Mayor Mikey.

How come ya never asked about how that video came to be?

Hmmmmmm.......popcorn.......

State police drop extortion investigation of businessman

Bob Carmack is headed to court next week on fraud charges stemming from a city land deal in Detroit.

But, at least for now, he doesn't have to worry about extortion charges lobbed at him by Mayor Mike Duggan.

That same day Michigan State Police opened an investigation into possible extortion by Carmack.

The mayor became concerned about Bob Carmack more than a week after Carmack rented a mobile billboard and played a video that he claims shows Duggan driving his city car to visit a woman Carmack believes is a mistress.

Carmack made the controversial move after he became frustrated that judges would not allow him to question the mayor under oath in any of the lawsuits between Carmack and the city.

The political stunt came on Nov. 14 downtown, where the mobile

 billboard circled City Hall.

Elrick: "What does possibly cheating on his spouse have to do with being a corrupt politician?"

"Well if he is cheating on his wife maybe he is cheating on the people of Detroit," Carmack said at the time. "Maybe he is doing things that aren't proper with the city, with the financers, with tax credits and so forth."

A state police report I obtained using the Michigan Freedom of Information Act shows that troopers interviewed the mayor, his chief of staff Alexis Wiley, and Lawrence Garcia, the head of the city's law department.

Garcia told

 investigators that before Carmack showed the video, Carmack told Garcia: "You better make me happy or I'm going to drop a bomb."

Garcia believes the video was that bomb, and that his purpose was to "Shake up the mayor."

Instead, the mayor held the news conference calling for a state police investigation and promised Detroiters that while embarrassing information may come out that would hurt his family, he would always put Detroiters first.

Duggan asks police to investigate businessesman's threats

Carmack accused of selling Detroit land he didn't own to out-of-state developer

It does not appear that the state police interviewed anyone else. The report concluded that the investigation is closed and will be reopened if additional information is learned.

Carmack said he did not extort anyone. I contacted the mayor's office but they declined comment.

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The Detroit Email Tree Is Not Poisonous When Ending Stealin' Children, Land & Votes

I am pretty sure there shall not be any "fruit of the poisonous tree" going on with the emails.

Those emails contain more than just the Make Your Date activities because no one wants to talk about the Detroit Land Bank Authority....or funding campaigns....or doling out properties to campaign supporters....or the election....or the bitcoin....or SIGTARP....or the trust funds....or me.

Just ask Larry Garcia.

Send him my love.

Emails of Duggan, five aides target of AG's search warrant

Detroit — The Michigan Attorney General's investigation into deleted emails involving a controversial nonprofit is focused on the email accounts of Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and five aides, according to a copy of a search warrant.

The two-page search warrant document, obtained under a Freedom of Information Act request filed by activist Robert Davis and provided to The Detroit News, was released by the city on Tuesday. The city confirmed the search warrant was released under Davis' request.

The warrant was executed Friday on the City of Detroit's information technology department as part of a probe into city employees deleting emails involving Make Your Date, a nonprofit championed by Duggan that addresses premature birth.

The City of Detroit's Innovation and Technology Department was the focus of the search, which sought any and all electronic records and attachments for city email accounts belonging to Duggan, his chief of staff Alexis Wiley, Chief Development Officer Ryan Friedrichs, the husband of Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, and Deputy Chief Development Officer Sirene Abou-Chakra as well as two other lower-level grants staffers, Monique Phillips and Claire Huttenlocher.

The attorney general sought communications between Jan. 1, 2014, and Nov. 7, 2019, according to the search warrant.

Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia had said Friday the city was "fully cooperating" with the attorney general's investigation. In a provided statement Tuesday, Garcia said the attorney general's office "is doing its job."

"We were already prepared to provide emails related to Make Your Date as they already had been pulled for the OIG investigation. Those emails have been online for the public to read for several months," he said. "We continue to cooperate fully with the AG’s staff, and we hope their work is completed soon."


The targeting of Duggan's emails comes after questions were raised about what the mayor knew about the deletion of emails involving Make Your Date.

The mayor has said he wasn't aware nor did he direct staff to delete the emails but later learned that the deletion decision came amid scrutiny that he contends was fueled by criticism from Detroit businessman Robert Carmack.

The auto shop owner had aired private investigator footage on a billboard truck outside City Hall of the mayor's comings and goings. The direction to delete emails, he said, was a "mistake" that was made "to protect two junior staff people" from being dragged into any scrutiny by Carmack.

The city's Office of Inspector General concluded last month in a report that Duggan's treatment of Make Your Date has been preferential but noted the mayor had not abused his power.

Make Your Date, the report said, received a total of $358,368 in grant funds from the Detroit Health Department.

According to Inspector General Ellen Ha's report, the two grants staff members, Phillips and Huttenlocher, were instructed to delete emails regarding Make Your Date "in an attempt to hide the amount of work done by the department to secure grant funding." The program is headed by Dr. Sonia Hassan, who has been linked to Duggan.

Ha concluded that Wiley abused her authority by ordering the workers in the city's grants office to delete emails pertaining to the program through Friedrichs and Abou-Chakra.

The report also indicated "there is no evidence to suggest that Mayor Duggan directed or knew about Ms. Wiley’s order to Mr. Friedrichs for his staff to delete MYD emails."

Kelly Rossman-McKinney, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Dana Nessel, confirmed Friday that the search warrant had been in response to the deleted emails. But Rossman-McKinney declined to comment Tuesday on the city's release of the search warrant.

The warrant, approved Thursday in Ferndale's 43rd District Court, also asks for any backup or archived files and emails from past email services used by the city.

"The search shall include the recovery of data from any and all computers and servers off site, across the network, or cloud-based storage solutions under the control of the City of Detroit," it reads.

Michigan state law bars government employees from destroying public records outside of set schedules. The Attorney General's Office and the Michigan State Police had previously been investigating actions involving the Make Your Date.

Meanwhile, Duggan and Garcia have said Ha's review found no city rules or policies were broken by the mayoral aides who directed that the emails be deleted. But Ha has noted her review didn't take into account whether city procedures and state law were violated.

That is being investigated by the Public Integrity Unit of the state Attorney General's Office, she said.

Duggan has said Wiley, Friedrichs and Abou-Chakra would undergo document management training in the wake of Ha's investigation.

In the aftermath of the inspector general's report, Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones called for an ordinance to prevent the deletion of city governmental emails and a five-year retention policy.

When questioned about whether document training is enough of a penalty for his chief of staff and two other aides, Duggan has said there’s been no finding as of now that Wiley — a former WJBK-TV reporter — broke any rules or policies.

“If that changes, I’ll deal with that,” he said, adding the deleted emails were “completely innocuous.”

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Sherry Gay Dagnogo, $1000 Reward & The Case Of Her Accidentally Demolished Blighted Detroit Land Bank Authority House

Recently, the world was stunned by the tale of Sherry and her nonprofit's missing house.

Sherry Gay Dagnogo & The Case Of The Mysterious Detroit Land Bank Authority Accidental Blight Demolition

But have no fear, for Sherry Gay Dagnogo is on the case of trying to find out who accidentally demolished her nonprofit's blighted Detroit Land Bank Authority home, but this time, the Michigan State Representative stands in the public square, in front of Detroit City Council, representing her nonprofit,  COALITION TO INTEGRATE TECHNOLOGY AND EDUCATION , trying to explain how this interference of settling her claims for the fire of the house next door owned by the City of Detroit/Detroit Land Bank Authority burnt up her nonprofit's home.

