Thursday, August 2, 2001

08022001 - Police Chief Douglas Wright - Charged W/DV - Benton Harbor PD



Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright, charged with domestic violence.



Ex-chief to get $30,000 payment
Posted: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 12:00 am
Updated: 6:10 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011.
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/ex-chief-to-get-payment/article_6292a1c0-a0b4-585a-a00b-b18c2b715481.html

BENTON HARBOR -- City commissioners on Monday night approved a $30,000 settlement for former police Chief Douglas Wright.

The amount corresponds to the 3-month severance package the city pays fired department heads.

Wright was fired in November 2001, two days after he was charged with trying to obstruct a police investigation into domestic violence.

He allegedly beat and tried to choke his wife in their home on Aug. 2, 2001. The case was dropped in April 2002 after Wright's wife, Lucy, refused to testify.

In November 2002, Wright sued the city for wrongful discharge. He sought nearly four years of back pay.

His contract with the city was to run through June 30, 2005.

But the contract, which Wright himself had written, specified conditions under which he could be fired without paying off the remainder of the contract term. One of those was being charged with a crime.

Wright's lawyer, James Waters, wrote in his lawsuit that the contract provision was void because that language was a clear violation of state and federal policy.

Waters, a former city attorney, and the city's current attorney, Charlette Pugh Tall, have been negotiating the suit since fall.

A settlement conference was scheduled for last week before Judge Scott Schoefield in Berrien Trial Court. Had negotiations failed, the case was to go to trial Dec. 30.

Tall asked for a closed meeting Monday night to discuss it with commissioners.

After the closed session, which Commissioner Joan Brown did not attend, all the commissioners approved the settlement.

Mayor Charles Yarbrough said he cast his vote with reservations. Commissioner Ricky Hill said he was voting reluctantly.

Commissioners Steven McCoy and Ralph Crenshaw said they were not completely happy with the settlement, but voted for it as a cost-effective means of dealing with the lawsuit.

They have another suit to deal with soon. Former city manager Joel Patterson in October filed a wrongful discharge claim under the Whistleblower's Act.











Former Benton Harbor police chief sues city for firing
Posted: Tuesday, December 31, 2002 12:00 am
Updated: 5:44 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/former-benton-harbor-police-chief-sues-city-for-firing/article_9ef65b5e-be0e-5c7b-9c91-36e8ad78fd1c.html

ST. JOSEPH -- Former Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright has sued the city claiming he was wrongfully fired in November 2001.

City Manager Joel Patterson fired Wright two days after he was charged with trying to obstruct a police investigation into whether he had assaulted his wife on Aug. 2, 2001, at the couple's home.

Charges against Wright were dropped in April. Berrien County Prosecutor James Cherry said the obstruction charge would be too difficult to prove, and Wright's wife, Lucy, refused to testify on the domestic violence charge.

But under the five-year contract Wright had written himself, even being charged with a crime was grounds for firing without pay.

In the lawsuit, Wright's lawyer, James Water of Muskegon Heights, said the contract language "is a clear violation of state and federal public policy and is void."

Water also claimed the firing was a violation of the city charter, city codes and denial of due process. He also wrote that Patterson had a personal vendetta against his client over a motor vehicle accident claim.

Wright was hired in June 2000 by then-city manager Ron Singleton. He was chosen from a field of more than two dozen applicants. His contract ran through June 30, 2005.

The suit asks for back pay and fringe benefits, reinstatement as police chief or pay for the unexpired years of Wright's 5-year contract, and compensation for pain, mental stress and emotional anguish. It also asks for compensation for damages to Wright's reputation and for impeding him from finding another job by knowingly making false and defamatory statements after his firing. Finally, it seeks payment of court costs, interest and attorney fees.

The case has been assigned to Judge John Fields. City Attorney Charlette Pugh Tall earlier this month filed an appearance on behalf of the city. Neither Pugh Tall or Patterson could be reached for comment.

Wright has demanded a jury trial, but no trial date has been set.

Wright was paid a salary of $60,000 per year and received two weeks of paid vacation.









Wright charge dismissed
Posted: Friday, April 5, 2002 12:00 am
Updated: 5:23 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011.
By JIM DALGLEISH / H-P City Editor
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/wright-charge-dismissed/article_77460afa-7c9f-5010-8680-7c0f978bb5e9.html

ST. JOSEPH -- With his chief witness refusing to testify, Berrien County Prosecutor James Cherry has dismissed the domestic violence charge against former Benton Harbor police Chief Douglas Wright.

Cherry said Thursday that Wright's wife, Lucy, refused to return to Michigan to testify in the trial that was to begin Thursday. Until then, Cherry said, Lucy Wright had made repeated assurances she would testify.

Wright was arrested after allegedly beating his wife Aug. 2, 2001, at the couple's Benton Harbor home. City Manager Joel Patterson suspended Wright shortly afterward and fired him in November.

Douglas Wright's lawyer, Tat Parish of Watervliet, said Thursday that Lucy Wright's refusal to testify suggests there wasn't much of a case to begin with.

"He was quite wrongly fired as a result of it," Parish said. "He suffered greatly."

Parish said his client, who remains in Benton Harbor, is applying for other jobs.

"(The charge) has been a big burden on him," Parish said. "It's awfully hard to get a job in police work with a criminal charge hanging over your head."

Parish declined to comment on whether Wright would sue the city over his firing.

The city hired Wright as chief in June 2000. He had worked as deputy chief of public safety at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Before that he was the Gary, Ind., police chief.

Thursday's dismissal of the domestic violence charge ends a prosecution stalled by procedural problems. Cherry initially disqualified himself from the case, citing his professional relationship with Wright and the police department. Cherry asked that a special prosecutor be appointed, and Berrien Chief Trial Court Judge Paul Maloney then asked the Allegan County prosecutor's office to act in Cherry's place.

That office charged Wright with domestic violence and felony obstruction of police. The latter charge stemmed from the prosecution's allegation that Wright tried to keep police from responding to the call at the couple's home.

But Berrien Trial Court Judge John Hammond dismissed the charges, saying Cherry didn't have enough legal reason to bring in an outside prosecutor.

Cherry argued otherwise. But the point may have become moot because Wright had been fired by the time Hammond ruled.

So Cherry filed the domestic violence charge against Wright but dropped the obstruction charge, saying it would be too tough to prove in court.

Cherry on Thursday would not divulge Lucy Wright's whereabouts, saying only that she is not living in a state bordering Michigan. He said his office offered her transportation and lodging.

"However, in spite of repeated efforts to encourage her appearance, Mrs. Wright has chosen to forego the opportunity to testify," Cherry wrote in a press release.

Had he been tried and convicted of domestic violence, Wright could have served up to 93 days in jail.











Cherry recharges former Benton Harbor police chief
Posted: Tuesday, February 5, 2002 12:00 am
Updated: 5:41 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011.
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/cherry-recharges-former-benton-harbor-police-chief/article_892aae1d-c59c-5c03-b592-16e2ecf9e1eb.html

ST. JOSEPH -- Former Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright has been charged again with domestic violence in an alleged attack on his wife last year.

But Wright won't face a felony charge of obstructing police in the alleged Aug. 2 incident at his city home.

Berrien Trial Court Judge John Hammond had dismissed charges of domestic violence and attempting to obstruct a police investigation against Wright because of procedural errors. Hammond said Berrien County Prosecutor James Cherry had improperly called in a special prosecutor from Allegan County.

Cherry issued a statement Monday saying he will recharge Wright with domestic violence in the alleged attack on his wife, Lucy.

In Michigan, domestic violence is a misdemeanor carrying a maximum penalty of 93 days in the county jail and a fine of $500.

"Unlike the decision by the Allegan County prosecutor," Cherry announced, "I have chosen not to charge Wright with attempting to obstruct justice under the common law. The likelihood of gaining a conviction on this particular charge does not justify the additional time and delay that would be required to bring that charge to trial."

Cherry estimated that the domestic violence charge will be brought to trial within four weeks.

In his statement, Cherry explained he initially disqualified his office from reviewing police reports on the incident because at the time Wright was still Benton Harbor's chief of police.

"The very act of reviewing such reports calls into question claims of favoritism and patronage on one hand, and jeopardizes working relationships on the other," Cherry wrote.

Since that time, Benton Harbor removed Wright from the job. Cherry wrote that the change in job status made action by his office feasible.

"We're happy the felony charge has been dropped," said Wright's lawyer, Tat Parish of Watervliet. "We're disappointed they've chosen to pursue a misdemeanor charge we think is not well founded,"

Parish said Monday afternoon he understands a warrant has been issued for Wright's arrest, and he was making arrangements with Wright to turn himself in for arraignment, as he did the first time charges were brought in the case.











Hammond wrong to dismiss charges
Posted: Tuesday, January 29, 2002 12:00 am
Updated: 5:28 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011
The Herald Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/hammond-wrong-to-dismiss-charges/article_85853879-9519-5b43-ae23-44c16ff57002.html

I am appalled at the decision Berrien County Judge Hammond made in dismissing domestic violence charges against former Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright.

Recently, so many domestic disputes have led to harm and murder. It would seem that the judge would take this opportunity to set an example with someone who is supposed to uphold the law. It is obvious that Wright needs some counseling or anger management.

Prosecutor Jim Cherry did the right thing by immediately distancing himself and Berrien County from the case, to prevent favoritism or other issues from occurring. Apparently this didn't work and someone else called in a favor, or so it seems. It's one more discouraging instance in our legal system.

A person who works for the system isn't tried by the system when he does something wrong. The average person would have to go to court, be labeled for domestic violence, go to counseling and anger management sessions, be evaluated for drug/alcohol abuse and be put on probation. Prosecutor Cherry absolutely did the right thing, but Judge Hammond made a very disappointing and questionable move.

Marlena L. Ballard










Charges against former chief thrown out
Posted: Friday, January 25, 2002 12:00 am
Updated: 5:38 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011.
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/charges-against-former-chief-thrown-out/article_817ad42a-7a41-59ca-aeea-bd95aa33f2cd.html

ST. JOSEPH -- Former Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright may never have to face criminal charges for allegedly beating his wife, then attempting to obstruct a police investigation of the assault.

Berrien Trial Court Judge John Hammond dismissed the charges Thursday after finding a special prosecutor was improperly appointed.

Hammond ruled Berrien County Prosecutor James Cherry acted too soon when he asked for a special prosecutor to be appointed to review the police report and decide if charges should be filed. He also said Cherry had no conflict of interest that would require a special prosecutor.

"Either the prosecutor must be incapable of performing the duties of his office or disqualified by reason of a conflict of interest," Hammond said. "For example, he has had a stroke, or other physical limit. No one's saying that here.

"Or, an example was the prosecutor, until a few days before, had been the defendant's defense attorney on the same case. That was a clear case of conflict of interest.

"The statute, as interpreted by our state Supreme Court, said this applies only to a case in progress. It has nothing to do with instigating a case."

Cherry had asked for a special prosecutor to review the Aug. 2, 2001, incident because he said he had worked closely with Wright since his hiring as police chief in June 2000. Cherry said he did not want his personal relation to color the investigation.

Chief Trial Court Judge Paul Maloney on Aug. 24 asked the Allegan County prosecutor's office to act in Cherry's place.

In December, Wright's attorney, Tat Parish, asked Hammond to dismiss the case because of Maloney's timing. He said appointing a special prosecutor three months before any charges were brought against Wright was legally incorrect.

At that hearing, Parish said, "There is a requirement, set by statute, how and when you appoint a special prosecutor. It appears that wasn't followed."

