No. 41
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
October 8 – 14, 2015
w w w . a s s o c i a t e d n e w s p a p e r s . n e t
Once again, there will be
music, food, beer, canoe
races, a rubber duck race
and educational displays
during Rouge-a-Palooza this
Saturday, Oct. 10 at Goudy
Park.
See page 5.
The Northville Township
FireDepartment will host an
open house from 10 a.m.
until 2 p.m. this Saturday,
Oct. 10 in celebration of
national Fire Prevention
Week.
See page 6.
The City of Belleville has
become the City of Booville
for the month of October
with multiple activities
throughout the downtown
area to celebrate the season.
See page 2.
Vol. 130, No. 41
Vol. 68, No. 41
Vol. 68, No. 41
Vol. 15, No. 41
The Romulus Library will
see some improvements dur-
ing the next year, according
to Library Director Patty
Braden including many new
conveniences for users.
See page 5.
Vol. 130, No. 41
Vol. 68, No. 41
Vol. 68, No. 41
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
Members of a new group
to helppromote education at
John Glenn High School will
offer 400 students a financial
reward to reach or exceed
goals they set with school
mentors.
See page 4.
Canton Police collected
more than 86 pounds of
unused prescription medica-
tion last week during nation-
al DrugTake-BackDay.
See page 2.
Vol. 15, No. 24
The Adopt-A-Child Size
Committee of Inkster, inpart-
nership with the St.
Clements Episcopal Church,
will present a concert pro-
vide warm outerwear for
children.
See page 4.
The long-awaited results of
the Department of Justice (DOJ)
audit of the drug forfeiture
accounts in Plymouth Township
were released last week by
Inspector General Michael E.
Horowitz.
The formal investigation, ini-
tially referred to by township
officials as “training” when fed-
eral auditors arrived from
Chicago in August 2014, found
several violations of federal
guidelines, many of which cen-
tered on Township Treasurer
Ron Edwards establishing at
least one bank account under his
control for the funds and his fail-
ure to provide records and
receipts to Police Chief Tom
Tiderington, both violations of
federal guidelines.
While township officials ini-
tially denied the audit was tak-
ing place, they later claimed
they had “requested” the foren-
sic examination of federal funds
received as a result of drug for-
feitures.
Plymouth Township received
nearly $2 million as a share of
funds from forfeited assets
derived from illegal activities. As
provided by federal law, those
assets can only be used for the
support of law enforcement
activities and require strict
reporting and accounting proce-
dures. The funds, by those guide-
lines, must be administered and
managed by the chief of police in
themunicipality.
The auditing team said in the
report that the treasurer's unau-
thorized and irregular control of
the funding was a violation of
federal procedures. They also
questioned Edwards' failure to
reimburse the bank account he
had inappropriately established
and controlled. In one instance,
auditors said, more than $94,000
was not in the account for more
than 2 years and 3 months.
Those funds were identified as a
“rebate” on the purchase of four
police vehicles from a manufac-
turer. Edwards said he deposit-
ed the funds in the state drug
forfeiture account rather than
the account for federal forfeiture
funds and adjusted the accounts
when the error was discovered.
He did not transfer the total
amount but claimed that about
$13,000 in the federal account
should have been in the state
account so he transferred only
the amount necessary to correct
the balances. The auditors
called those actions a violation
of standard accounting proce-
dures. The auditors also ques-
tioned the use of about $25,000 of
the funds, but township officials,
in a written response to the
audit, said that they would
appeal this finding as they felt
the expenses fell within the spe-
cific spending guidelines for the
federal funds.
Auditors found no missing or
unaccounted for drug forfeiture-
funds, according to the report.
Tiderington failed to sign a
required quarterly report sub-
mitted more than three months
late regarding the use of the
funds. He told auditors that he
was not allowed to receive
copies of the bank statements
associated with the DOJ equi-
table sharing program, and
therefore, he could not ensure
that the equitable sharing funds
were being appropriately han-
A 26-year-old man has been
arraigned on a charge of first
degreemurder in the death of a
Wayne resident last week.
Jesse Wayne Gunderson
faces themurder charge in con-
nection with the Sept. 26 homi-
cide of Danny Louis Dart, 58, of
Wayne.
According to police,
Gunderson was in the back
yard of Dart's home in the 4500
block of Chamberlain when it is
alleged he fatally struck Dart in
the head with an ax.
Gunderson is reportedly the
step-grandson of the victim and
arrived at the Wayne home of
his grandmother and her hus-
band about five weeks ago.
Gunderson reportedly flew to
Wayne fromFresno, CA without
any notice to his family. Dart
and his wife took him in and he
lived in their home on the 4500
block of Chamberlain since his
arrival inMichigan.
Prosecutors allege that at
about 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26,
Gunderson went into the back
yard of the home and picked up
an ax that Dart used for chop-
ping firewood. When Dart
stepped outside the home into
the yard, prosecutors charge
that Gunderson struck him on
the head with the ax, killing
him instantly.
