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Prosecutor: Drug-related cases decline

ESCANABA — According to Delta County Prosecuting Attorney Philip Strom, drug-related cases appear to be declining in Delta County. That fact was part of a presentation on the prosecutor’s office Strom gave to the Delta County Board of Commissioners at its regular meeting Tuesday.

Strom showed commissioners statistics related to the cases the county’s courts dealt with in 2014, 2015, and 2016. Misdemeanor cases reported in the county fell from 832 in 2015 to 816 in 2016, while felony case reports grew from 328 in 2015 to 399 in 2016.

“Our felony case load continues to increase,” Strom said.

To help commissioners better understand the current state of the county’s courts, Strom also presented statistics regarding the cases handled from Jan. 1 to July 31 in 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. Over this period of time, misdemeanor case reports fell from a peak of 501 during the first seven months of 2016 to 367 cases so far in 2017. Felony case reports also fell from a peak of 252 during the first seven months of 2016 to 193 cases so far in 2017.

Drug-related cases also appear to be declining in the county this year, Strom said. In 2015, his office dealt with 281 drug-related case reports; in 2016, they dealt with 269 of these case reports. So far, 99 drug-related cases have been reported in 2017, and Strom projected that this total could be as low as 160 cases by the end of the year.

The introduction of the Delta County Drug Court a year ago may have had a positive effect on these numbers, Strom said. Other potential influences he cited included growing community awareness and the introduction of the Angel Program.

“I don’t want to lean too heavily on one specific factor that might be driving these numbers, but it’s certainly worth noting,” he said.

Later in the presentation, Strom gave county commissioners a breakdown of the county’s trials so far this year. Since Jan. 1, verdicts have been given on 11 criminal trials and seven abuse/neglect cases at the Delta County Courthouse. Of these, 16 have had what Strom described as a “positive outcome” (a guilty verdict or a jurisdiction) and two ended with an acquittal.

Strom’s presentation also included a look at upcoming trials, considerations for 2017 and 2018, and upcoming legislative issues in Michigan. These issues include efforts to increase the age at which individuals are criminally responsible as adults from 17 to 18, efforts to make pseudoephedrine (which can be used in the manufacture of meth) prescription-only, a requirement that municipal governments decide whether or not they will issue licenses for the commercial production and sale of medical marijuana before the end of the year, and the recent recommendation by the Michigan State Court Administrative Office that Delta County not lose a judgeship.

In other business, the board:

-observed a moment of silence in honor of former Delta County Board of Commissioners Chair Thomas Elegeert, who died last week.

“He was an extremely dedicated servant to this county,” Chair David Rivard said.

-opened bids from The Office Planning Group, Inc. of Iron Mountain, Image Makers, Inc. of Marquette, and Cooper Office Equipment of Escanaba for a new copier at the Delta County Courthouse. These bids will be reviewed, and a recommendation will be presented to the board during their next meeting.

-authorized the City of Escanaba to release a joint request for proposal related to the property currently occupied by the Delta County Correctional Facility.

-ratified a written agreement to accept the DNR Trust Fund Grant for the county’s purchase of 1,400 acres of land in Cornell Township from forest products company Weyerhaeuser. This land will be used as a community forest.

-authorized a user fee schedule for digital access to the county’s GIS data.

-accepted the resignation of former Chief Deputy Clerk Hope Rudden, as well as a lump sum payout request. They also authorized a request to fill the position of Chief Deputy Clerk.

-assigned Commissioner Theresa Nelson to work with Delta County’s townships on an emergency signage project.

-approved out-of-county travel for commissioners attending the 2017 National Association of Counties Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C. and the Michigan Association of Counties Annual Conference on Mackinac Island.

-appointed Ronald Robinson to the Central Dispatch Authority and Nelson to the CAA/HRA Committee on Aging.

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