Having worked as a staffer for City Council during the formation and implementation of the Detroit Land Bank Authority, I bet Sherry knows where all the answers are within the City Departments.

If her home, her nonprofit's home, was burnt by a fire of a [sic] "City property or another Land Bank", where she stated that the interested parties to the insurance claim still have questions of how the fire originated, then riddle me this: Will the insurance company hold the Detroit Land Bank Authority of the City of Detroit liable to the claim?

She will have to go to the Michigan Court of Claims to answer that question or PACER.

Larry Garcia, Corporate Council for the City of Detroit, was looking rather confident when he advised City Council to remain silent on the matter, considering that his trials on other matters of Detroit Land Bank Authority properties start October 21, 2019.

I am routing for Sherry the Sleuth to get to the bottom of the accidental demolished blight questions for her insurance company.

She is one of the "Elected Ones", you know.

She should ask Butch Hollowell for assistance.

Perhaps, Butch can represent Sherry the Sleuth.

All I know is that we need to find out who accidentally demolished her nonprofit's blighted property because whoever did it, did a really good job, where the costs are easily calculated to be far less that $22,000, and was done in just a few hours, that way, Detroit would have no need for another bond.

I wonder if she will give me that $1,000 reward when I present her with information of the accidental demolition.

State lawmaker cautions Detroit council on demo work after house vanishes

Detroit — State Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo is urging Detroit's City Council to carefully weigh whether more taxpayer funds should be allocated for demolition after a home her nonprofit was renovating was mysteriously razed.

Gay-Dagnogo, during Tuesday's formal session, said she was "perplexed" by the loss of the home on Minock that she'd hoped to gift to a needy family this holiday season.

A house at 14567 Minock in Detroit belonging to state Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo was demolished and removed without her knowing.

The Detroit Democrat, who opposes Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan's plan to put a $250 million bond proposal for voters in the spring to fund demolition, noted controversy surrounding the city's federally funded effort that's been the subject of local, state and federal probes.

The Detroit News last week reported a lack of controls early in the program allowed contractors to name their own price for dirt in the federally-funded demolition program.

"I caution this body in moving too quickly on a demolition initiative that would cost the taxpayers more money," she said. "We have too many unanswered questions on the use of current dollars for demolition. I want to know how costs are established."

Gay-Dagnogo, founder of the Coalition to Integrate Technology and Education, said the razing of the house at 14567 Minock near Stoepel Park is a "huge mystery." The lawmaker is offering a $1,000 reward for information on the demolition.

She and city officials agree there isn't a record of a demolition permit nor any effort to ensure utilities had been disconnected or gain environmental approvals.

Detroit assistant police chief David LeValley confirmed late Monday that the department has opened a criminal investigation into the incident. Gay-Dagnogo met with police on Saturday.

Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia briefly addressed council Tuesday, stressing that the demolition "was not ordered, directed or funded by the city." Garcia said that the situation is "quite bizarre" and agreed "there was no paperwork for this one."

The incident, he said, remains under investigation of the Detroit police and because of that "there's not a lot we can say."

City officials, he said, "should remain largely silent while it's pending."

"There's no need to short-circuit the normal process of the investigation," he said. "That's why not much is being said by the administration right now."

Gay-Dagnogo has said the house had undergone an investment of about $42,000 for a new roof and windows and other repairs. The nonprofit purchased the property for about $1,000 and the sale closed on July 25, 2018.

But in mid-June, it sustained damage when an adjacent property owned by the city caught fire. The fire-damaged house at 14561 Minock, she said, was razed in July by the demolition firm Adamo Group. That work was fully completed on July 19, according to the city.

Christian Hauser, an attorney for Adamo, said Monday that Adamo "had nothing to do with the demolition of the structure at 14567 Minock."

Gay-Dagnogo said Tuesday that it cost $22,000 to tear down the other Minock house after it burned.

"That's a lot of money and a lot of taxpayer money," she said, noting that more investment is needed in senior home repair. "We need somebody to champion something for poor people who don't have any other way to get their home fixed."

The lawmaker also told council members Tuesday that the Detroit caucus is working to draft a resolution to ensure there's greater oversight of federal funds intended for home repair.

"Let's prevent blight on the front-end, as opposed to pay people to demolish houses, who have these contracts, on the back-end," she said.

Councilman James Tate, who represents the northwest Detroit district, pledged to Gay-Dagnogo that "we'll do whatever we can do to get to the bottom of this."

Since the fire, Gay-Dagnogo said her nonprofit and its partners ensured the house was secure and were seeking quotes to have repair work done. The city, she said, had set a compliance deadline of Oct. 14.

"We were working and getting quotes from different organizations to determine our best path forward after the fire," she said Monday.

Gay-Dagnogo said a blight busting group went to the property last Thursday to do an assessment and provide a quote for the rehab work. That's when, she said, they "let us know the house was no longer there."

Gay-Dagnogo said she's since received calls and emails from others who contend they've experienced the same thing.

"What protocols are in place to prevent this and how do we determine if there are others out there that this has happened to as well," she said.

Council President Brenda Jones said she's submitted multiple questions to get answers about what happened, saying "it shocked me."

"It is a surprise to me and hopefully we will soon get some answers to what happened," Jones said.

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The Great Detroit Election Facepalm: Public Corruption, Election Fraud & Campaign Finance Schemes

The Great Detroit Election Facepalm,

You would think, these people would have read the Detroit Memo.

You would think these people would have read the stories in the media about the international, federal, state and local investigations going on about elections, campaign finance and public corruption.

You would think these people would remember what happened in the federal investigation into the largest municipal fraud investigation in history, which just so happened to be here, with the same exact people who are now, or have still been under federal investigation when it comes to campaign finance fraud, election manipulation, and anything else these "Legal Geniuses" (trademark pending) over there at the Detroit Land Bank Authority, et al are doing.

My vote was not counted in the
2016 General Election.

You would think these people would actually absorb the information I share on my blog.

I know they read my blog because I can see them, hear them and the hate is thick.

You would think that they would just stop stealin'.

But no.

But I will tell you this, there was election fraud in District 7 General Election of 2016.

I decided to challenge the entire concept of election fraud in Detroit, again, and did a write-in for the Presidential election, John Conyers, Jr.

Then, I sat back and waited for the Wayne County Board of Canvassers to publish its write-in report for the election.

I read the report.

Wayne County Board of Canvassers did not report my vote for my Sweetie.

I got saddy face.

But it is not the first time the Wayne County Election Clerk, Third Judiciary Circuit Court of Wayne County, Michigan, and a few other "Legal Geniuses" (trademark pending) did a number on me.

Besides, I always keep my expectations extremely low when it comes to public administration and governance in Michigan but I have a sneaky suspicion the same nefarious actors were behind this fraudulent play for power through a sham election.

I only make the aforementioned statement because William Isaac Robinson works for Gabe Leland.

I apologize for the digression but promise to revisit these subjects (extreme castigation intended).

I just so happen to live in District 7, which is an historic district.

FUN FACT! Hardest Hit Funds were never designated for historic districts.

Anyway, Detroit Land Bank Authority is notorious for demolishing properties it never legally acquired, not just because it never incorporated, but because once the property is gone, there is no legal claim and the land is then transferred to another entity as an intellectual property issue.

I have met a few other individuals who just, "lost" their family homes and business to demolition.

It breaks my heart.

Like I always say, "Steal it, tear it down and bill the feds...it is cheaper than eminent domain and you never get caught because you are a Corporate Shape Shifter."