Familymembers told investi-
gators that Dart, a retired Ford
Motor Co. employee, routinely
took Gunderson with him on
odd jobs or to see friends and
that the two had recently
attended a Tiger's game togeth-
er. No motive has been alleged
in the death of the long-time
Wayne resident.
Following his arraignment in
29th District Court on Sept. 29,
Gunderson was remanded to
jail where he remains in cus-
tody. A not-guilty plea was
entered on his behalf with the
court. He is scheduled for a pre-
liminary examination on the
charge Oct. 13 in the Wayne
court.
If convicted, he faces life in
prison.
Two goals were accomplished
when the Wayne County
Commission voted 15-0 Oct. 1 to
approve a two-year intergovern-
mental agreement with
Northville Township. It will now
be easier for bicyclists, runners
and walkers to travel between I-
275 andMaybury StatePark, and
water quality will improve in
Johnson Creek and the spring-
fedpond at FishHatcheryPark.
The county will spend
$194,125 of Parks Millage money
to complete a non-motorized
path that will access a new entry
to Maybury State Park, and pave
a parking lot at Fish Hatchery
Park that will eliminate sedi-
ment from entering a spring-fed
pond that feeds Johnson Creek,
believed to be the only trout
stream in southeastern
Michigan.
“These are win-win projects,”
said Commissioner Terry
Marecki, a Livonia Republican
whose 9th District covers
Northville Township, Northville
and most of her hometown.
“Maybury is such a jewel for not
only the Northville area, but the
entire region. This will make it
easier to reach the park. And,
paving the lot will improve
water quality in the pond and
creek, which will impact the
environment beyond the park.”
That's because Johnson
Creek is a tributary of the
Middle Rouge River, which
eventually merges with two
other branches to form the
Rouge River, which empties into
theDetroit River.
The 17-acre Fish Hatchery
Park is along the south side of
Seven Mile Road, about a half-
mile east of BeckRoad.
The non-motorized path will
be completed along the south
side of Eight Mile Road from
BeckRoadwest about 200 feet to
a new entrance at Maybury. It
will complete the final segment
of pathway between Maybury
and I-275, from Six Mile Road to
Hines Drive through the City of
Northville to the 944-acre state
park.
The auditors called those
actions a violation of
standard accounting procedures.
”
Federal audit faults township treasurer
Storytellers to present tales of terror, ghosts, goblins and ghouls
Just in time for the Halloween season,
Judge Ronald Lowe and Dr. Debra
Christian will present terrifying tales of
ghosts, goblins and all things spooky from
6-7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24.
The featured storytellers will spin their
yarns at the Cady-Boyer Barn, located in
Preservation Park at 500 North Ridge
Road in Canton Township. The two will
take audiences of those 8 and older on an
adventure with tales of fright, twists and
turns, and things that go bump in the night.
An evening of spine-tingling tales awaits
those brave enough to attend and endure
as fright levels intensify in each story as
the night progresses. Cider and donuts are
included with the ticket and will be avail-
ablewhile supplies last.
Lowe, also known as The Spellbinder,
has been telling scary stories his entire life.
He comes by it honestly as his father, moth-
er, aunts and many other family members
were storytellers. Lowe became a profes-
sional storyteller more than 25 years ago
when he told his first story publicly at The
Stone Circle in Elk Rapids. In his profes-
sion as an attorney, Lowe often incorporat-
ed storytelling in his trial work. At the 35th
District Court, Lowe often uses it in the
corporate environment to teach from the
bench and in his administrative capacity.
In his early years, Lowe's mentor and part-
ner was Christian who helped him begin
and growas a professional storyteller.
Lowe will once again team with
Christian as the two present hair-raising
tales during the Ghost Stories event.
Award-winning storyteller Christian will
serve up tales from long ago and her trav-
els on six continents. She has performed
at the National Storytelling Festival,
WDET National Public Radio, Greenfield
Village, the Michigan State Fair and the
Detroit Institute of Arts. Christian is a
speech-language pathologist andhas enter-
tained thousands of families, school chil-
dren, executives, and regional festivals
with her stories and oral tradition. Anative
of Plymouth, she continues to keep this
oral tradition alive throughout the
Midwest.
Tickets are $4 per individual and can be
purchased at the Summit on the Park, the
White Pole Barn at the Canton Farmers
Market every Sunday, and at the door. All
proceeds benefit the Canton Historical
Society.
Children must be accompanied by an
adult and parents are responsible for the
direct supervision of their children during
this special event. For additional informa-
tion, please visit
ety.org.
See
Audit,
page 3
Step-grandson, 26, facing murder charge
County OK’s projects for Northville parks
State Rep. Kurt Heise,
speaking before a meeting of
the Plymouth Concerned
Citizens
last
week
announced his plans to seek
the office of Plymouth
TownshipSupervisor.
See page 3.