Cherry declined to comment today beyond a written statement. In it he said, "Prosecutors have long been in a "Catch-22" with regard to complaints made against high ranking county, township and municipal police officials. This remains an unsettled area of the law…"

He noted that a state Senate bill clarifying the procedure is still pending in the Legislature nearly a year after it was introduced.

"Had I decided to review the police reported prepared in this incident and determined them to be insufficient to support a criminal complaint, the integrity of the criminal justice system would have been called into question by claims of favoritism and patronage. Had I reviewed the police reports and authorized charges, I would have jeopardized essential working relationships between my office and, potentially, the entire Benton Harbor Police Department."

He called asking for an outside prosecutor a "long-established, although informal, practice used by myself and my predecessors."

At the December hearing, Hammond had told both Parish and Allegan County Assistant Prosecutor James Champion he realized dismissing the case could cause enormous change to the way the Berrien County Prosecutor's Office has operated for many years. But Hammond said that did not matter.

"If you're wrong, you're wrong," he said.

Wright's wife, Lucy, said last August she thought that because her husband was a police chief, he would never have to face trial for domestic violence. However, Wright's contract with the city of Benton Harbor specifically allowed the city to fire him without severance if he were ever charged with any crime. He was fired after being charged in November.










Was Wright wronged by prosecutor decision?
Posted: Friday, December 7, 2001 12:00 am
Updated: 5:09 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011.
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/was-wright-wronged-by-prosecutor-decision/article_6db68f35-27bf-564b-a659-31d981b87029.html

ST. JOSEPH -- Questions over how Berrien County appointed a special prosecutor has put a crimp in the criminal case against former Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright.

Wright is accused of attempted obstruction of justice for allegedly trying to keep city police from investigating whether he assaulted his wife, Lucy, Aug. 2 at his city home. Wright additionally faces a misdemeanor domestic violence charge. Wright maintains he is innocent on both counts.

But neither allegation came up at Thursday's preliminary hearing before Berrien Trial Court Judge John Hammond. Instead, the judge, assistant prosecutor James Champion, and Wright's attorney, Tat Parish, disputed whether the Berrien County prosecutor misinterpreted state laws in appointing Champion - who is an assistant prosecutor in Allegan County.

Parish asked Hammond to dismiss the case because Berrien County Prosecutor James Cherry requested that a prosecutor from another county handle the case because he had worked closely with Wright and he wanted to avoid even the appearance of bias.

Parish's argument surprised the judge and Champion.

Hammond briefly recessed the hearing to look for legal precedents. Minutes later, he returned to the courtroom to summarize several previous rulings that seemed to support Parish's claims.

Parish argued those examples proved that the change of prosecutors was made incorrectly. He said Cherry asked for a replacement, and Chief Berrien Trial Court Judge Paul Maloney signed the order for a replacement Aug. 24, nearly three months before any charges were brought against Wright.

"The court did not have the authority to appoint a special prosecutor to aid the investigation," Parish argued. "I don't know of anything that gives the chief judge this power. The preliminary issue is: could Judge Maloney or could any judge have signed the order?

"Second, does the Allegan County Prosecutor have the authority without an order of this court to proceed in this matter?"

Hammond asked him, "You're saying the mere fact the case is a political hot potato does not justify dumping it off onto somebody else?"

"He might be justified, but he hasn't done it the right way," Parish responded. "There is a requirement, set by statute, how and when you appoint a special prosecutor. It appears that wasn't followed.

"The other thing is whether a felony charge of obstructing justice could not be brought under (the law cited by prosecutors) or should be brought as a misdemeanor charge."

Parish said Wright is charged under a law that does not apply. Instead of charging him under the modern misdemeanor charge of attempted obstruction of justice, they charged under common law that he used his office as chief of police to obstruct a police investigation.

Parish said common law is a catch-all relying on judges' rulings before 1787 that cover offenses that would be indictable, felony crimes. In an era without police departments, attempting to obstruct police investigations would have been impossible, Parish said.

He said common law applies only if there is no modern law covering the same thing, but there are at least two laws dealing with obstructing justice under modern law and both are misdemeanors.

"We're saying they cannot use that old, archaic law when there are at least two laws passed by the Legislature that would cover this. It sounds esoteric, but this common law carries a very stiff penalty - five years," Parish said.

Champion said he could not prepare an adequate response to Parish's questions on the spot, but he offered to file a written response later.

Hammond would not agree to the delay. He gave Champion one hour to find a case that supported his being appointed in Cherry's place.

"I appreciate Mr. Champion's being hit with this unawares - as I was - but tough cookies," Hammond said. "There are lots of (law) books here.

"I realize this would mean enormous change to the way things have been done in the Prosecutor's Office in this county for a number of years, but hey, if you're wrong, you're wrong."

After the recess, Hammond agreed to postpone further discussion to January 18. He warned the lawyers to file all objections in writing in advance of that date.

"Let's conclude these problems," Hammond said. "I want this case concluded before I'm out of office."

His term expires at the end of 2004.





Wright fired as city's police chief
Posted: Thursday, November 29, 2001 12:00 am
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/wright-fired-as-city-s-police-chief/article_a2bda5e7-2c47-53f6-9857-176c9d7e162f.html

BENTON HARBOR -- Douglas Wright has been fired as city police chief, two days after prosecutors charged him with domestic violence and obstructing justice.

City Manager Joel Patterson fired the 59-year-old chief Wednesday afternoon, city labor lawyer Robert White said. White said Wright is being paid through the remainder of today.

"Pursuant to the city manager's policy, there will be no discussion of personnel matters so no further details will be forthcoming," White said.

Wright was hired in June 2000 by then-city manager Ron Singleton. He was chosen from a field of more than two dozen applicants.

Wright wrote his own 5-year contract. Given the frequency with which Benton Harbor changed police chiefs - Wright was the fifth in nine years - he said it seemed only reasonable to ask for a measure of job security. The contract runs through June 30, 2005.

Although the contract ensured Wright would be paid for the full five years if he were fired for arbitrary reasons, it did not protect him against all possibilities.

The city does not have to pay him salary for the remainder of the contract if his firing resulted from: dereliction of duty, habitual use of intoxicants or drugs, insubordination, or conviction of a crime or formal charges of a crime.

Wright was charged Monday with attempting to obstruct a police investigation - a felony - and domestic violence against his wife, Lucy.

The charges stem from an alleged Aug. 2 attack and ensuing attempt to steer police from his home, the alleged attack scene.

Under contract terms, Wright was to be paid a $60,000 per year starting salary, including two weeks of vacation each year for his first four years of employment. Unused vacation days may be carried over, according to city personnel policy, and paid for when an employee leaves before using them.

That could have cost the city at least $215,000 in salary alone.

A meeting between Wright and Patterson to discuss the chief's future was moved up from Thursday to Wednesday. Acting Police Chief Marcus Watson also took part in that meeting.

Following the lengthy afternoon meeting, Wright referred all reporters' questions to either Patterson or Watson. Watson and Patterson politely refused to answer almost all questions Wednesday.

But Patterson hinted. He said Watson is presently police chief and fire chief. Previously, Fire Chief Watson had been chosen the acting head of the police department. Patterson had named Watson his deputy city manager just weeks ago.

Patterson said despite the expanded responsibility, Watson will not be named Public Safety Director. He said that job will not be recreated.

That was as far as he would go Wednesday night.

According to the city's 1945 Charter, the public safety director is hired and fired by the manager. The police chief and the fire chief report to the public safety director. In the absence of a public safety director, those department heads report to the city manager. Commissioners do not have to approve the manager's decisions.

Wright brought 30 years of law enforcement experience to a volatile job when he was hired as the fifth chief within a decade.

Sam Watson, father of the acting police chief, Marcus Watson, retired in 1991. His successor, Lt. Cyril Fuller, took early retirement in 1993.

David Walker, a close friend of Wright's, was hired as public safety director after Fuller's retirement. In that capacity, he headed both the police and fire departments. Wright drew up Walker's employment contract.

In 1996, then-city manager Kenneth Weaver fired Walker without explanation. He chose Lt. Milt Agay to replace Walker. Agay resigned as public safety director in January 2000, asking to be reassigned to the detective bureau. He retired from the Benton Harbor Police Department in April 2000.

Wright was deputy chief of public safety at State University of New York at Buffalo when he was hired by Benton Harbor to replace Agay.

Before going to Buffalo, Wright was police chief in Gary, Ind.









Benton Harbor police chief pleads not guilty to domestic violence
By LYNN STEVENS / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
Posted: Wednesday, November 28, 2001 12:00 am
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/benton-harbor-police-chief-pleads-not-guilty-to-domestic-violence/article_4899197a-f28c-52c7-8577-450b5c9809e6.html

ST. JOSEPH -- Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright is back in the area after a trip to Tennessee and has pleaded not guilty to a charge of hitting his wife Aug. 2. He also has asked for a court hearing on a more serious charge that he tried to interfere with the investigation immediately after his wife called police.

Wright was suspended as chief last week while he was in Tennessee visiting an invalid relative. He reportedly had agreed to turn himself in to Berrien County authorities after the Thanksgiving holiday if he were allowed to make the trip, but he could not be reached today to confirm those details.

On Monday Wright, 59, pleaded not guilty before Berrien Trial Court Judge John Fields to the charge of domestic violence, a misdemeanor. He asked for a preliminary examination to the charge of attempting to obstruct justice, which is a felony. That hearing is scheduled for Dec. 5 in Berrien Trial Court.

The charges stemmed from an incident Aug. 2 in which Wright allegedly hit his wife, Lucy. The charge of attempting to obstruct justice was filed due to Wright's handling of the incident.

The case was investigated by the Allegan County prosecutor's office to ensure impartiality, said Berrien County Prosecutor James Cherry. The Allegan prosecutor issued a warrant for Wright's arrest Nov. 19.

Wright arrived at Berrien Trial Court in St. Joseph on Monday with his lawyer, Tat Parish, and with detectives from the state police post at Paw Paw, where he had turned himself in earlier in the day.

Benton Harbor City Manager Joel Patterson suspended Wright with pay from his duties on Nov. 21. The city's labor lawyer, Bob White, said this morning that Patterson will meet with Wright this afternoon to discuss Wright's future with the city police department.

The charge of attempting to obstruct justice is a felony. According to Wright's five-year contract, even being charged with a crime can be grounds for the city to fire him without severance pay. The contract runs through June 30, 2005. Wright is making $60,000 a year.

The contract specifies that the city does not have to pay him severance if the firing results from dereliction of duty, habitual use of intoxicants or drugs, conviction of a crime or formal charges of a crime, or insubordination.

The contract says that if Wright resigns "following a formal suggestion by employer" or is fired for any other reason, the city must pay him the balance of his contracted salary and benefits in a cash lump sum.

That could cost the city at least $215,000 in salary alone.






Police chief charged
Posted: Wednesday, November 21, 2001 12:00 am
Updated: 4:58 pm, Tue Nov 15, 2011.
By MIKE RUPERT / H-P Staff Writer
The Herald-Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/police-chief-charged/article_cae14d44-8771-5c64-9504-2032b99c6f55.html

ST. JOSEPH -- Benton Harbor Police Chief Douglas Wright is being charged with domestic violence for allegedly assaulting his wife and attempted obstruction of justice for trying to interfere with the investigation when police were called.

Wright, 59, allegedly used his position as police chief to "influence and/or obstruct a criminal investigation" into his alleged assault on his wife in the early morning of Aug. 2, according to a warrant issued Nov. 19.

Wright is visiting a sick relative in Nashville, Tenn., and is expected to turn himself in when he returns to the state next week, State Police Det. Lt. John Slenk said Tuesday.