There is so much more I could tell, but for now, I do the Great Detroit Election Facepalm.

They just refuse to stop.

Make it stop.

Please.

Suit: Councilman Leland tried to extort $15K

Detroit – A Detroit businessman says he wore a secret recording device for the FBI after alleging City Councilman Gabe Leland tried to extort $15,000 from him, according to a federal court lawsuit filed late Wednesday.

Businessman Robert Carmack said he delivered $7,500 cash in an envelope to a Leland campaign worker in late summer 2017, according to the lawsuit filed against the councilman, Mayor Mike Duggan, the Detroit Land Bank and Wayne County Treasurer Eric Sabree.

The lawsuit appears to help explain why Leland was included in a list of FBI targets named in a sealed wiretap affidavit obtained first by The Detroit News in December. The full scope of the ongoing FBI investigation is unclear, but the affidavit indicates agents have focused on campaign finances and Leland’s ties to towing titan Gasper Fiore, who was ensnared in a related corruption investigation.

The lawsuit’s allegations date to a few weeks before the August 2017 primary election in Detroit.

Leland was running for re-election and Carmack was trying to resolve a dispute involving property he owned at 8124 Michigan Ave. Carmack alleges the city illegally demolished his commercial building using federal funds and was trying to sell the property.

“Leland demanded and requested...$15,000 for his reelection campaign,” Carmack’s lawyer Andrew Paterson wrote in the lawsuit.

Carmack says he ignored the request.

Leland could not be reached for comment immediately Thursday.

Rod Liggons, a spokesman for the land bank, did respond, saying: "The Detroit Land Bank Authority does not comment on pending litigation, and we will have no further comment at this time. Thank you."

In the weeks since The News published details about the sealed wiretap investigation, several politicians and public officials – including Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon and Wayne County Circuit Judge Vonda Evans – have received assurances that they are no longer considered targets of the FBI corruption probe.

Leland is notable among politicians on the list who have not been cleared by the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Leland, who chaired a City Council committee responsible for community development, promised not to sell the property in exchange for $15,000, Carmack alleges.

Carmack feared he was being extorted so he approached the FBI, according to the lawsuit. The FBI is investigating widespread corruption involving politicians, police officers in Detroit, Macomb County and across southeast Michigan.

“The FBI asked (Carmack to) wear a recording device and to pay defendant Leland as defendant Leland demanded,” Carmack’s lawyer wrote in the lawsuit.

The day after Leland asked for $15,000, Leland called the businessman and said he would be sending someone to pick up the cash, according to the lawsuit.

That same day, a woman who Carmack believed to be a Leland campaign worker met him on a side street near a bank on East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, the lawsuit alleges.

“During the exchange, (Carmack) explains to the female campaign worker that the cash in the envelope was for defendant Leland and the female campaign worker responds by (stating) that it was not for her and that she would be delivering the money to defendant Leland immediately,” the lawsuit alleges.

The next day, Carmack said he met with Leland.

“Leland responded that he had in fact received the money from the campaign worker,” Paterson wrote.

Carmack was free to do whatever he wanted with the commercial property, Leland said, according to the lawsuit.

FBI spokesman Tim Wiley declined comment about whether the bureau’s investigators asked Carmack to wear a wire.

“I would say anyone who has information about public corruption is asked to call the FBI’s hotline at (313) 965-2222,” Wiley said.

After receiving the money, Leland made more demands, Carmack claims.

“Leland asked (Carmack) to fix his secretary’s car for free, and, in accordance with the FBI’s instructions, plaintiff obliged and fixed defendant Leland’s secretary’s car for free,” according to the lawsuit.

Then, Leland double-crossed Carmack, according to the lawsuit.

“A few weeks later, (Carmack) learned that defendant Leland had in fact placed on the (City Council) agenda the sale of plaintiff’s property,” Paterson wrote.

Carmack wants a federal judge to rule that Leland extorted him and that the city illegally took his property. Carmack wants at least $1.3 million.

The lawsuit describes Carmack’s attempts to secure a separate land deal during former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick’s administration. Carmack says former Kilpatrick aide Derrick Miller demanded a $50,000 payment to finalize a deal for the Revere Copper & Brass property near Historic Fort Wayne and the Riverfront.

In March 2015, Carmack complained during a City Council meeting that the Duggan administration was not honoring the deal.

On Thursday, the city’s top lawyer Lawrence Garcia accused Carmack of misrepresenting facts.

Wayne County foreclosed on the Michigan Avenue property in 2010 and the city later purchased it and demolished the unsafe building in 2016, Garcia said in a statement.

“Now, two years later, (Carmack) files this lawsuit because he could not get special treatment from the administration in his effort to reclaim the property he had lost through a legal process,” Garcia wrote.

“As it relates to the Revere Copper & Brass property, Mr. Carmack is upset that this administration did not honor a sweetheart deal for that land he had struck with the Kilpatrick administration,” Garcia added. “The City no longer operates that way.”

Duggan’s administration acted properly and appropriately, Garcia said.

“We believe the claims against the administration are frivolous and we will be defending them vigorously,” Garcia said.

Leland, meanwhile, was re-elected in November to his second, four-year term on Detroit’s City Council. He first took office in January 2014 and formerly served six years in the state House.

The sealed wiretap affidavit obtained by The News last year outlined a broad corruption investigation by the FBI. Agents were interested in payments Fiore apparently made to Leland, and the councilman's interest in a separate FBI investigation involving towing companies and body shops.

In May 2016, FBI agents were tapping Fiore’s phone and overheard the towing mogul discuss fundraising for Detroit city council members and candidates. One conversation touched on several council members, including Andre Spivey, Council President Brenda Jones and Leland.

At the time, Leland was dating Fiore’s daughter Jennifer.

The FBI was investigating whether Detroit police officers accepted bribes from body shops and towing companies, according to the affidavit.

In one wiretapped conversation, Fiore talked to his ex-wife Joan Fiore about the towing investigation and Detroit Police Chief James Craig, according to court records.

"In Fiore’s conversation with Joan, it appears that Chief Craig briefed Gabe Leland about the towing case, and Leland has briefed the Fiore family about it,” FBI Special Agent Robert Beeckman wrote in a court filing.

In an interview with The News in December, Craig insisted he never told Leland anything about the investigation. He said he contacted the FBI after a 2016 meeting with the Detroit city councilman.

“He said he wanted to meet with me for the purpose of discussing something unrelated to towing, but once he gets into the meeting with me, he starts asking about the towing investigation,” Craig told The News. “It’s not my investigation, so I didn’t have anything to give him. I never felt comfortable with him, so I made sure to have a witness in the room with me during this meeting.

“I was not comfortable with Leland’s questions, and I immediately contacted the FBI as soon as he left the room and told them he was asking me questions about the towing investigation.”

Fiore’s wiretapped conversations describe his distaste for Leland.

“He's another guy that -- there with a tight suit on, with a cheap tie and got a hole in the side of his pants on the pocket cuz he don't want to buy a pair of pants,” Fiore said in one recorded conversation.

In another conversation, Fiore labeled the Detroit councilman a "mooch."

In a May 2016 conversation, Fiore complained about paying for unspecified items for Leland.

The FBI monitored text messages that month as Fiore and Leland arranged a meeting at Big City Bar & Grill in Detroit on May 27, 2016.

After the meeting, Fiore called his daughter.

Fiore complained about Leland pressuring him to hire political consultant Marcellus Brice, whose wife. Joyell Lewis, is a community affairs director in Leland's office, according to the wiretap affidavit.

