Ok here it is............

[Angela]

First let me begin by stating that I was wrong about the MDOC inmates (I/M) in N1 - they are state prisoners who have been sentenced to PRISON time, not waiting to go to TRV.  These I/M are there for felony possession of firearms and they WILL serve their 2 yr. sentence at mason county jail, before they are sent back to prison and then they will be released from prison.  Gov. Snyder signed a bill stating that I/M like this could be housed in county jails instead of the prison to save the SOM (state of MI) $$$.  There are currently 7 counties that take part in this program and funding lasts until Oct 1st of this year but it is in works to be renewed.

 

With that said, let me begin by stating I am a prior employee of the jail from 2003-2007, I know people who work there and who have been housed there.  I trusted the C/O's there with my life so I believe EVERYTHING they are telling me and the I/M I have known since grade school and have no reason not to believe them.

Sheriff Fiers posted something on FB and at the forum last nite stating that it is the Sgts problem that moral is so low and he posted the Sgts. role & policy/procedure on Facebook.  First and foremost it is the Sheriff's responsibility to make sure the jail is running the way is supposed to - its LAW of the office of Sheriff, he doesn't have to staff the road (remember when Stewart threatened to pull off road officers off?)  and he also talked about chain of command, etc....

Having worked there for 4 yrs I know how that goes.  He stated that the Sgts are to report all repairs that need to be taken care of - which they do, I know they do - BUT the thing is, once they report it, then it is up to THEIR supervisor (the chief deputy & the sheriff) to ok these repairs.  The Sgts don't have access to the funds to do this; it is the ADMINISTRATORS to do this!!!

Fiers also stated that the are there to ensure policy and procedures are followed.  Well then tell me how the hell can Sgts make sure these are followed when the Sheriff, CD Trenner and CD Brown decide to violate or override these policies & procedures to make a select few inmates happy?? Here's the story:  N1 state prisoners were not happy to be here, so they began doing what state inmates do, acting like a**holes (I know cuz I worked the state also) calling the C/O's every name in the book, threatening them, disobeying orders, refusing to comply with safety issues etc..... Th inmates wanted to be able to wear what they wanted, have whatever hygiene items they wanted, have longer visits, not have to clean their cell, basically wanted to do what they wanted to do while in this jail.  If they didn't get this, they threatened to riot.  So what did your wonderful Sheriff and his posse of chief deputies do?  They went in & talked with the inmates to see what the county could do to make them happy!!! And guess what?  The sheriff & his posse gave the inmates (only the state inmates) what they wanted.  The county inmates still have to follow all the rules/policies/procedures that have been set forth for years, but not the state inmates.......  That right there is a MAJOR safety issue for the officers and this lets the inmates know that the officers working how no control or no say in what the inmates can and cannot do.  These inmates have longer visits then county inmates and are allowed contraband in the cell that they make into weapons.  Mind you, when the county signed the agreement with MDOC, it is stated that the state prisoners WILL FOLLOW all rules and regulation already set forth in the jail, they will not get special treatment.  Well sounds like they are.  Also, to have CD Trenner give back their TV (which is a privilege) when it was taken away by officer for misconduct......that right there is stabbing that officer in the back -- THAT WOULD NEVER happen at the state level - if a C/O takes away a privilege from an inmate a supervisor won't give it back until the discipline time is served - it's called LOP - loss of privileges.

And speaking of these inmates, the C/O's were never informed that this was going to happen (housing this inmates for this time frame) until ONE DAY before the inmates were coming.  It gave them NO time to prepare.........and the funny thing is that Sheriff Fiers waited until the corrections staff signed their new contract BEFORE he told them. 

The corrections Sgts haven’t had a meeting in months, and Fiers rarely goes back there to see the staff (sounds just like Laude).

This type of stuff is what really brings moral down.  Now having your own supervisor back you up?  WTF is that?? In the corrections system that is just messed up & DANGEROUS!!

Also about the $12 booking fee, why don't you FOIA where that $$ has gone or goes?  It is supposed to roll over from year to year yet when the books are done at the beginning of each year, they $$ that was there from the prior year has disappeared and the balance goes back to $0 -- contact DSMA Rotta

And another thing with training, the C/O's and the road patrol are trained to use the tazer (well if they want to be able to carry it they have to be trained)  In order for Tazer International to back up the employee or the county (if there was ever a law suit over the use of the tazer) The employees need to be recertified EVERY YEAR.  Well seems as though this didn't happen - AND guess what? the county AND LPD are now involved in a lawsuit that is in a court down in GR because of this.  Fiers knows that in order to be protected by Tazer International IF a lawsuit were to come about, that ALL carriers of the tazer need re-cert every year.  I wonder how much this mistake of Fiers is going to cost the COUNT???  Ya'll didn't know about this lawsuit did ya???? LOVE how the hide things from the little people

Oh ya, these state inmates, well they get visitors every weekend.  And guess who is moving into our wonderful little town?  Yep their families ... they love is so much here they want to live here now and be closer to their family member......just what we need in our town.

 

The C/Os in the jail to a hell of alot more than what you people think they do.  They do 10x as mush work as state C/O's. They don't just sit on their butts......they are responsible to check every single inmate every 30 minutes.  They book in every inmates, fingerprint every inmate, search cells on a daily basis, enter warrants and PPO's information to be entered into LEIN, they take care of inmate accounts, monitor phone calls and visits.  Pass out Medications 4x a day (when did C/O's become nurses?) hand out meal trays and pick up meal trays, make sure every spoon/spork is accounted for....and this is just the beginning.  So to call them a turnkey is disrespectful

That’s all I have to say for now, if you want more answers then I am MORE than willing to meet you and discuss this like adults but I am done going back and forth on here about this issue.

Vote for the guy who cares about his PEOPLE, not about money.. its obvious that Fiers is not this person, if he was why would he laugh in the face a psychotic inmate and then turn and walk away and let the C/O's deal with it.  He doesn't care about his corrections officers. Oh and BTW the $$ for the vests was in the budget BEFORE Jeff came into office, when he took over for Laude all he had to do was have them replaced because it was time, and yet they never were until recently

[Angela]

i dont know who is not abiding. could be the sheriff, the DSMA i believe all the money gets sent to them then they send back the portion to the county

[XLFD]

Angela,

Can you give me some more specs on the Tazer lawsuit?  This is the first I heard of it.  Who, what, when where why, and how.  A court case number would be great.

Also, it is unlikely I could get a FOIA response back before the election if I were to send one now.  It's never too late for a deputy to whistleblow at any time when something doesn't add up, so why don't they do so if they are so sure the one-time $12 fee is lost in the ether.  Why hasn't Cole brought it up himself, heaven knows he's brought a lot more trivial things up?  That indicates irresponsibility at the least. 

[Angela]

sorry I cannot give anymore info on the lawsuit all I know is it is being heard at a court in Grand Rapids and it is aganist the county and LPD, thats all the info I was given..........I known its not to late to whistleblow but more than likely they will fire you before you get a chance to whistleblow - believe me I know!!!

[XLFD]

If they fire you due to whistleblowing, they are in a spot more trouble legally than if they just make your working environment unbearable, forcing you to resign, believe me I know!!!

If anyone knows any more about this lawsuit, please send me a message; there were two taserings reported in early 2009 in Ludington by LPD one involving a guy in a car.  But the COLDNews hasn't reported any since-- not to imply that they're still not happening, but they are too timid to report them.

 

[Angela]

believe me i know all too well about this also - one reason I am not there anymore - when someone is so close to retirement I think they just deal with it and hope they survive until then