Wright could not be reached by The Herald-Palladium for comment Tuesday or this morning.

If convicted, Wright could face up to 2 1/2 years in prison and $5,000 in fines for the felony attempted obstruction of justice charge, and 93 days in jail and $500 in fines for the misdemeanor assault charge.

Lucy Wright called 911, which rang into the Benton Harbor Police Department, around midnight on Aug. 2 to report Wright assaulted her at the couple's home at 1118 Colfax, according to court documents. Douglas Wright was not living at the house at the time.

Lucy Wright asked that the dispatcher contact an outside agency and that the department notify the Berrien County Sheriff's Department, documents said. She called the Benton Harbor police station a second time and directly asked for a sheriff's deputy to come to the house.

Douglas Wright also called the Benton Harbor Police Department and told a dispatcher the physical fight was between his wife and his adult son, Donald Wright, who is Lucy's stepson, and he told the dispatcher to disregard the call, documents said.

Benton Harbor Police Sgt. Raynard Shurn, who was already headed to the home, returned to the station before arriving there, Slenk said.

Lucy Wright called the Benton Harbor police a third time, again requesting that police come to the house.

Wright came to the Benton Harbor police station and directed dispatch to contact state police and to ask troopers to respond to the station, not to the Wrights' home.

First Lieutenant Jerry Sunday, commander of the Bridgman state police post, said troopers were called to the Benton Harbor police station about 3 a.m. and took statements from the chief and his son, who had been in the house at the time of the alleged assault.

Although Douglas Wright greeted the troopers with the information that his wife was filing the complaint, Sunday said Wright claimed his wife assaulted him. Douglas Wright said he and his wife were arguing over a financial matter. When the argument turned physical, Wright said he pushed her to defend himself, documents said.

Troopers went to the Wrights' house to take Lucy's statement. She told troopers that Wright grabbed her by the throat and swung at her with his right hand, documents said.

Donald Wright told troopers he found his father on top of his stepmother and pulled him away to keep her from kicking him.

Sunday said troopers observed no marks of a struggle on Douglas or Lucy Wright.

Berrien County Prosecutor Jim Cherry was called at home between 3:30 and 4 a.m. and told state police that, based on the information they had relayed, there was not enough evidence to arrest anyone. Cherry asked for written reports.

Cherry deferred the case to Allegan County Prosecutor Fred Anderson, who recommended the two charges on Nov. 15.

Cherry said he sought a special prosecutor because he works closely with Wright and did not feel it would be appropriate for him to review the case. Anderson said Tuesday he would not comment on the charges until an arrest was made.

Berrien County Family Court officials on Tuesday said that Lucy Wright took out a personal protection order against her husband shortly after the incident.



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Tuesday, July 3, 2001

07032001 - Ousted Senator David Jaye - Announced Decision To Run For Senate Seat He Vacated When He Was Removed From Office [05242001]





SENATOR DAVID JAYE POSTS:



























Jaye's colleagues ran out of excuses for the bad boy of the state Legislature
Detroit News
May 25, 2001  
The expulsion of Sen. David Jaye, the first senator to be kicked out, signals that a new day has dawned at the Capitol -- as it did long ago in other workplaces.

For more than a century, many a contemptible scoundrel, cad, lout, drunk, and all-round bad apple has misbehaved in and around the Michigan Legislature and gotten away with it.

Wink, wink. No felony, no big deal, a pattern of bad conduct be damned. No more, thanks to a resounding, precedent-setting 33-2 vote to expel the Bad Boy of Michigan politics.

The scales of the Senate's arbitrary, frontier-like justice were tipped against Jaye in large part because of mistreatment of women--verbal abuse against Senate staffers and alleged physical abuse against his fiancee.

That, more than Jaye's drunken-driving convictions, was the final straw for Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, the driving force behind the expulsion.

That, along with lewd photographs on Jaye's state-owned computer, is what assured the vote of Sen. Alma Wheeler Smith, D-Salem Township, a member of the special committee that recommended expulsion.

I was opposed to expulsion of Jaye, joining those calling for resignation and letting voters decide whether to return him.

But the DeGrow-led Senate has said it's a new era. A pattern of bad conduct is a breach of public trust and will not be tolerated in the workplace of the people.

Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus stepped up to the plate April 19, calling for Jaye to resign. He was willing to declare Jaye's conduct "not befitting a public servant."

Former GOP State Chairwoman Betsy DeVos was among the first prominent Michigan Republicans to call for Jaye's resignation. Current Chairman Rusty Hills called for resignation and said Jaye's conduct was contrary to the "noble calling" of public service.

But where, oh, where during the deliberations was the real leader of the party, the most powerful voice under the dome? Gov. John Engler repeatedly declined to opine on what the Senate should do.

On Wednesday, Charlie Cain, Lansing bureau chief for The Detroit News, encountered Engler outside the Capitol as Engler was walking to a farewell party for Director Tracy Mehan III of the Office of the Great Lakes.

Cain three times asked for Engler's views on what the Senate should do about Jaye. Each time, Engler rhapsodized about Mehan, who is joining the Bush administration.

Why did Engler shuffle off to Buffalo? Engler press secretary Susan Shafer said: "The governor respects the independence of the Senate. They're dealing with it." It did.


















Jaye Out - Senator is first ever to be expelled
Detroit News
May 25, 2001  
LANSING -- Defiant and combative to the end, Sen. David Jaye on Thursday became the first senator ever kicked out by his colleagues, who called him everything from "obnoxious" to "repugnant."

"The masquerade is over. The lies are exposed. The dignity of this office is retained," declared Sen. Leon Stille, R-Spring Lake, who introduced the resolution of expulsion for behavior unsuitable to his office.

After three hours of intense debate, it was approved by a resounding 33-2 vote. All of Jaye's 22 fellow Republicans voted for his ouster, as did 11 Democrats.

Those 33 votes -- seven more than were needed -- cancelled out the 54,116 votes Jaye received in winning re-election in his Macomb County district in 1998.

Jaye, a 43-year-old Republican from Washington Township, was himself the only senator who spoke in his defense and voted against the resolution.

"I never sold out to the political bosses and the special interest groups," said Jaye, who insisted he was expelled for his maverick political views.

"Do not throw me out," he implored his fellow senators just before they voted. "Do not take away the rights of the citizens who elected me."

Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron, who led the expulsion effort against Jaye, said the senator's pattern of misconduct clearly went over the line.

"He's a man who hits women, drives drunk, puts extreme pornography on his computer, repeatedly swears at staff, and by the way, at the end, lies," DeGrow said.

"He's not fit to serve in the Senate."

DeGrow said he "absolutely expects" Jaye to run in the special election to fill the vacancy. Should Jaye win, he would be seated and start out with a "clean slate" the leader added.
















Senators say it was time for Jaye to face consequences 
His expulsion showed the Senate's disgust with his personal misconduct, which included drunken-driving convictions and accusations of abuse
Grand Rapids Press
May 25, 2001  
LANSING -- For many state senators who voted to expel Sen. David Jaye, Jaye's behavior had been too extreme and had gone on too long to allow him to keep his seat.

Thursday, the Senate voted 33-2 to remove Jaye, capping a turbulent six weeks that began with accusations Jaye had struck his fiancée and ended with his insistence he was being railroaded for his unpopular political views. At least 26 votes in the 38-member Senate were needed to force out Jaye, who became the first Michigan senator ever expelled.

"A male who not only hits but denies hitting a woman despite eyewitnesses is wrong. ... Being a senator doesn't make you immune to the consequences of your behavior," said Sen. Joanne Emmons, R-Big Rapids, who voted for expulsion.

Some, like state Sen. Glenn Steil, R-Grand Rapids, believe the Senate should have let the voters of Macomb County decide Jaye's fate in a similar fashion. Despite his feelings, Steil voted to expel, as did Sens. Ken Sikkema, R-Grandville, William Van Regenmorter, R-Georgetown Township, and Leon Stille, R-Ferrysburg.

Among the questioned behavior by the 43-year-old Jaye: three drunken-driving convictions, allegations he hit fiancée Sonia Kloss and "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct," including keeping photos of his topless fiancée on his Senate-issued laptop computer and accusations he verbally abused staff members.

The senator, a Republican from Macomb County's Washington Township, admitted he had made mistakes but said he was being pushed out because of clashes with Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron.

"I'm going into bankruptcy over trumped-up charges," Jaye said during his fight on the Senate floor to save his job. "Why? Because I've upset the political bosses and the special interests."

Jaye, a noisy, boastful, arch-conservative gadfly who has likened himself to a "junkyard dog," turned down requests from several senators to resign before the vote. At one point Thursday lawyers for Jaye and DeGrow discussed letting Jaye resign this fall, but no deal was ever struck.

Although Jaye pleaded with senators before the vote to censure him and let him keep his seat, DeGrow was able to get 11 Democrats to join 22 of the Senate's 23 Republicans in voting to expel Jaye. Democratic Sen. Donald Koivisto of Ironwood and Jaye were the only ones to oppose the resolution.

DeGrow said he had no doubt Jaye was guilty of the allegations in the resolution, including those that he struck Kloss.

"I am not going home to say that a man who hits women, drives drunk, has obscene pictures on his computer and swears at staff constantly" deserves to be in the Senate, DeGrow said.

If Jaye had been employed in the private sector, he would have been fired, said Sen. Ken Sikkema, R-Grandville. "The standards that we impose on ourselves must be higher than what we expect of our constituents," he said.

Koivisto said Jaye didn't deserve to be expelled because the allegations that Jaye had been in "a violent physical altercation" with his fiancée were never proved.

Jaye was never charged in Florida after being arrested April 12 in a dispute with Kloss.

"We are saying you are guilty even if you never were even charged," said Koivisto, the only member of the six-member, bipartisan investigating committee to vote against recommending Jaye be expelled.

Koivisto called for censuring Jaye and taking away many of his perks of office, including access to his office computers.

Jaye said after the vote that he may run again for the Senate. GOP Gov. John Engler is expected to call a special election to fill Jaye's seat. Jaye also said he's thinking of filing suit over his expulsion, but admitted his current legal bills may make that impossible.

Kloss, Jaye's fiancée, said she and Jaye's life has been "turned upside down."

"He is a good politician who works hard for his constituents," Kloss told The Detroit News. "This is like a death in his family. Politics is his first love."

DeGrow said other senators don't have to fear a brush with the law or a personal problem will get them cast out of the Senate. He said he repeatedly tried to help Jaye work on his problems, but they finally became overwhelming.

Jaye still faces a June 7 hearing in Macomb County on whether his probation for last year's drunken driving conviction should be revoked. If it is, Jaye could face another 101/2 months in jail.

Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran has said he hasn't ruled out bringing an assault charge against Jaye for a Nov. 19 dispute with Kloss at a Bay County gas station.

Jaye said a tape from the gas station's video camera shows he didn't strike her as the pair walked through the station's mini-mart.

The Senate also passed a resolution that would destroy copies of Jaye's computer files now on backup tape. The photos of Kloss will be kept on a CD-ROM in case they are needed for legal reasons.

Sen. George Hart, D-Dearborn, listened to the debate but did not vote. Democratic Sens. Burton Leland and Jackie Vaughn, both of Detroit, were absent.

Voters in his district had mixed reactions to Thursday's vote.

"He seems pretty charismatic, but I think he's in too deep now. He's put himself out into the twilight zone, all the things he's been doing," said Nick Syros, 33, owner of Jimmy Dimitri's Family Dining in Washington Township.