Brice had been under investigation previously based on allegations he used his City Hall connections to try to extort someone, the FBI agent wrote in a court filing.

The FBI agent listened to Fiore's call and concluded Brice was offering to pay people on Fiore's behalf to get political results, according to the FBI affidavit.

"I don't need him," Fiore said.

"Fiore is saying that if someone needs money, Fiore will pay the person himself, and he does not need Brice as a middleman," Beeckman, the FBI agent, wrote in the wiretap affidavit. "I'm tired of the ------- guy. Wants me to hire somebody just to give him a ------- job. I said, 'You give him a job. You can hire people.'"

Rober Carmack v. Detroit Land Bank Authority, Detroit & Mayor Mike Duggan, Councilman Gabe Leland, Wayne Co... by Beverly Tran on Scribd

Detroit City Councilman Gabe Leland Foreclosure District 7 Newsletter Winter 2018 by Beverly Tran on Scribd

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Cocktails & Popcorn: Brenda Jones To Challenge Rashida Tlaib, Again

Ssshhh....

The good part is about to start.

Brenda Jones launches write-in campaign for U.S. Rep John Conyers' seat

In the latest twist to hit the 13th Congressional District race, Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones has launched a surprise write-in campaign to replace former U.S. Rep. John Conyers, just a week shy of the Nov. 6 general election.

Jones filed paperwork on Friday with Wayne County to run as an independent candidate, Fred Woodhams, Secretary of State spokesman confirmed.

"We have been told she did file with the Wayne County Clerk’s Office as a write-in," Woodhams said in an email to the Free Press. "Any more detail will have to come from the clerk’s office, but there’s nothing barring her from being a write-in candidate."

Jones could not immediately be reached for comment.

Better Made Potato Chips and Vernors

A Detroit Tradition

More:

Jones' decision to fill Conyers' seat could hinge on ethics panel ruling

How Detroit's Rashida Tlaib will make history in Washington

Confusion first arose in the race shortly after the August primary when Jones won the race to serve out the rest of Conyers' term while former state Rep. Rashida Tlaib prevailed in the race to serve a two-year term for the seat Conyers vacated.

In response to news that Jones is mounting a write-in campaign, Tlaib said in a statement to the Free Press she's "focused on moving forward and knocking on doors to elect my fellow Democrats up and down the ballot."

"I'm working hard to elect a governor we can work with and to take back the majority in Congress, so that I can get to work helping the residents of the 13th Congressional District who haven't had representation in the U.S. House for almost a year," Tlaib said.

T.J. Bucholz, Tlaib's campaign spokesman during the primary season, posted on Twitter on Monday: “Successful Congressional write-in campaigns generally require three things: money, time, and work ethic. If you can’t check at least two of those three boxes, don’t attempt it. #mi13”

Jones’ announcement came just three days after she stood on stage with Tlaib on Friday night before thousands of people waiting to hear from former President Barack Obama at Cass Tech High School. They spoke in optimistic terms about the prospect of the two of them serving in Congress.

“They tell us we don’t belong, they tell us to shut up, well no more,” Tlaib said. “It’s going to get spicy in the U.S. Congress” with Jones and Tlaib in the House.

“You better let your voices be heard and let people know that we’ll be representing you,” Jones said.

Earlier this month, the Free Press reported that Jones' final decision to complete the rest of the Detroit Democrat's term would come down to a pending ruling from the House Committee on Ethics on whether she can legally serve in both roles at the same time.

A ruling has yet to be announced. The remainder of Conyers' term ends on Jan. 3, 2019.

"I've reached out to additional sources at the state and federal levels to obtain legal advice and political counsel in this matter," Jones said in a statement at the time. "I want to be sure all sources are considered so I can make the best choice for myself, the citizens of Detroit and my constituents in the 13th District. I am still awaiting opinion from the House Committee on Ethics which will help me make a final decision."

Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia previously told the Free Press it is permissible under certain circumstances for Jones to hold both offices.

Jones' office also noted that Garcia's opinion said there are no municipal or state barriers that might block her from serving in both seats. The statement carefully pointed out that if Jones were to take the position, she would be sworn in at some point in November — close to the time that council's winter recess is set to start on Nov. 21.

But according to the Detroit City Charter, if a vacancy occurs on City Council, the seat is supposed to be filled by appointment, based on a two-thirds vote of council members.

"The person appointed shall serve until an elected member takes office," the city charter states. "The election to fill the vacant position shall occur at the next general election to be held not sooner than 180 days after occurrence of the vacancy."

However, Garcia said in the opinion that he found "no prohibition against holding dual offices" in the City Charter or the Rules for Council.

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Cocktails & Popcorn: They Eat Each Other Alive - More Stealin' In Detroit & Michigan GOP

They eat each other alive.

Now, that Laura Cox has called for Dana Nessel to investigate Detroit and its child welfare issues, because preterm births and infant mortality is more than just a grant, it seems we are also looking into election fraud.

The Michigan GOP has its own grant funding issues, but hey, what do I know?

I know we should ask Mikey!

Everyone loves Mikey.

Mikey is Laura Cox's husband, the former Michigan Attorney General.

Mikey can tell his story and Kwame Kilpatrick can tell his story.

Mikey and Kwame used to be buddies, but hey, what do I know?

I know there used to be chatter on the streets that Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick once said, "It is always good to have an AG in your backpocket."

I heard the rumors about the Manoogian Mansion party that did not happen the next morning and the tales were tall!

Republican Party chair calls on AG's office to probe Detroit grants office

Laura Cox

The state's Republican Party chairwoman is pointing to "serious allegations of impropriety" in her call Tuesday for the Michigan Attorney General's Office to investigate Detroit's grants office and its leader.

Laura Cox, in a released statement, noted allegations revealed in a Thursday lawsuit involving the city's Office of Development and Grants and Ryan Friedrichs, the office's chief development officer, who also is the husband of Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

“The allegations leveled against Ryan Friedrichs and the Detroit Office of Development and Grants are extremely troubling and warrant a full investigation by the Michigan Attorney General’s office,” Cox said in a released statement.

In a whistleblower lawsuit filed Thursday in Wayne County Circuit Court, ex-Detroit employee Kennedy Shannon contends she placed on administrative leave and ultimately terminated after raising concern over the city's Motor City Match program, a federally funded effort designed to aid small businesses.

Jocelyn Benson &  Ryan Friedrichs

Meantime, Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel's Office said last week that it's reviewing allegations that two city of Detroit employees were directed to delete emails related to Make Your Date, a nonprofit dedicated to premature births. One of the complaints was filed by Shannon.

The state's review comes amid a probe launched in April by Detroit Inspector General Ellen Ha to determine whether Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, also a Democrat, and city officials potentially "abused their authority" by providing preferential treatment to the program run by Wayne State University. The investigation was sparked by a Detroit Free Press report that Make Your Date received $358,000 in city grants and benefited from a fundraising campaign that a city official led at the mayor’s request.

"Emails were deleted and employees were fired. The Attorney General’s office must get to the bottom of the allegations involving the Motor City Match Program, the city’s involvement with Make Your Date, and the attempt by the Detroit Office of Development and Grants to delete emails sought through correct legal recourse," Cox said. "Will the Attorney General’s office do their duty or will Attorney General Nessel’s friendship with Jocelyn Benson allow this potential cover-up to avoid scrutiny?”

In response, Nessel spokeswoman, Kelly Rossman-McKinney, said the office is actively reviewing the complaints it received involving deleted emails.