Retired union official Dick Krolewski, 66, doesn't think Jaye's done a very good job, but isn't sure it should have been the Senate that ousted him. "I'm torn between the people voting him out and the Senate kicking him out," he said.















Jaye 'may not be gone for long' 
Ousted senator expected to lead race if he tries to recover his state position in special election
Detroit News
May 25, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- If he wants his state Senate seat back, there's a good chance David Jaye can get it.

That's the assessment of political analysts handicapping Jaye's chances of winning a special election to fill the Senate seat from which he was booted Thursday.

"The battle has begun with the birth of a martyr in Sen. Jaye," said Bill McMaster, head of Taxpayers United and an outspoken Jaye defender. "He may not be gone for long."

Gov. John Engler can call a special election to fill Jaye's seat, but he's not legally bound to do so. Nothing in the law prohibits Jaye from running again.

The Macomb County district is firmly Republican, and whoever wins the GOP special primary will be favored to win election over the Democratic nominee.

The vacant seat would attract a large field of candidates, which would work in Jaye's favor, political experts say. Jaye said after his Senate ouster that he was undecided about his future, but he left the door open to a comeback bid.

"I think he will show them he can be re-elected and start over again," said Sonia Kloss, his fiancee, who played an unwilling but pivotal role in his expulsion. "Knowing David, I am sure he will run again. If he thinks he can try again, I want him to."

Richard Sabaugh, a political analyst who served with Jaye on the Macomb County Board of Commissioners in the 1980s, said Jaye has "a lot of die-hard supporters in the district, and the district is very conservative."

"He's the poster boy for the gun-rights issue, and is anti-taxes and anti-abortion," Sabaugh said. "Those are all issues that resonate well with his conservative constituents."

Said East Lansing-based pollster and political consultant Steve Mitchell: "If I were David Jaye, I'd take a shot. He may have done all of these things people said he did, but he was never charged. He can take that message back: that he was railroaded and there was no justifiable reason for being thrown out of office."

Political analyst Ed Sarpolous said Jaye's chances are best if a lot of other Republicans run in the special primary. "If there is a cast of thousands running, the largest plurality will be the Jaye militia," Sarpolous said.

Macomb County Republican Party Chairwoman Janice Nearon expects a crowded field in the GOP primary, led by former Fraser Councilman Steve Thomas and state Rep. Alan Sanborn of Richmond.

Former state Rep. Alvin Kukuk, Maria Carl --- widow of Jaye's Senate predecessor, Doug Carl -- and newcomer G.J. LaRouche also may join the race.

Nearon is unsure Jaye will run again.

"He has been saying he has all these lawyer costs, and will he want to do it again after all of this?" Nearon asked.















Expelled senator looking for work -- and an apology 
David Jaye may seek the Macomb County seat he lost when fellow senators expelled him
Grand Rapids Press
May 27, 2001  
STERLING HEIGHTS -- Out of the Michigan Legislature for the first time in 13 years, David Jaye said Saturday that he is looking for a job and an apology from the Senate members who voted to expel him.

But the archconservative Republican from Macomb County's Washington Township said he hadn't decided whether he would try to get his job back via a lawsuit, or by running to fill the vacancy created by his expulsion Thursday.

The Senate voted 33-2, with one abstention and two members absent, to strip Jaye of the 12th Senate District seat he had held since 1997. The vote capped a turbulent six weeks that began with accusations Jaye had struck his fiancée and ended with his insistence he was being railroaded for his unpopular political views.

"That wasn't a fair fight. It wasn't the American way," Jaye told reporters Saturday. "I would like an apology to my fiancée from (Senate Majority Leader) Dan DeGrow and Sen. (Thaddeus) McCotter."

DeGrow, R-Port Huron, emerged as Jaye's harshest critic leading up to the first-ever expulsion of a Michigan state senator. McCotter, R-Livonia, headed the bipartisan committee that voted 5-1 Thursday to recommend Jaye's ouster.

Messages left Saturday at the homes of DeGrow and his spokesman, Aaron Keesler, were not immediately returned.

Jaye, 43, came under scrutiny for three drunken driving convictions, allegations he hit fiancee Sonia Kloss and "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct," including accusations he verbally abused staff members and having photos of a topless Kloss on his Senate-issued laptop computer.

Jaye said he was denied due process throughout the investigation and was "sure looking at" pursuing legal action or trying to regain his Senate seat in a special election to be scheduled by Gov. John Engler.

"I don't know if I have the money for a special election. Yes, I have the stomach, the heart and the volunteer base to run," Jaye said.

But he also said he owes his three attorneys $80,000 and is trying to arrange a payment plan -- as well as find work.

"I'm looking for a job right now. I've got a couple calls from small businesses," Jaye said. "I've got a number of options I'm going to pursue," including possibly becoming a community college teacher to "balance out all the communists and liberals that are usually at community colleges."

Jaye turned down requests from several senators to resign before the expulsion vote. At one point, Jaye's lawyers proposed a deal that would have let him draw his $77,400 salary through the end of this year -- but not allow him to carry out any Senate duties -- then resign effective Jan. 2, 2002. In return, the Senate would pay some of his legal bills.

But, Jaye said Saturday: "I didn't take the money. Some people would have seen that as an admission of guilt."

DeGrow has said he had no doubt Jaye was guilty of the allegations in the resolution, including those that he struck Kloss.

"I am not going home to say that a man who hits women, drives drunk, has obscene pictures on his computer and swears at staff constantly" deserves to be in the Senate, DeGrow said Thursday.

Jaye was investigated but not charged after being arrested April 12 in a dispute with Kloss in Fort Myers, Fla. Authorities there said they could not build an effective case because Kloss did not want to press charges.

Jaye still faces a June 7 hearing in Macomb County on whether his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction should be revoked. If it is, Jaye could face another 101/2 months in jail.

Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran has said he hasn't ruled out bringing an assault charge against Jaye for a Nov. 19 dispute with Kloss at a Bay County gas station.
















Race for Jaye's Senate seat gets crowded 
Ousted senator considers running for seat he just lost
Detroit News
May 29, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- The race for David Jaye's state Senate seat is already starting to get crowded -- even though no date has been set for the special election to fill the seat he vacated when kicked out of office by the full Senate last week.

Two Republican state representatives, Alan Sanborn and Sal Rocca, and former GOP sheriff's candidate Steve Thomas will more than likely square off in the Republican primary in their quest to replace Jaye as the senator from northern Macomb County.

Thomas and Sanborn indicated this weekend they are considering a run for the seat Jaye vacated when he was expelled for a series of drunken driving arrests, alleged abuse of Senate employees, soft porn on his state-issued laptop computer and a question of domestic abuse. Rocca, of Sterling Heights, was unavailable for comment this weekend, but Macomb Republican Party Chairwoman Janice Nearon said he'll run.

Jaye could also run again for his own vacant seat -- and some political analysts say he could win a crowded race. When Jaye won the Republican primary for state Senate in 1997, he received only 35 percent of the vote, but it was enough to defeat 10 other GOP candidates.

Jaye could pull off another victory like that, assuming he is not in jail, said political analyst Richard Sabaugh, a former colleague of Jaye's on the Macomb County Board of Commissioners.

Jaye has a pretrial hearing June 6 before 41st-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd of Shelby Township on charges that he violated probation on a drunken driving conviction.

If Shepherd eventually ships Jaye back to jail, that ends his political career, Sabaugh predicted. "If he ends up in jail, he can't possibly win," Sabaugh said. "That's just too much. He can't survive that."

For now, Jaye said over the weekend that he's unsure if he'll try to regain his old seat. "I don't know if I have the money for a special election," he told a Sterling Heights news conference, adding that he owes $80,000 to his three lawyers and needs a job.

That would leave the three high-profile Republicans to battle over the vacancy.

State and local Republican leaders say they won't meddle in the Republican primary -- pushing a consensus candidate, for example -- even if Jaye runs. The winner of the GOP primary is almost assured a victory against his Democratic opponent in the conservative, 12th state Senate district.

Thomas and Sanborn said they would soon make their intentions official.

"My election committee and I have discussed it and we're looking at it very seriously," Thomas said. "I'll check with the party leaders to see what their favor is. I'd hate to get into something if no one is going to support me. But I would be a good senator, with my experience in the public and private sector."

Thomas, 55, beat Sanborn's brother, Mark, last August in the Republican primary for county sheriff. But Thomas got steamrollered by Democrat Mark Hackel in the general election. Thomas is a former sheriff's detective who now heads up investigations for the Michigan Basic Property Insurance Association.

Sanborn said he is "seriously" considering a run for Jaye's seat.

"I've been encouraged by a lot of people in the business community, by my family, the NRA (National Rifle Association) and Right to Life and I will make a decision next week," Sanborn said.

Sanborn, 43, of Richmond was elected to the House in 1998 to fill the seat Jaye left when he was elected to the Senate.

Rocca finished third in the 1997 Senate Republican primary to succeed Doug Carl, who died in office. Jaye won that contest and Carl's widow, Maria Carl, finished second. Sabaugh and Nearon doubt Maria Carl would be a factor if she runs this time because she's done poorly in two elections since then.

Sabaugh said another possible candidate is Rocca's wife, Sue, a Macomb County commissioner. Sue Rocca has also served in the state House and will run for Jaye's seat if her husband doesn't, Sabaugh said.
















Jaye faces probation hearing
Grand Rapids Press
May 29, 2001  
MOUNT CLEMENS -- Expelled state Senator David Jaye still faces a probation hearing that could send him to jail.

A June 7 hearing is set in Macomb County on whether Jaye's probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction should be revoked. If it is, the Washington Township Republican could face another 101/2 months in jail.

Jaye, 43, came under scrutiny for three drunken-driving convictions, allegations he hit fiancée Sonia Kloss and "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct," including accusations he verbally abused staff members and having photos of a topless Kloss on his Senate-issued laptop computer.

The probation hearing will include some information disclosed during the Senate hearings in Lansing. Many of the same witnesses will be called by prosecutors trying to show Jaye violated his driving restrictions.

Probation was set last July, when Jaye was sentenced to 45 days in jail for drunken driving.
















Will Jaye rise again? 
Maverick's chances of re-election are good despite sordid Senate expulsion, experts say
Detroit News
May 30, 2001  
LANSING -- State Sen. Leon Stille winced as he read the front page of his newspaper April 13.

Sen. David Jaye had been arrested in Florida for allegedly assaulting his fiancée Sonia Kloss -- again.

"I thought, 'Oh my God. Here we go again,' " recalled Stille, R-Spring Lake. "He's not just harming the institution, but also what people expect of legislators. They certainly don't expect a woman-beater to basically get away with it."

Stille quickly phoned his Lansing office and directed his staff to prepare a resolution calling for the expulsion of Jaye, R-Washington Township.

And that was how the Senate's struggle with what to do about David Jaye began.

Before it ended last week with a 33-2 vote to expel the maverick lawmaker, a Senate committee acted as judge and jury in cases prosecutors in two states wouldn't touch. Jaye's critics were subjected to dirt-digging expeditions and accusations of political career-building. The Senate changed its own unwritten definition of unacceptable behavior. And Republican lawmakers ran the risk of raising the ire of their party's right wing.

For all the political energy that went into ousting Jaye, however, he may be back. The man who once compared the Senate committee's hearings to "being awake at my own autopsy" is by no means a political corpse just yet.

Jaye told The Detroit News Tuesday his decision to run again for the Senate comes down to one condition: "I need to be able to tell my supporters we have at least a 40-60 chance to win before we go."

"I am not being coy and I cannot run again just to spite enemies who have brutalized me. I am calling my people to see if they're still going to be there for me."

Political experts say he would stand a good chance of winning in his conservative Macomb County district. Under the state constitution, the Senate would have no choice but to seat him, with a clean slate, according to legislators who have looked into the matter.

Political experts say he would stand a good chance of winning in his conservative Macomb County district. Under the state constitution, the Senate would have no choice but to seat him, with a clean slate, according to legislators who have looked into the matter.

Although such an outcome is uncertain, the very possibility puts an ironic twist on the six-week political drama that led to Thursday's expulsion vote. The focus on Jaye sucked the political oxygen out of the Capitol, leaving even a half-billion-dollar hole in the state budget to take a back seat.

GOP led the way
From the beginning, it was Jaye's fellow Republicans who led the charge for his ouster.

"This is strange," Philip Thomas, Jaye's lead attorney, said at one point in the committee hearings. "In the Nixon thing, it was the Democrats leading the charge. In the Clinton thing, it was the Republicans. But here it's Jaye's own party turning on him."

GOP Gov. John Engler stayed strictly out of the issue, but prominent Republicans who called for Jaye to resign included former state Republican Party Chairwoman Betsy DeVos, who once campaigned door-to-door for Jaye, and Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus, a former leader in the Senate. DeVos put it bluntly: "Men who beat up women are not role models."

To Senate Minority Leader John Cherry, a Clio Democrat, there was no mystery to this. The Senate has a tradition of letting the party with a troublesome lawmaker take the lead in disciplinary actions, he said.

Cherry pointed out that he directed the 1998 expulsion proceedings against Sen. Henry Stallings, D-Detroit. Stallings, who had used a Senate staffer to help run his Detroit gallery of African-American art, resigned before a vote could take place.

"We don't want this type of situation to become a partisan issue," Cherry said.

In Jaye's case it wasn't. When the vote was taken, all of Jaye's fellow Republicans voted to expel him, as did all but one Democrat.

Alleged assaults key
Jaye's expulsion resolution included a long list of misdeeds, including three drunken-driving convictions, abuse of female Senate staff, repeated use of profanity and storing semi-nude photographs of Kloss on his state-owned computer.

But it was the two alleged assaults that were his undoing. Ironically, officials in Michigan and Florida declined to bring charges in either instance. The Florida case that got the expulsion move under way was dropped in the middle of the hearings after Kloss recanted her statement that Jaye had assaulted her.

Even so, the Michigan Senate committee heard the testimony of Florida sheriff's deputies, listened to the tape of Kloss's 911 call, and saw a videotape of Kloss explaining away the incident.

Most committee members didn't find her testimony credible.

The other case was Jaye's alleged assault of Kloss on Nov. 19 near Bay City. Although the county prosecutor hadn't pursued the matter, the committee heard the testimony of witnesses at a gas station where the incident occurred and of state troopers who stopped Jaye's car afterward. The committee also viewed a security videotape that that they found inconclusive.

Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran told the committee he didn't initially have a case against Jaye. But he said he was still considering bringing charges against Jaye based on the testimony of additional witnesses.

Here is where the charges of political career-making began to fly. Jaye accused Sheeran of keeping the case alive to further his own political ambitions. Sheeran has been mentioned as a possible Democratic candidate for attorney general. He denied doing anything other than his job.

Jaye also charged that Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron, was trying to build name identification for his bid for the GOP nomination for attorney general. And he said Sen. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Livonia, who chaired the special panel, was motivated by his desire to win a congressional seat.

For his part, McCotter said: "Nothing good came from this for anybody. I've lost political capital, and DeGrow has too, by irritating the right wing of the party."

Jaye's outspoken anti-tax, anti-affirmative action, anti-welfare, pro-gun stances are embraced by many conservative voters. Jaye has long maintained his colleagues were trying to run him out of the Senate because of those views.

DeGrow said his political aspirations played no role in his decision-making.

Bill Ballenger, a former GOP state senator who edits a newsletter called "Inside Michigan Politics," suggested that term limits played a role in Jaye's expulsion. Until now, expulsion has not been considered unless someone was convicted of a felony. Jaye was never charged with a felony. What is different now, Ballenger said, is that next year, 27 of the 38 senators are barred from running again.

"The two-thirds that won't be back were more willing to give him the boot," Ballenger said.

Craig Ruff, president of a nonpartisan Lansing think tank, said it's a stretch to think term limits played a role. He pointed out that the vote to expel Jaye was 33-2.

In fighting the charges against him, Jaye charged that he was being railroaded by his political enemies.

DeGrow said Jaye was behind efforts to dig up dirt on himself and other senators. John Mangopoulos, a conservative Lansing cable-TV talk-show host, offered a $2,000 bounty for tips on illegal activities of senators. A Macomb County group, Citizens for Legal Reform, hired a private investigating firm to have gumshoes dig into the backgrounds of senators.

DeGrow said Jaye's associates called his neighbors, friends and the media to say DeGrow was a suspect in a 1971 murder.

"They literally called the family of the victim from that unsolved murder and told them I might be a suspect," DeGrow said. "He accused me of murder, for Gods' sake. He has no shame, no decency."

Sen. Stille said "Jaye and his circle of goons" looked into a five-year-old fatal accident involving his daughter, who was 27 at the time. Stille's daughter, who had been out celebrating her brother's birthday, was ticketed for impaired driving but absolved of responsibility in the crash.

"The day of the vote, they faxed me five or six pages of original stories from my daughter's accident as a means of intimidation, to influence my vote," Stille said. "It really annoyed me."

Sen. Donald Koivisto, D-Ironwood, was the only committee member to vote against Jaye's expulsion resolution. But before the full Senate vote even he faulted Jaye for the smear campaign.

"Even the Mafia leaves people's families alone," he said. "With the way he's handling this, his advisers must have been giving him dumb pills everyday."























Hot air fills state political debates
Detroit News
June 7, 2001  
Here are some of those fueling the political hot air balloon now lofting across Michigan:

* Truculent ex-Sen. David Jaye, R-Washington Township, on public TV's Off the Record show, on why he's the only sitting Michigan state senator ever to be expelled:

"I got thrown out of office because I'm aggressively for taxpayers and consumers while voting Republican 95 percent of the time. I was a thorn in the side of the rank and file Republican establishment."

Jaye was indeed a thorn and embarrassment to the GOP. But he was ousted for a pattern of appalling personal behavior. I didn't agree there were sufficient grounds for expulsion, but it was his personal conduct, not political pursuits, that prompted it.

Jaye also said "this was a political railroad job" because Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron, "wants to run for attorney general." He does. But the Jaye matter was no big plus for DeGrow.

* Provocative Geoffrey Fieger, who lost to Gov. John Engler in 1998, says that under Engler, "Michigan is like Huey Long's backwater Louisiana in the '40s (when) corruption meant nothing." His inflammatory rhetoric, echoing vague mutterings in 1998, took flight during taping for the One on One With John Moralez show to air June 12 on Michigan State University's WKAR-TV. The famous trial lawyer essentially proclaims the administration guilty until proven otherwise.

* At the recent Detroit Regional Chamber conference on Mackinac Island, Gov. Engler correctly noted that there are greater oil accident risks to the Great Lakes than from slant drilling from the shoreline.

He said, "We average something like 20 shipping accidents in the course of a year. I don't think anybody is suggesting we ban shipping on the Great Lakes. Or, if we're worried about the potential of an accident, we have right here in the Straits of Mackinac four or five pipelines that are on the floor of the lakes. That obviously would be much greater risks and threats than some drilling that takes place on the shore, that might tap a reservoir, part of which is underneath the Great Lakes."

But he strayed from fact when he asserted: "There is no need for the federal government to play any role because we already prohibit drilling in the Great Lakes. There won't be any drilling in the Great Lakes. For Washington to try to deal with that, they're trying to solve a problem that doesn't exist."

Some may agree with Engler that Michigan's current slant drilling from the shore to out under the lakes is not drilling "in" the lakes. But what about Canada's off-shore rigs?

Michigan prohibits off-shore drilling by law. U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, notes that three other Great Lakes states have no such laws, and he has introduced a resolution calling on Ontario to "cease and desist" current off-shore drilling for gas in Lake Erie.

* U.S. Rep. Debbie Stabenow is correct that because most Great Lakes are international waters, there is a need for a cooperative federal-state effort on lakes issues. But her rhetoric soared beyond reality when she declared lifting Michigan's moratorium on new slant drilling "places in jeopardy 20 percent of the world's fresh water."

Mixed Signals
Last Thursday, when I asked Secretary of State Candice Miller about lingering speculation that she still might run for governor in 2002, she declared: "I'm running for Congress!" She subsequently told News columnist Laura Berman: "I have not ruled out running for governor."

On Wednesday, she was in Washington to meet with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, Majority Leader Dick Armey and potential contributors. Aide Jamie Roe vowed that by month's end, she will have raised "an amount topping any (congressional) non-incumbent in the country." Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus may need more assurance than that.

The search goes on for a Republican to challenge Sen. Carl Levin. Metro Detroit businessman Jim Nicholson, who lost a 1996 bid for the GOP nomination against Levin, told me recently: "It will take brave people" to consider going against Levin "and I may be one of them." He said he won't decide until late this year.

By then, the GOP might have to take out Help Wanted ads or draft Republican State Chairman Rusty Hills, whose wife Carla shudders at the thought.
















Jaye charged with violating probation
Grand Rapids Press
June 8, 2001  
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- Expelled state Sen. David Jaye was arraigned Thursday on three counts of violating his probation for a drunken driving conviction.

The charges, delivered before Judge Douglas P. Shepherd in Macomb County District Court, stem from allegations he twice assaulted his fiancée and other claims that he drove while his driving privileges were curtailed. If his probation is revoked, he faces up to 101/2 months in jail.

Jaye said he is innocent. He is free on $10,000 personal bond.
















Ousted Jaye to seek old seat 
Fiancée Kloss says she's committed to helping him win
Detroit News
July 3, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- David Jaye is trying to make a comeback.

The ex-state senator from Washington Township told The Detroit News Monday he will run again for the 12th District seat he was expelled from in May.

"I'm getting support because people know I have been an advocate for seniors, for the little guy, for the working people -- men and women," said Jaye, who insists he is not sexist. "The good Lord made men and women, but Smith &amp Wesson made us equal."

Jaye was expelled by the Senate May 24. The punishment was for three drunken-driving convictions, unproven allegations that he hit his fiancée Sonia Kloss and "recurring misconduct."

Still, he expects to pick up support from women, said Gail Hicks, a former Jaye aide who chairs Women Support Jaye.

"We're not believing the lies about David," she said.

Added Kloss: "David has gotten an unbelievable response, especially from women who feel what was done to him and me was the real abuse."

But Stephanie McLean, a feminist and Lansing political consultant, says Jaye is unfit to serve. "His behavior and his lack of respect for other people (are) an embarrassment."

State Sen. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Livonia, who was instrumental in booting Jaye from office, said if Jaye is re-elected there will be no hard feelings because "it's up to the voters."

No date has been set for a special election to fill Jaye's term, which would have expired in 2002.
















Ousted state senator says he will run for seat he lost
Grand Rapids Press
July 3, 2001  
MOUNT CLEMENS -- Kicked out of the state Senate for repeated misconduct, David Jaye said Monday that he will run for the vacancy created by his expulsion.

"I'm getting support because people know I have been an advocate for seniors, for the little guy, for the working people -- men and women," the Republican said.

No date has been set for a special election to fill Jaye's term, which would have expired in 2002.