"Friendship or not, no one is above the law," she said.

Secretary of State spokesman Shawn Starkey also responded to Cox's comments, saying: “This is nothing more than the shamelessly opportunistic ramblings of a political hack.”

Shannon's lawsuit contends that she informed Katerli Bounds, the city's director of grants, and Friedrichs that there were "major compliance and HUD regulation issues" with the match program and that the city "should not make any more payments to this organization."

The lawsuit contends that she was told by Bounds that refusing to sign off on packets for the match program was "insubordination" and could result in termination.

In response, the city provided The Detroit News with a copy of a March email from Friedrichs sent to Bounds and Shannon following the meeting.

The email noted "takeaways" arrived at from the discussion, including that "staff members are supported in their ability to make a final decision on their sign-off on a packet."

Shannon was suspended for 30 days without pay on May 1. She was terminated May 23.

Duggan spokesman John Roach told The News on Tuesday that the city "strongly believes" the allegations in Shannon's lawsuit are false and "we are vigorously contesting that case in court."

"Injecting partisan politics into this matter isn't going to contribute to resolving the legal issues," he said.

Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia has claimed Shannon's dismissal was tied to concerns involving her time cards. Her concerns about the match program, he said, were "welcomed" and used to improve the system.

With respect to the emails, Garcia has said that Friedrichs and Detroit's Chief Financial Officer David Massaron learned of the "possibility of deleted or missing emails" in May and moved quickly to resurrect them and turn them over to the inspector general.

Garcia has declined to provide further details, citing Ha's ongoing investigation.

Shannon, in the filing, said she also flagged Detroit's inspector general about concerns involving Motor City Match and others tied to the Make Your Date.

On Tuesday, Shannon said Friedrichs and other city staff should welcome the review.

"If Ryan and his office haven't done anything wrong and they are of the highest integrity as they claim, then they should welcome this investigation and the result of the OIG investigation as well," she said.

Background on Detroit's grant team.

Detroit's grants team grows, pulls dollars into city

Motor City Match Public Relations Slush Fund

The city of Detroit has built its development and grants compliance muscle to a team of nearly two dozen people, a third of them raising new public and private support for city initiatives.

That's a record fundraising contingent for the city and among the largest dedicated municipal fundraising efforts nationally, said Detroit's Chief Development Officer Ryan Friedrichs.

The goal? Capitalizing on rising interest nationally in the city's comeback. And there's evidence it is succeeding in bringing in outside money rather than just the usual local philanthropic stalwarts in a city that in the past had trouble actually spending the dollars it did get.

Last year, programs and initiatives in Detroit attracted over $202 million in public grants and private investment, according to the city.

Grants and low-interest loans from private foundations and companies totaled $67.4 million, with more than two-thirds of that coming from out-of-state funders.

"The goals are now bigger and bolder," Friedrichs said.

The city is going to pursue funding from even more sources, foundations that have not been in Detroit before, to fund efforts like the $250 million Affordable Housing Leverage Fund.


Ryan Friedrichs: Began as a one-man fundraising team.
"We are lucky we have a lot of foundations here ... but we also have a lot of need," Friedrichs said.

"What we're trying to do is bring that new funding to the city and not just compete locally, to cut the local philanthropic pie more, but to try to grow it."

Because of the revitalization happening in the city, it's become a magnet for investment from outside of Detroit, said Jim Ferris, director of the Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy at the University of Southern California.

Detroit is not the only city pursuing public and private grants and investment, he said. But "Detroit has put a lot of effort into it, and it's been a success."

Detroit has a spotty history on coordinating grant-seeking.

Detroit had an office of the foundation liaison staffed by David Smydra, during Mayor Dennis Archer's 1994-2001 term, but that office didn't operate during the Dave Bing and Kwame Kilpatrick administrations. And city departments were applying for grants independently of one another in the years before the bankruptcy.

To help strengthen and coordinate its fundraising muscle, the Ford, Kresge and Skillman foundations made a $1.1 million grant to the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan in 2014 to support an assessment of what each city department was doing in regards to grants and to create a framework to coordinate it, Friedrichs said.

That led to the creation of grants management and development offices in late 2014 and early 2015. Both city offices were created as part of the city's bankruptcy plan, Friedrichs said. Grants management monitored grant compliance and spending, making sure dollars were spent on time, something the city struggled with before its bankruptcy.

Friedrichs came on board in 2015, serving as a one-man fundraising team for a time until the city began ramping up its development staff the following year.

This January the city merged the grants management and development offices to gain efficiencies from their related focus. The merged office now employs 20 and is in the process of hiring three more development employees: two to seek traditional funding from public and private funders and one specializing in loan and investment capital.

It will operate on a $3.1 million budget in the coming fiscal year, down from a combined budget of $3.8 million for the two offices this year, Friedrichs said, as a result of efficiencies such as shared administrative assistants, elimination of vacant grants management positions and collecting data for grant application and reporting one time and keeping it in a single system.

"We view the city's capacity to raise philanthropic grants and to fully expend and maximize federal dollars as a critical capability to enable Detroit's recovery," said Skillman CEO Tonya Allen.

"We are inspired by the growth in revenues materialized by this office, which we believe will improve living conditions for Detroit residents."

Increasing trust, confidence and credibility in the city "will help leverage additional and much-needed public, private and charitable investments to fuel Detroit's trajectory," she said.

Part of the strategy that Friedrichs' team has helped institute is keeping a reserve of city match money that can leverage private money, he said. It's also looking for opportunities where private investment can leverage federal dollars.

It's only been a couple of years, but the development and grant teams' efforts are paying off.

In 2017, the city and third-party groups like the Detroit Employment Service Corps attracted $202.18 million in public and private funds, up from $155.7 million the year before, Friedrichs said. The city operated on a $1.91 billion budget in 2017.

The total raised includes a mixture of grants and low-interest loans to support projects that are administered by community organizations.

They include: Grow Detroit's Young Talent program, which is run by the Detroit Employment Solutions Corp; Motor City Match and Motor City Re-Store, which are run by the Detroit Economic Growth Corp.; and the Entrepreneurs of Color Fund, run by the Detroit Development Fund.

"The goal of our team is not to just support more funds going into city coffers, but to help Detroit compete nationally for resources that improve the lives of Detroiters," Friedrichs said. "And that can mean partnering departments with community organizations via a memorandum of understanding."

Within the total, public support rose $18.1 million between 2016 and 2017. Private support from foundations and companies rose to $67.4 million last year from $39 million in 2016.

Funding from Michigan foundations and companies was fairly static last year, decreasing to $26.62 million from $26.78 million the year before.

Out-of-state funders provided over 60 percent of the total private support coming to the city last year, up from 31. 5 percent in 2016.

Looking forward
Investment is pouring into Detroit to support its rebound, but how will the city sustain those programs when grant and loan dollars run out?

"Philanthropy has really not pulled out of any programs we asked them to support. ... It's really the other direction. They've kind of come in with more support," Friedrichs said.

The city is budgeting to take on $2 million of the $10.2 million cost of Grow Detroit's Young Talent in the coming fiscal year.

The key to sustaining efforts supported through short- and midterm grants and investments is braided funding that combines federal grants and city funds, Friedrichs said.

"Grant funding from foundations is never going to be long-term."

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Cocktails & Popcorn: Duggan Is Sad & All Alone - Garcia Releases Deleted Emails - Nessel Is Investigating

Poor Mikey.

So sad and all alone now that Gilbert is in a special place right now.