Jaye lost his seat May 24 after the Senate voted 33-2 to expel him. Lawmakers cited his three drunken driving convictions, allegations he hit fiancée Sonia Kloss and "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct."

Jaye, of Macomb County's Washington Township, said he is not sexist. "The good Lord made men and women, but Smith & Wesson made us equal," he said.

Jaye expects to pick up support from women, said Gail Hicks, a former Jaye aide who heads a group called Women Support Jaye.

"We're not believing the lies about David," she said.

State Sen. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Livonia, who was instrumental in booting Jaye from office, said if Jaye is re-elected, there will be no hard feelings because "it's up to the voters."

Jaye still could face up to 101/2 months in jail for violating his probation from a 2000 drunken driving conviction. Prosecutors say Jaye violated probation when he allegedly assaulted his fiancée near Bay City and again in Florida and also went on a hunting trip in northern Michigan last November. Jaye was supposed to drive only on state legislative matters.

Kloss has denied that Jaye assaulted her. Jaye was never charged in the Bay City incident and the Florida case was dropped. Jaye has been free on $10,000 personal bond.
















Jaye seeks local support 
Ex-lawmaker targets pro-gun sentiment
Flint Journal
July 14, 2001  
It was typical David Jaye.

He talked fast, off the cuff and with sometimes uncomfortable bluntness. The scene on Friday was somewhat peculiar, though.

He was, after all, in Flint, an hour and nearly 50 miles from the Macomb County state Senate district he served before being booted from office May 24 by his colleagues - in part on the recommendation of local Sen. John D. Cherry, D-Vienna Twp.

And the hour-long interview was one he requested. The reason: As Jaye prepares for his not-yet-official, but certainly expected campaign to run again for the Senate office from which he was just removed, the 43-year-old self-described "maverick" is looking for supporters here in Genesee County, especially financial supporters.

The 13-year legislator plans to tap into the often overlooked population of pro-gun conservative voters in Genesee County, he said, through several "backyard barbecue" fund-raisers. No dates or times were available.

Politically, anyway, Jaye is broke.

The Republican Party shuns him and his old resources are tapped out.

"I have to fund-raise statewide. I have $200 in my campaign warchest," said Jaye, who also estimated his legal debts at $78,000.

Those legal bills stem from a series of incidents that cumulated in a 33-2 vote in the Senate to strip Jaye of the 12th Senate seat he had represented since 1997.

Jaye was reprimanded several times, but lost his seat after being arrested in Florida for reportedly hitting his fiancée, Sonia Kloss, who later denied those accusations and the charges were dropped.

Lawmakers also cited three drunken driving convictions, verbally abusive behavior toward Senate staff members and having photos of a topless Kloss on his computer as reasons for his expulsion.

Jaye did not shy away from any of these accusations during the interview Friday. He voluntarily discussed them in detail without even being asked.

"I've made mistakes. I'm an alcoholic. I've got those things behind me now though," Jaye said. "Your personal business should not get you fired from your daytime job."

Jaye admits he will have work to do to win back his seat. Some people will have questions because of all the publicity his troubles have attracted.

He said he'll be able to connect again with voters who realize "there are two sides to every story," Jaye said.

Jaye said his chances for re-election into the Senate - which would also wipe the slate clean of any past transgressions - remain better than 50-50.

One local supporter, Patricia Roach, accompanied Jaye on his interview.

Roach of Flint admitted somewhat reluctantly that she's a lifelong Democrat. Now a member of "Women Supporting Jaye," Roach said she allied herself with Jaye as the Senate took action to remove him from office.

"I was very upset about how he was treated in Lansing," Roach said.

Roach said she believed the hearings were unfair and that they invaded Jaye's privacy by publicly investigating events that were personal matters between him and Kloss.

She also strongly supports laws making it easier for people to arm themselves with concealed weapons in public and she likes the way Jaye defends the "little guy."

But, before Jaye can even run for office there has to be an election.

The governor has the sole discretion on when to call all special elections to fill vacated seats. There has been no word from Gov. John M. Engler on when he might call one.

Jaye calls the apparent delay classic "taxation without representation."

"This issue is bigger than the personnel involved," he said.

There has been some speculation that Jaye could be running a jailhouse campaigning, if he does indeed run.

Jaye also faces a probation violation hearing next month in Bay County because of the Florida incident and for allegedly driving despite a work-only restriction on his license because of a 2000 drunken driving conviction.

If probation is revoked, he could be jailed for 10 months.

Jaye dismissed the possibility.

"I did not violate my probation and I will not be going to jail," he said. "I just want to return to the state Senate to finish the job people elected me to do."






















Judge refuses to drop charges against Jaye 
Ex-senator to measure support for candidacy
Detroit News
July 24, 2001  
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- Former state Sen. David Jaye received a double dose of unfriendly news Monday.

Shelby Township District Judge Douglas P. Shepherd refused to dismiss probation violation charges against Jaye just about the time that Gov. John Engler announced the dates for a special election to replace Jaye as a state senator. The primary will be Sept. 11 and the general election Nov. 6.

The election filing deadline is Aug. 7, five days after Jaye goes on trial before Shepherd on charges that he violated his drunken driving probation for allegedly assaulting his fiancée, Jameela Sonia Kloss twice in a six month span, and for violating his driving restrictions while on a deer hunting trip last November.

If convicted, Jaye could be sentenced to up to 101/2 months in jail. Shepherd could also sentence Jaye to a lesser jail term or place the former Republican senator on probation.

Jaye said he will decide soon whether he will run in the special election.

He said he would be meeting with key advisers to determine if he has enough support to mount a serious challenge to regain his seat.

"I want to run for Senate, but before I ask supporters, friends and volunteers to go through this, I have to make sure I have at least a 50-50 chance to win," Jaye said.

Kloss said Monday night she will honor the subpoena and come to Shelby Township to testify, and that she will see a doctor today to calm her nerves.

"The grief they are putting me through is never-ending. It's terrifying. I don't want to feel like that but I will come," Kloss said from her Florida home.

"The cameras, the people ... I don't want to go there and face a judge. There is no justice. I am under a lot of pressure and am not accustomed to this kind of attention."

Kloss said she will fly from Florida to Michigan on Aug. 1 -- the day before Jaye's trial -- and leave the day after.

Eric Kaiser, chief trial lawyer for the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office, said if Kloss doesn't show up to testify, he will ask Shepherd to issue a bench warrant to force her to come to court.

Jaye pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor drunken driving charge in June 2000, and was sentenced to 45 days in jail, but could have been sentenced to a year. He served 35 days before he was released and Marlinga wants Jaye to serve the remaining 101/2 months of the original sentence if he is convicted.

Jaye was expelled from office in May by the state Senate following a lengthy hearing delving into a series of alleged misconduct supposedly committed by Jaye including accusations he assaulted Kloss, in November 2000, near Bay County and again last April in her home in Florida.

Jaye was never charged with a crime in either case. Kloss has recanted statements that Jaye assaulted her, but Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga said he feels there will be enough evidence to show Jaye did attack her.

Judge Shepherd refused to dismiss the probation violation charge against Jaye, setting the stage next week for the trial.

Jaye's attorney, Phil Thomas, had asked that the charges be thrown out because Jaye was innocent of the charges that led to the probation violation case. Thomas also said Jaye's constitutional rights were violated because it took the prosecutor six months to file the probation violation charge.

Shepherd said he found no evidence that Jaye's rights were violated.

Jaye again professed his innocence and said he would be acquitted of the charge.

"Look, I'm innocent," Jaye told reporters in an impromptu press conference outside of court. "I was innocent in Bay County, I was innocent in Florida and I will be found innocent here. How many times do I have to wash a shirt to show that it is clean?"

Jaye said he also will prove that he was using his car in his duties as a state senator and not on a hunting trip as the prosecutor claims.

Judge Shepherd also denied a motion by Thomas to have Kloss testify at a videotape deposition.

Shepherd said in order for him to make a sound decision in the case, Kloss would have to testify live and not on videotape.



















Engler sets Sept. 11 election
Detroit News
July 24, 2001  
LANSING -- The primary election to fill the state Senate seat in Macomb County vacated by expelled Sen. David Jaye will be Sept. 11, Gov. John Engler announced Monday.

Jaye doesn't have much more time to decide whether he'll run for the seat that his colleagues stripped from him two months ago. Candidates must file for the 12th district seat by Aug. 7. The general election will be Nov. 6.

Jaye, a Washington Township Republican, was expelled following three drunken driving convictions and allegations that he assaulted his fiancée, Sonia Kloss. He is eligible to run for the seat, and Senate leaders have said he'd start with a clean slate if elected. Jaye has said he's leaning toward running.

The district is predominantly Republican, so the winner of the GOP primary will be the heavy favorite to capture the seat.

At least one other prominent Republican will be in the race. Rep. Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond, has already announced he'll run.

There is nothing in state law that would bar Jaye from running for the Senate if he is jailed for probation violations.


















Special election set for Jaye's Senate seat
Grand Rapids Press
July 24, 2001  
LANSING -- Former state Sen. David Jaye said Monday he is leaning toward running in the special election for the seat he was expelled from earlier this year.

Meanwhile, a district court judge on Monday ruled Jaye will face charges he violated the probation set for his previous drunken driving conviction.

Gov. John Engler announced Monday the timeline for the special election for Jaye's former seat. Candidates must file for the 12th District Senate seat, representing much of Macomb County, by Aug. 7 and a primary election will be held Sept. 11. The general election is scheduled for Nov. 6.
















Jaye may announce election bid 
Former state senator expected to decide today to run despite trial for probation violations
Detroit News
July 26, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Former State Sen. David Jaye, expelled from office by his colleagues two months ago for a series of alleged misconducts, is expected to announce today that he is running for his old seat in a special election called for by Gov. John Engler.

Jaye will go on trial next week in Shelby Township District Court for probation violation and could end up going back to jail before the Republican primary is held Sept. 11.

"This is a witch hunt. This will be the fourth time I have had to prove myself innocent of the charges," Jaye said about the trial that will start Aug. 2 before 41-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd.

Two of the probation violation charges center around allegations that Jaye assaulted his fiancee, Jameela Sonia Kloss, twice during a six-month span. Kloss says the attacks never occurred and Jaye was never charged in either incident.

Jaye is planning a press conference today in Sterling Heights, one day after State Rep. Alan Sanborn became the first candidate to file for the special election to replace him.

Sanborn, 44, of Richmond Township, was elected to the statehouse in 1998 to fill the seat Jaye vacated when he was elected to the state Senate.

"He ran against me in 1996 (for state representative) and I crushed him," Jaye said during a telephone interview Wednesday. "Yes, I can do it again."

Sanborn is considered to be Jaye's biggest challenger in the heavily-Republican district. The winner of the Republican primary is almost assured of victory in the Nov. 6 general election.

Jaye, 43, of Washington Township, came out swinging at Sanborn even before Jaye made the announcement about his candidacy.

"Sanborn is extremely liberal," Jaye said. "No one in the Republican Party is backing him. He's not a Republican. He's a Democrat."

Countered Sanborn: "Is it my endorsement by the Right to Life, The National Rifle Association and the Chamber of Commerce? Those are all conservative Republican groups.

"It is unfortunate that Mr. Jaye has again decided to go negative, but I refuse to go into the gutter with him," Sanborn added.

"I will push my positive Republican messages. People are tired of negative attacks."

Jaye admits he is financially strapped, but he says he will offset the lack of a big political war chest with a solid grass roots campaign.

"Look at all of the back yard barbecue fund-raisers they have held for me," Jaye said, referring to groups like Women Supporting Jaye.