This looks like the beginning of a tragedy.

I love tragedies, they make for such a passionate read.

Documents show Detroit officials mischaracterized fundraising for controversial nonprofit

Detroit officials repeatedly mischaracterized the true nature of city fundraising efforts on behalf of a nonprofit run by a woman with close ties to Mayor Mike Duggan, newly-released documents reveal.

Ever since an initial Free Press investigation revealed city fundraising and grant support for the Make Your Date nonprofit in April, administration officials have downplayed fundraising by the city, saying they were limited to only a few initial attempts before withdrawing and allowing others to take over the effort.

But documents originally requested by the newspaper months ago under a Freedom of Information Act request show staffers from the city development office were engaged in meetings and correspondence with potential donors as late as November 2018 — several years into the operation of the nonprofit.

Free Press investigation

The City of Detroit released 211 pages of deleted emails Friday. The emails were mysteriously deleted during the Free Press' investigation into the city's support for the Make Your Date program, during which city officials claimed that the city's fundraising efforts were brief.

When the Free Press questioned city officials last month about the deleted emails, the city's top lawyer announced that they would be recovered and released to the public. Who was behind deleting the emails remains unknown.

The Michigan Attorney General's office opened an investigation into the deleted emails in recent days, a spokeswoman confirmed on Friday. The office previously classified its look into the deleted emails as a "review." Destroying public records is a crime punishable by up to two years in prison.

"It has moved to investigation status and a criminal prosecutor has been assigned to the case," said spokeswoman Kelly Rossman-McKinney.

The recovered emails contradict previous claims from Duggan's office that the city devoted scant resources toward raising money for the Make Your Date program, a prenatal program run by Dr. Sonia Hassan, who Duggan was seen visiting after hours last summer at a suburban residence.

The emails show at least two city workers were integral in the fundraising. Hassan personally thanked one of them in June 2018.

"I wanted to drop you a line and thank you so much for all your efforts with us. You bring great knowledge and energy to the table for this process. It is greatly appreciated," Hassan wrote to Monique Phillips, a development officer for the city.

Phillips was central to the city's fundraising efforts, the emails show. At one point, she coached Make Your Date leaders on how to ask for money. Phillips suggested they emphasize Duggan's support for their program in a March 2018 email that sought funding from the Skillman Foundation.

Phillips declined comment.

Phillips identified potential donors for Make Your Date, attended donor meetings, submitted funding proposals and updated Make Your Date staff members on their progress, the emails show.

Phillips transferred her duties with Make Your Date to another city development officer, Claire Huttenlocher, in June 2018, the emails show.

A Make Your Date spreadsheet was attached to some of the emails. But the spreadsheet, along with other email attachments, was not included in the city's public release of the emails in a posting on the Detroit law department's website.

Beyond targeting specific donors, the emails show Make Your Date hoped to raise $2 million to serve up to 15,000 women and expand throughout the city and into schools and churches.

In a statement accompanying the recovered emails, Lawrence Garcia, the city's top government attorney, said he believes all the deleted emails have been recovered and any deleted emails discovered in the future will be added to the law department's posting.

"The emails come from dates in late 2017 and 2018. They are electronic correspondence belonging to two junior staff members of the Detroit Office of Development and Grants (ODG) concerning their work with Wayne State University (WSU) to identify charitable contributions for WSU's Make Your Date program — an effort that has helped thousands of pregnant women and babies," Garcia said in the statement. "Reducing infant mortality has been a long-standing priority for Detroit, and Make Your Date's mission aligns with the City's goal of helping expectant mothers."

The Detroit Office of the Inspector General also is investigating the circumstances surrounding the deleted emails and Garcia said he would not comment further until the investigation is complete.

The emails show the city's fundraising campaign involved several more potential donors to Make Your Date than Duggan's office previously specified to the Free Press during its investigation into the city's support for the program.

Duggan's office said in April that the city's fundraising effort for Make Your Date only involved "preliminary inquiries" and concept papers to the Skillman Foundation and the Children's Hospital of Michigan Foundation, and that zero dollars were actually raised. The mayor's office has repeatedly claimed that Make Your Date is a Wayne State University program.

"City staff briefly collaborated with the Wayne State philanthropy department to try to raise funds for the Wayne State program, but those efforts were unsuccessful and no funds were raised," Alexis Wiley, Duggan's chief of staff, wrote to the Free Press in an April 2 email. "At no time did anyone from the city participate in any fundraising effort for a Make Your Date nonprofit -- all efforts were a direct collaboration with the university staff for the university-run program."

But the emails released Friday show that the city was involved in courting donations from the Ford Foundation, Fiat Chrysler, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, The Kresge Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Sean Anderson Foundation, the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, March of Dimes, The Carl's Foundation and an organization listed as the "Fisher Foundation." And those communications cite a nonprofit organization, not a university program, as do other fundraising materials that note 501(c)(3) status of Make Your Date.

The Carl's Foundation gave Make Your Date a $51,285 grant in October 2018.

The Free Press submitted a Freedom of Information Act request for emails related to the city's work with Make Your Date in May. The city required $881 for the emails and the Free Press paid a deposit in June but has not yet received the records.

A former city official told the Free Press in July that two workers in the Detroit Office of Development and Grants, who conducted fundraising for Make Your Date, were instructed to delete their emails to conceal the extent of the city's support for the maternal health program.

Make Your Date investigation

Attorney General, experts confused about how nonprofit tied to Duggan operates

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan's wife Mary Loretto Maher files for divorce

Mayor Mike Duggan refuses to answer questions about relationship with doctor

Mayor Mike Duggan set her up to succeed. That raises questions.

She's in charge of investigating Duggan. What she said in secretly taped conversation.

Detroit mayor's support for prenatal program draws government investigation

Kennedy Shannon, the former assistant director of the Development and Grants Office, said in an interview that Phillips approached her in April to talk about the deleted emails, days after publication of the Free Press’ investigation into Make Your Date and Duggan’s ties to Hassan.

Shannon worked alongside the employees and described in written complaints to the Detroit Inspector General and the Attorney General’s office how her co-workers were told to delete their Make Your Date emails.

“I definitely think it’s a cover-up," Shannon told the Free Press in an interview. "And I think it’s an attempt to hide the fact that more city resources were spent ... than what the mayor said they were.”

The deleted emails were later recovered once administration officials reversed the order, Shannon said.

Both the Attorney General’s Office and Detroit’s Office of Inspector General previously launched inquiries into Make Your Date after the Free Pressrevealed that the city provided the program with $358,000 in federal grants and that Duggan ordered the fundraising campaign, which included the city's highest ranking development officer, back in 2017.

Attorney General Dana Nessel instructed her criminal division last month to look into the allegations of deleted emails after the issue was brought to her attention.

Nessel personally weighed in after her criminal division chief initially deferred the deleted email complaints to the Detroit Inspector General.

Shannon said it was an FOIA request earlier this year, around February, that preceded the order to delete emails.

Once details of Duggan’s relationship with Hassan and the city’s support for Make Your Date were published by the Free Press in April, Shannon said Phillips became upset about having followed orders months earlier to delete her emails.

Garcia said last month Mayor Duggan and Detroit Chief Financial Officer Dave Massaron learned in May about the possibility some emails related to Make Your Date had been deleted.

"CFO Massaron promptly took the lead in the effort to recover the emails. To the best of our knowledge, the deleted emails were successfully retrieved," Garcia said. "Approximately two months ago, the Office of Inspector General was informed of the circumstances and was provided the emails recovered."

It took several attempts by the Free Press to obtain emails during its initial April investigation because city officials said emails showing that Duggan had ordered fundraising efforts for Make Your Date had been "corrupted."

Messages from city officials to Hassan were not included in the city’s initial 395-page response to a Freedom of Information Act request, which had been reviewed by the law department.

Instead, the initial FOIA response included a single email between Wiley, Hassan and the city’s chief development official, Ryan Friedrichs, with a message body that read, “Attachment is corrupted.”

After the Free Press questioned the "corrupted" notation on the attachment, the city provided the emails about the fundraising campaign and explained that “clean copies” were eventually discovered during a “manual search.”

As the OIG began looking into Shannon’s claims about the deleted emails, the Free Press put in a public records request for emails related to Make Your Date that were sent and received by employees who were ordered to delete them.

The day after the FOIA request for those emails, Friedrichs called a meeting with those employees to discuss the prior directive to delete the messages, Shannon said.

At the meeting, Friedrichs apologized and said the emails would be recovered.

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Detroit Sues Top Slumlords, Except The Detroit Land Bank Authority

Hmmmm.......

If City of Detroit Corporate Counsel, Larry Garcia is suing the top three Detroit landlords for blight and health hazards; where the Detroit Land Bank Authority is the largest Detroit property owner; then, how come the Detroit Land Bank Authority is not named in this action?

Oh, wait, I know!

If Larry names the Detroit Land Bank Authority, as a party to the action, then, that would mean that the Detroit Land Bank Authority is not a part of the City of Detroit, meaning it is a private operation, and, as such, would have to provide its corporate parent disclosures and instruments of authority, of which was dissolved by Bill Schutte, some time back, in the State Court of Claims, when he has his legal lackey enter into the record that I was a public nuisance.

Uh, oh.

I, also, seem to recall that Carmack case, that is coming up relatively soon for trial, where no one wants to talk about the Detroit Land Bank Authority being in that chain of command of the deed to the property Larry is claiming was stolen from the City, when there has yet to be an explanation of how the Detroit Land Bank Authority acquired the property, in the first place, considering that it was never incorporated, despite Janice Winfrey taking it upon herself to declare incorporation, because she is almighty and stuff, because someone from JonesDay told her so.

But, then again, it could have been someone from Perkins Coie Sucks, or both.

Hey, what do I know?

I know if Larry is not going to go after the largest blight owner in the City of Detroit, that made itself a creditor in the Detroit Bankruptcy, by settling fake ass debts with properties that were fraudulently foreclosed upon, through fake taxes, where the Detroit Land Bank Authority has a history of levying fake ass taxes with their fake ass, made up powers of authority, because it never incorporated, and pilfered all the Hardest Hit Funds out the country into their own personal ventures through children's trust funds, to run back into the U.S. to fund political campaigns, because, if he did, he is going to have to do battle with Butch Hollowell and the lot.

If I had the energy, I would file to intervene, just because Larry is not going after the Detroit Land Bank Authority, but I will not, simply for the fact that I know how this is going to end.

#maytheheavensfall

Detroit sues landlords for blight and health hazards

DETROIT (FOX 2) - The city of Detroit is suing three notorious landlords for neglect, blight and health hazards.

Detroit says the property owners might have 1,000 properties combined all across the city.

City of Detroit goes after slum lords with lawsuits
The city of Detroit is suing three notorious landlords for neglect, blight and health hazards

FOX 2 went to look at three properties on the list filed in Wayne County Circuit Court against Steve and Stephen Hagerman a father and son team, Salameh Jaser and Michael Kelly.

They have earned a title from the city we're sure they don't want - some of the city's most notorious speculators and slumlords.

FOX 2 tried to track them down, stopping at Michael Kelly's office Friday. So far we haven't been able to reach them for comment.

The city says it took legal action because according to them, these folks buy up a bunch of properties and rent them out - even though they were never brought up to code.

They are dilapidated homes that often have serious and terrible health and safety risks like peeling lead paint. The city says the folks above have piles of tickets for not following the rules, and this is a new approach.

"This is a new tactic to attack a business model that is particularly pernicious," said Lawrence Garcia, Detroit city attorney.

Pernicious because they invest and neglect - but in some cases the properties are vacant.

"The notion of a public nuisance, the notion that these properties present an unreasonable danger to the public grossly - I think that is an idea whose time has come."

In the lawsuits the city asks the court to declare the business model a public nuisance and make owners keep their properties up, stopping them from buying more properties until they get their act together.


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Cocktails & Popcorn: The MIED LARP Of Bob Carmack & Mike Duggan

Detroit is supposed to be mine!

On this exciting adventure of Cocktails & Popcorn, we have Robert Carmack, who was previously wearing a FBI wire that led us to a property he sold he got from City Council, where he reneged on the acquisition where he filed a lis pendens, but never followed through with the quiet title, filing the certificate of judgment, and the quit claim deed.

My question is the original transaction.

How did the city acquire the property in the first place?

Was it a tax foreclosure, donation, abandonment, and was the Detroit Land Bank Authority, Detroit Economic Development Corporation, Michigan State Housing Development Authority, involved, in some shape or form?

Oh, wait.

The Detroit Land Bank Authority is a named defendant in his federal lawsuit, separate and distinct, I guess, from the bribery case of Gabe Leland, where he was working with FBI wearing a wire tap. (emphasis added).

Ssshhh.... this is how you know we are dealing with "Legal Geniuses" (trademark pending) because the Larry Garcia is currently defending the City in another action in federal court with the Detroit Land Bank Authority as a defendant in a False Claims Act case for stealin'. 

I have provided, below, the federal complaint of Carmack v. Detroit Land Bank Authority, et al.

FUN FACT! WAYNE COUNTY HAS NO LAW MANDATING THE REGISTRATION OF ANY REAL PROPERTY TRANSACTION

Lis pendens has a 60 day life cycle but the Michigan Licensing And Regulatory Affairs Corporation Division seems to have their own thing going on over there.

LIS PENDENS 2015284232	Rec Date: 07/01/2015 L: 52323 P: 887, ... Grantor: B&C LAND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION PLTF Grantee: CITY OF DETROIT DEFT Muni: DETROIT, ... Address: 5851 W JEFFERSON, ... Tax ID: 16/000006.002, ... Sur Unit: PRIVATE CLAIM Sur#: 39, ...
LIEN 2013205933	Rec Date: 04/01/2013 L: 50659 P: 355, ... Grantor: TRASK MARK PLTF Grantee: CARMACK ROBERT DEFT, B&C LAND DEVELOPMENT CORP DEFT, KOCH TODD DEFT Muni: DETROIT Address: 615 S WEST END Tax ID: 18/009575-81 Subd: PLAT OF SUB OF P C 718 FOR THE HEIRS OF LEONARD LENNOX Liber: 68DD Page: 111 Lot: 9
LIEN 2013426974	Rec Date: 10/04/2013 L: 51096 P: 1240, ... Grantor: TRASK MARK Grantee: CARMACK ROBERT, B&C LAND DEVELOPMENT CORP , KOCH TODD Muni: DETROIT, ... Address: 7751 MELVILLE, ... Tax ID: 18/000269, ... Subd: MCMILLANS 13/55 Liber: 13 Page: 55 Lot: 130, ...

https://www.waynecountylandrecords.com/recorder/eagleweb/docSearchResults.jsp?searchId=0

This is just about as far as I am going with this since there seems to be missing documents in the chain of command with the complete property record because Carmack

I pulled the City Council record (p 1618)