"This will be a grass roots campaign. I don't have the money from the party bosses or the special interest groups."
















EDITORIAL: Voters should decide Jaye's fate
The Adrian Daily Telegram
July 27, 2001 
How would fans of Michigan politics fill their days if David Jaye weren't here to kick around? Unfortunately, we might not find out anytime soon.

Jaye, the only state senator ever to be expelled from office, announced Thursday that he will run for his old seat.

"No American should be fired based on allegations, not convictions,'' Jaye said.

Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron, who would not comment on the news Thursday, pushed strongly for Jaye's ouster, saying in May that Jaye had ''breached acceptable standards for a sitting senator.''

Jaye was kicked out of the state senate after three drunken driving convictions and allegations that he assaulted his fiancée.

Jaye is eligible to run for his old seat, which will be decided Nov. 6. A special primary election is slated for Sept. 11. The Macomb County district is heavily Republican, and Jaye, despite his checkered past, has a chance.

Jaye made promises to supporters Thursday. He said that, if elected, he would introduce legislation that would prevent employees from being fired due to problems in their personal life. He also promised, in spite of the alleged violence against his fiancée, that he would support women.

''Ladies, the message today is that you're the boss, not Lansing,'' he said. ''I've been a very strong advocate of women over the years.''

Jaye has been many things to many people over the years. He soon may add a visit to jail to his lengthy resume.

Macomb County District Judge Douglas P. Shepherd ruled early this week Jaye must face charges that he violated his probation. Shepherd also ruled that Jaye's fiancée, Sonia Kloss, must testify in person at the hearing instead of sending videotaped testimony.

Prosecutors say Jaye violated his probation by assaulting Kloss twice and by driving up north to go deer hunting last November while having a restricted license.

Jaye is scheduled to return to court Aug. 2. If found to have violated his probation, he could be sent back to jail for as long as 10 months.

Therefore, he could be in jail on the day of the primary election. Or the general election. Or, should he be elected, part of his term as a state senator.

The people of Macomb County would be smart to not vote for someone facing jail time. Still, it is their decision whether Jaye returns to office.

There's no legal reason Jaye can't or shouldn't run for his old seat. There most likely will be an opponent in either the primary or general election who would be a better representative of the district than Jaye, but in the end, it is up to the people to decide.


















Jaye to run for office 
Ousted senator focus of primary
Detroit News
July 27, 2001  
STERLING HEIGHTS -- The big issue in the upcoming special election to fill the state Senate seat David Jaye was ousted from won't be guns, abortion or taxes, analysts say.

"There isn't much difference between the candidates on the issues," Macomb County political analyst Richard Sabaugh says. "So, the issue will be David Jaye."

Jaye, 43, wearing an American flag-style tie, announced his candidacy Thursday for the 12th District state Senate seat he lost in May following a lengthy inquiry by his colleagues into allegations of misconduct.

He faces trial for allegations that he violated terms of his probation for drunken driving. He has been a staunch critic of Affirmative Action and a die-hard supporter of people's rights to carry guns.

Where Jaye is, controversy tends to follow.

As of Thursday, two others had filed to run in the Republican primary for the seat: state Rep. Alan Sanborn and Shelby Township resident John Martin Peterson. County Commissioner Sue Rocca, R-Sterling Heights, also is expected to join the race.

The more candidates in the election, the better Jaye's chances of winning, said Sabaugh and Lansing-based pollster Ed Sarpolus.

"He might be able to win because the votes will be divided," Sarpolus said.

Said Sabaugh: "If it is just Jaye and Sanborn, I think Sanborn is the favorite. But if other well-known Republicans get in, Jaye would win. There are hard-core Jaye supporters out there who support him come hell or high water. A lot of people think he got a raw deal."

So does Jaye.

Trial outcome will tell
The Republican primary will be held in September. Jaye's probation violation trial starts Thursday in Shelby Township District Court and a conviction could send him back to jail for as long as 101/2 months.

"Look, I'm not going to jail," Jaye said Thursday. "There are some people who want to make me a political prisoner. I'm running as an American ... a person has the presumption of innocence."

But a conviction would doom his bid for office, according to the analysts.

While Sarpolus said jail time may change the vote, Sabaugh added: "His supporters are conservatives when it comes to things like law and order and that dynamic alone will be devastating to him."

Jaye did say that if he were convicted, he would decide then if he would withdraw from the election.

And that's why political analysts such as Sabaugh say Jaye could be the issue -- for good or bad -- in the election.

Voters may view him as a victim who was tossed out of office because of his maverick views. Or, they could view him as a batterer of women because of the alleged attacks on his fiancee, Jameela Sonia Kloss, Sabaugh said.

Those alleged attacks are part of the probation violation charges and her testimony could hurt Jaye even though he never was charged, Sabaugh said.

Support base of women
Despite the abuse accusations, much of Jaye's early support has come from women.

Six women, including several from the Women Supporting Jaye committee, spoke at Thursday's press conference at Summit Plastic Molding in Sterling Heights. And several times during the 40-minute press conference, Jaye boasted of his support for women's rights.

"Ladies, the message today is that you're the boss, not Lansing," he said. "I've been a very strong advocate of women over the years."

That is another key for Jaye in the election, Sabaugh said. "And getting the organization, Woman Supporting Jaye, is a good move. He's trying to soften his image."

Joyce Fitch, a longtime political activist from Sterling Heights, went a bit further in the importance women will play in Jaye's election attempt.

"I think the women vote is absolutely critical," Fitch said. "I don't believe he is a woman abuser. I feel I've been used by the people in Lansing by the way they treated Dave Jaye. They said he was a woman abuser, but in my heart I know he isn't."

Susan Tabar, 35, a former Shelby Township resident and political consultant to Jaye, said women and independent voters could decide the election in Jaye's favor.

"David Jaye has so much support out there, he could win tomorrow," Tabar said. "His constituents want him in there. They voted him in."

Sarpolus, who has strong ties to Macomb County, said a survey by his firm, EPIC/MRA, conducted on Republican women several weeks ago, showed Jaye still has strong support from them.

"They still support him because they feel he has been attacked," Sarpolus said. "You can't assume because of the (female abuse) issue that it will hurt him."

Attacking him on the abuse allegations should be avoided by candidates running against Jaye, Sarpolus added.

"That could make him look like a martyr," Sarpolus said.

What's next
* Aug. 2: Two-day trial on probation violation charges begins before 41-A District Judge Douglas Shepherd in Shelby Township. A conviction could send Jaye to jail for up to 101/2 months.

* Aug. 7: Filing deadline for the special election to fill the vacant 12th District state Senate seat created by the expulsion of David Jaye in May by his Senate colleagues.

* Sept. 11: Primary election for the 12th District Senate seat.

* Nov. 6: Winners of the Republican and Democratic primaries meet in the general election.
















Jaye will run for former seat
Grand Rapids Press
July 27, 2001  
STERLING HEIGHTS -- David Jaye, the only Michigan state senator expelled from office, said Thursday he will run for his old seat.

Jaye, who said he will run as a Republican, was expelled following three drunken driving convictions and allegations he assaulted his fiancée, Sonia Kloss. She has said Jaye did nothing wrong, and Jaye denies any misbehavior toward her.




















Jaye wants to protect workers just like him 
If re-elected, the expelled senator says he will introduce legislation to prevent workers accused of crimes from being fired unless they are convicted
Grand Rapids Press
August 1, 2001  
David Jaye, the Macomb County Republican who was thrown out of the state Senate in May for bad behavior, is attempting to recapture his job on a decidedly non-Republican platform: He vows to be an advocate for workplace rights.

If he wins re-election in a special Nov. 6 election, Jaye says he will introduce legislation that would prevent workers accused of crimes from being fired unless they are convicted.

"No American should be fired based on allegations, not convictions," Jaye said in announcing his bid for re-election on July 26.

Jaye said his bill also would prevent employees from being dismissed because of personal behavior unrelated to work.

Leading by example
Talk about your special-interest legislation. Repugnant personal behavior is what made Jaye the first person in state history to be tossed from the Senate.

He has been convicted of drunken driving three times, twice while he held office. But Jaye's Senate expulsion hearing centered on allegations that he assaulted his fiancee, Sonia Kloss.

Although witnesses told State Police that they saw Jaye hit Kloss at a Bay City gas station in November, prosecutors didn't bring charges against him.

And in April, Jaye was arrested in Florida after Kloss told police that Jaye struck her while the two argued over a set of keys. She later dropped charges.

Jaye says he wants a law preventing employers from treating workers the way his Senate colleagues treated him.

Wouldn't that be great? We could have accused thieves, spouse abusers and child molesters toiling away in their cubicles, waiting to find out if they're going to be convicted.

'Nothing to be fixed'
Based on media reports of Jaye's proposed bill, someone sitting in jail on a murder charge would have to be kept on the payroll until a court ruled on the accused's guilt or innocence.

"This legislation would take away the right of employers to establish performance measures for their employees. It's certainly not something that we would support," said Barry Cargill, a lobbyist with the Small Business Association of Michigan.

Linn Hynds, an attorney who heads the employment law practice at Honigman Miller Schwartz & Cohn in Detroit, said such a law is unnecessary.

While employers can fire workers accused of crimes before they are convicted, Hynds said most don't do so. When a serious infraction is involved, employers usually suspend workers until their cases are completed in the court system, said Hynds, who represents businesses in employment matters.

"In my opinion, there's nothing to be fixed" by Jaye's proposal, Hynds said.

Employers, he added, need flexibility to deal with their workers in a way that allows them to protect their businesses.

An executive who gets arrested for running naked down a crowded beach on a Sunday might contend that his off-hours antic didn't affect his job performance. But if the incident receives widespread media coverage, the executive's employer might need to dismiss him in order to preserve the company's reputation.

Jaye would take that right away from an employer. To him, it's more important to save the job of someone who cannot control his behavior -- someone like him.





















Jaye calls proceeding 'an abuse of my rights' 
He faces up to 101/2 months in jail if a judge determines he violated his probation
Grand Rapids Press
August 3, 2001  
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- The former state senator on trial for allegedly violating his probation says the proceedings are "double jeopardy" because he already has been subjected to Senate hearings over the alleged incidents.

"This is an abuse of my rights and my fiancée's, and it's a waste of taxpayer dollars," David Jaye said.

With her hands shaking as she looked at transcripts, Sonia Kloss defended her fiancé, Jaye, saying he never hit her on the two occasions prosecutors say were violations of Jaye's probation on a drunken driving conviction.

Kloss testified for almost two hours, and took two breaks, in the trial in Macomb County District Court, which began Thursday.

Jaye was expelled from the Senate in May after most of his fellow senators said he no longer deserved to serve, in part because of his three drunken driving convictions and allegations he hit Kloss.

Jaye, who was ousted on a 33-2 vote, is the first senator in state history to be expelled.

Jaye insists he hasn't violated his probation, and has filed to run for the Sept. 11 special election to determine his successor in the Senate.

The general election is scheduled for Nov. 6.

Court proceedings, which were to resume this morning, could decide whether Jaye, of Washington Township, must run for his old seat with a probation violation conviction on his record.

If Judge Douglas Shepherd determines Jaye violated his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction, Jaye could have to finish serving his sentence. That could mean he would spend up to 101/2 months in jail.

Kloss admitted she had been drinking heavily before an April 12 incident in Florida and a Nov. 19 incident at a Bay County gas station, but denied Jaye hit her.

Cpl. Robert Macarelli of the Lee County, Fla. Sheriff's Department testified Thursday that Kloss was bleeding from the face and claiming Jaye hit her.






