Planning & Development Department
June 15, 2007
Honorable City Council:
Re: Amendment to Sales Resolution.
Development: 7751 Melville.
On April 27, 2007, your Honorable
Body authorized the sale of the abovecaptioned
property via a Development
Agreement to B&C Land Development, a
Michigan Corporation, for the purpose of
constructing a 160,000 square foot modular
housing/manufacturing facility with
parking.
It has come to our attention that the
name of the legal entity and the sales resolution
were issued in error. Accordingly,
the sale to B&C Land Development, a
Michigan Corporation should be amended
to show B & C Land Development
Corporation, a Michigan Corporation. This
developer possesses the qualifications
and has indicated potential financial
resources necessary to acquire and
develop the site.
We, therefore request that your
Honorable Body adopt the attached resolution
and authorize an amendment to the
sales resolution to reflect a name change
and that the Planning & Development
Department’s Director, or his authorized
designee, be authorized to issue a quit
claim deed to the property and such other
documents as may be necessary to effect
the sale, for the amount of $250,000.
A Waiver of Reconsideration is
Requested.
Respectfully submitted,
DOUGLASS J. DIGGS
Director
By Council Member Collins:
Resolved, That in accordance with the
foregoing communication, the authority to
execute an agreement to purchase and
develop the property known as 7751
Melville to B&C Land Development, a
Michigan Corporation;
Be amended to reflect a name change
from B&C Land Development, a Michigan
Corporation to B & C Land Development
Corporation, a Michigan Corporation and
that the Planning and Development
Department’s Director, or his authorized
designee, be authorized to issue a quit
claim deed for the property more particularly
described in the attached Exhibit A,
with a Waiver of Reconsideration, and
such other documents as may be necessary
to effect the sale to B & C Land
Development Corporation, a Michigan
Corporation, for the amount of $250,000.
Exhibit A
Land in the City of Detroit, County of
Wayne and State of Michigan being part
of Private Claim 67 lying South of Melville,
West of Crossley and East of Wabash
Railroad on the North-South Line of
Vacated Gould Street extended, being all
of Lots 130 thru 137 all inclusive and Lots
149 thru 152 all inclusive and Vacated
Anderson Avenue and the alleys adjacent;
“McMillan’s Subdivision” of part of
P. C. 67 known as the Field Farm lying
North of River St., Springwells, Wayne
Co., Mich. Rec’d L. 13, P. 55 Plats, W.C.R.
Containing approximately 463,493 square
feet more or less.
Adopted as follows:
Yeas — Council Members S. Cockrel,
Collins, Conyers, Jones, Kenyatta,
Reeves, Tinsley-Talabi, Watson, and
President K. Cockrel, Jr. — 9.
Nays — None.
*WAIVER OF RECONSIDERATION
(No. 7), per Motions before Adjournment.

Who was he supposed to write the check out to, considering the fact that the Detroit Land Bank Authority never incorporated?

So, anyway, instead of utilizing social media, Carmack rents out a driveable billboard like a big screen youtube show and gets slammed with libel and slander of a public official, exactly what is going on with another public official no one wants to talk about.

Mike Duggan deserves due process and so does Carmack for exercising his right to free speech.

Then, that led us to Gabe Leland and campaign money extortion; which led us to Elisa Grubbs, and her rogue ass crew, but I am going to stop here.

I want to watch them all awaken to the finally comprehend this historic lesson in morality:

Do not be mean to my Sweetie. Period.

Robert Carmack arraigned on felonies tied to sale of $1M city property

Detroit — A businessman locked in a legal battle with the city was arraigned Thursday on four felony charges connected to the alleged theft of a $1 million property from the city of Detroit.

Robert Carmack, 59, of Woodhaven, appeared via video before 36th District Court Magistrate Bari Blake Wood on charges of false pretenses with intent to defraud $100,000 or more, and three counts of uttering and publishing a document affecting real property tied to a decade-old land deal. The charges were filed on Tuesday. 

The false pretenses charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison, according to state statute. Uttering and publishing carries a penalty of up to 14 years.

Carmack's attorney, Mike Rataj, argued Thursday that the charges against his client — who has been locked in a legal battle with Detroit and a public feud with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan — are retaliatory. 

Rataj turned over Carmack's passport to prosecutors during the hearing, noting that Carmack has three minor children, a business in the city and no plans to go anywhere.

"Mr. Carmack has been in the news. He has obviously been at war, so to speak, with the mayor of Detroit," Rataj said. "He intends to vigorously defend these charges, which I deem as retaliatory."

The charges stem from the March 2, 2016, sale of property that's also the subject of a civil lawsuit filed by Detroit in June alleging the land was "fraudulently sold" by the auto shop owner.

"If you review the public record over the last couple of weeks there's a theme that's been developed in this town. That is, if you push back or you challenge this administration one of two things happen; you either end up charged with a crime or you are under criminal investigation," Rataj, who is also representing the city's fire union head in a criminal investigation being pursued by the Detroit Police Department, told reporters. "That's what's going on here. It's almost like you've got mob bosses running this town."

Detroit Corporation Counsel Lawrence Garcia noted Thursday that the case was sent to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office a year ago.

Later, Wayne County asked the state Attorney General to appoint another agency due to a conflict of interest. It was then referred to the Genesee County Prosecutor's Office.

“We have full confidence in the professional ability of the Genesee County Prosecutor’s office to handle this matter appropriately," Garcia said in an emailed statement.

In court Thursday, Genesee County Assistant Prosecutor Patrick McComb also denied the assertion of retaliation, saying that the felony claims against Carmack were "independently reviewed" by Genesee County.

"The Genesee County Prosecutor felt charges were in order and we can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt," he said. "Our belief is that he did a million-dollar deal on a piece of real estate that he never had title to."

Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said he determined just over a week ago that there was probable cause and a warrant should be issued.

"Even though we're both elected officials, I don't even know Mike Duggan," Leyton said. 

Bond was set at $50,000, 10 percent. Carmack is due back in court on Dec. 28 for a probable cause conference. A preliminary examination is Jan. 4.

In its June lawsuit, the city alleges Carmack had filed a property transfer affidavit with the Detroit assessor's office making a company he owns — B & C Land Development Corp. — the property's taxpayer ahead of a sale to another firm, Moby Dick Ventures LLC.

On March 2, 2016, the city contends, Carmack sold the 10-acre property on Melville for $1 million. 

Leyton said that the city uncovered the sale while researching Moby Dick Ventures, an out-of-state investor that wanted to purchase other land in Detroit.

Rataj said Carmack acquired the property from Detroit and that there are details that Genesee County isn't aware of. 

"There's a time and a place for that to come out," he said. 

On April 27, 2007, Detroit's City Council approved the land sale for $250,000, but Carmack failed to complete it. payment and sign the documents. As a result, the land has been in city ownership ever since, officials with the city have said.

The city contends Carmack in 2016 took the old draft documents from 2007 and used them to fraudulently represent that he owned the property before selling it to the investor.

Carmack made headlines in November after airing private investigator footage of the mayor's comings and goings on a billboard truck outside City Hall. The footage, obtained by a private investigator hired by Carmack, showed the mayor visiting a condominium in Novi and separately showed a woman arriving there on other occasions.

Late last month, Duggan convened a news conference to announce he'd asked the Michigan State Police to open an investigation into Carmack's actions — allegedly in retaliation for the city's refusal to drop its property lawsuit against him — have amounted to extortion.

State police on Thursday said that it does not have an active investigation

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