Ex-senator found guilty, fined $500 
He could have been sentenced to 101/2 months in jail for violating his probation
Grand Rapids Press
August 3, 2001  
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- Former state Sen. David Jaye was found guilty Friday of violating his probation.

He was sentenced to 30 days in jail or a $500 fine. He also was ordered by Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd to attend anger management classes and his probation is continued.

"Frankly, Mr. Jaye, it would be easy for me to put you in jail for the full 101/2 months, but I don't think that would be the right thing for me to do," Shepherd said.

Jaye could have been ordered to spend up to 101/2 months in jail for violating his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction.

Prosecutors claimed Jaye assaulted his fiancée on two separate occasions, in Florida and in Bay County and that he violated restrictions placed on his driver's license by driving to northern Michigan for a hunting trip.

Shepherd found Jaye guilty of violating his probation as to the alleged incident in Florida and the driving allegation, but innocent as to the alleged Bay County incident.

Jaye said that he planned to testify in his own defense, but those plans never came to be as his attorney rested without calling him to the stand.

Jaye, who was expelled from the Senate in May after most of his fellow senators said he no longer deserved to serve, in part because of his three drunken driving convictions and allegations he hit his fiancée, Sonia Kloss. Jaye, who was ousted on a 33-2 vote, is the first senator in state history to be expelled.

Jaye insists he hasn't violated his probation, and has filed to run for the Sept. 11 special election to determine his successor in the Senate. The general election is scheduled for Nov. 6.

Jaye remained stoic on Thursday during most of the hearing, including during testimony by Kloss. Occasionally he would pass notes or get up and talk to his attorney. He has said he's nervous because it was not a jury trial.

Kloss testified for almost two hours, and took two breaks, in the trial in Macomb County District Court, which began Thursday.

Kloss admitted she had been drinking heavily before an April 12 incident in Florida and a Nov. 19 incident at a Bay County gas station, but denied Jaye hit her.



















Editorial Briefs: Macomb court weighs in on ex-Sen. Jaye's conduct
Detroit News
August 4, 2001  
David Jaye, the ousted state senator, has been convicted of violating his probation for a year-old drunken driving charge. He was found to have violated the terms of his probation by exceeding his restrictions on driving and being involved in a tussle with his fiancé in Florida.

However, he will avoid jail time if he pays a $500 fine and undergoes anger management training. That seems about right. A possible 10-month jail sentence would have been disproportionate.

Jaye has said he will run again in a special election to fill his seat after he was ousted for misconduct by his Senate colleagues. Now at least the voters of his district have a court finding as well as Senate hearings to consider.

















'New man' Jaye charts course 
He avoids jail time and focuses on his campaign for Senate
Grand Rapids Press
August 4, 2001  
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- With the threat of jail time largely gone, David Jaye said Friday that he was setting his sights on regaining the Michigan Senate seat stripped from him nearly three months ago.

A judge ruled Friday that Jaye violated his probation by assaulting his girlfriend and failing to follow driving restrictions. He sentenced Jaye to 30 days in jail, but the longtime Macomb County lawmaker can avoid jail if he pays a $500 fine within 21 days.

"I feel like a brand new man by having the 900-pound weight off my back," said Jaye, who was facing a maximum sentence of 101/2 months in jail for violating probation imposed after a 2000 drunken driving conviction.

Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd also continued Jaye's probation, and ordered him to attend anger management classes.

Shepherd said he took into account the role that Jaye's volatile relationship with his fiancée, Sonia Kloss, played in the probation violations.

During nearly two hours of testimony Thursday, Kloss admitted she had been drinking heavily before an April 12 incident in Florida and a Nov. 19 incident at a Bay County gas station. But she denied Jaye hit her either time.

Shepherd said he met with attorneys for both sides after hearing Thursday's testimony about the two alleged assaults. After the group agreed that testimony planned for Friday would not change his ruling on those charges, Shepherd issued his ruling and sentenced Jaye.

Besides the alleged assaults on Kloss, Jaye was accused of violating restrictions placed on his driver's license by driving to northern Michigan for a hunting trip.

Shepherd ruled there was enough evidence to prove Jaye's guilt in the Florida incident and the driver's license violation, but said there was not enough evidence to prove he assaulted Kloss in Bay County.

"I think he should have been incarcerated, but I understand the judge's reasons of why he decided what he did," said Eric Kaiser, chief trial attorney for the Macomb County Prosecutor's office.

Jaye attorney Philip Thomas said both sides were trying to work on an agreement.

"We had a right to reject this agreement, but we had to take the cost and the trial and tribulations into account," Thomas said. "Everything that's happened is now in the past. Today we begin a new chapter, and this is the new Dave Jaye."

The Senate voted 33-2 on May 24 to expel Jaye in the wake of his three drunken driving convictions and allegations he hit Kloss. The Republican from Macomb County's Washington Township was the first Michigan Senate member to be expelled.

Jaye has filed to run in the Sept. 11 special primary election for his vacant Senate seat. The general election is Nov. 6.

Jaye said he is looking forward to the campaign.

"The Michigan State Senate is not a country club," Jaye told reporters after Friday's proceedings. "It belongs to the taxpayers."




















It's time for Jaye to go away
The Herald-Palladium editorial board
The St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
August 5, 2001  
Now that a circuit court has added validity to the Michigan Senate's expulsion of David Jaye, we wish he would take the hint and slink off into private life.

But we're not holding our breath.

In fact, Jaye seemed more determined than ever Friday to win back the Senate seat that was taken away from him earlier this year.

Jaye got a victory of sorts Friday when a judge decided not to send him to jail after finding him guilty of probation violation (actually, the judge did impose a 30-day jail sentence, but suspended it if Jaye pays a $500 fine).

But while he may not be behind bars, he's hardly vindicated.

Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd ruled Friday there was sufficient evidence to find Jaye guilty of violating his probation by assaulting his girlfriend and failing to follow driving restrictions.

In his Senate expulsion hearing, Jaye strongly denied ever striking his girlfriend and said the Senate was being unfair by punishing him for a crime for which he's never been convicted.

The Senate, of course, didn't expel Jaye because of a single crime, but because of a pattern of behavior that brought shame to the institution.

Charges of assaulting his girlfriend in Florida were dropped because she refused to cooperate with authorities, but Shepherd ruled in the probation hearing there was enough evidence to prove Jaye's guilt.

That ruling should eliminate any doubt voters in Jaye's district had about his fitness for office. We're confident that when they go to the polls in a special election later this year, they'll end Jaye's fantasy of returning to the job he deservedly lost.

















Jaye vows to make stand for workers
Jackson Citizen Patriot
August 5, 2001  
David Jaye, the Macomb County Republican who was thrown out of the state Senate in May for bad behavior, is attempting to recapture his job on a decidedly non-Republican platform: He vows to be an advocate for workplace rights.

If he wins re-election in a special election, Jaye says he will introduce legislation that would prevent workers accused of crimes from being fired unless they are convicted.

"No American should be fired based on allegations, not convictions," Jaye said in announcing his bid for re-election on July 26.

Jaye said his bill also would prevent employees from being dismissed because of personal behavior unrelated to job performance.

Talk about your special-interest legislation. Repugnant personal behavior is what made Jaye the first person in state history to be tossed from the Senate.

He's been convicted of driving while drunk three times, twice while he held office. But Jaye's Senate expulsion hearing centered on allegations that he'd twice assaulted his fiancee, Sonia Kloss, during the past year.

Although witnesses told State Police that they saw Jaye hit Kloss at a Bay City gas station in November, prosecutors didn't bring charges against him.

And in April, Jaye was arrested in Florida after Kloss told police that Jaye struck her while the two argued over a set of keys.

She later recanted and assault charges against Jaye were dropped.

Jaye says he wants a law preventing employers from treating workers the way his Senate colleagues treated him.

Wouldn't that be great? We could have accused thieves, spouse abusers and child molesters toiling away in their cubicles, waiting to find out if they're going to be convicted.

Based on media reports of Jaye's proposed bill, someone sitting in jail on a murder charge would have to be kept on the payroll until a court ruled on the accused's guilt or innocence.

"This legislation would take away the right of employers to establish performance measures for their employees. It's certainly not something that we would support," said Barry Cargill, a lobbyist with the Small Business Association of Michigan.

Linn Hynds, an attorney who heads the employment law practice at Honigman Miller Schwartz & Cohn in Detroit, said such a law is unnecessary.

While employers can fire workers accused of crimes before they are convicted, Hynds said most don't. When a serious infraction is involved, employers usually suspend workers until their cases are completed in the court system, said Hynds, who represents businesses in employment matters.

"In my opinion, there's nothing to be fixed" by Jaye's proposal, Hynds said.

An executive arrested for running naked down a crowded beach might contend that his off-hours antic didn't affect his job performance. But if the incident receives widespread media coverage, the executive's employer might need to dismiss him in order to preserve the company's reputation.

Jaye would take that right away from an employer. To him, it's more important to save the job of someone who cannot control his behavior - someone just like him.



















Jaye is part of a huge field of candidates for his former seat
Grand Rapids Press
August 8, 2001  
LANSING -- A bulging field of 23 candidates, including former Sen. David Jaye, filed by Tuesday's deadline to run in the special election to fill the seat Jaye lost this spring when he was expelled from office.

Some political observers say Jaye may be helped by the large field, as the bevy of 14 Republican candidates may scatter the GOP vote and block anyone from becoming a threat to Jaye.

Jaye, who is eligible to run for his old seat, said Tuesday he is benefitting from a voter backlash to his expulsion.

"They say, 'What right does the Senate have to do that?'" Jaye said. "They say, 'You got railroaded ... We want to vote you back in to let Lansing have it."'

Jaye said his campaign to return to the Senate is picking up steam.

"We're surging. We've got momentum," he said. "My core constituency knows I deliver for them."

But some political experts say Jaye rarely made good on his populist, conservative rhetoric.

They say top threats to Jaye in the primary election are state Rep. Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond, who has several key endorsements; former state Rep. Sue Rocca of Sterling Heights, a Macomb County commissioner whose name is well known in the district; and Steve Thomas of Macomb, who ran unsuccessfully for Macomb County sheriff last year.

Others filing for the Republican nomination are John Bryan of Shelby Township; Joseph P. Chirco of Macomb; Tracy DeNise of Utica; Michael Dorman of Shelby Township; Ahmad Sam Esman of Utica; former state Rep. Alvin H. Kukuk of Macomb Township; Judy Landino of Sterling Heights; Robert Murphy of Sterling Heights; Carmine Palmieri of Sterling Heights; and John M. Peterson of Shelby Township.

Meanwhile, nine Democrats filed to run in the heavily Republican district, which extends from Fraser and Sterling Heights to Romeo and parts of Memphis in northern Macomb County.

They included Jim Ayres III of Macomb; Robert Denison of Shelby Township; Curtis L. Hargrove of Macomb Township; Al Martin of Sterling Heights; Treavor C. Smith of Shelby Township; Lola Telmos of Romeo; Carl Territo of Shelby Township; William E. Tremper of Macomb Township; and Jerry M. Witt of Shelby Township.



















Charges fly in race for Jaye seat 
Brochure distributed in Macomb district rips ousted senator
Detroit News
August 22, 2001  
STERLING HEIGHTS -- The first fistfuls of mud have been slung in the special election campaign to fill the state senate seat of the expelled David Jaye.

And the center of the controversy is -- to no one's surprise -- Jaye, who was kicked out of the Legislature in May in the wake of drunken driving convictions and allegations of domestic assault.

Jaye, a Washington Township Republican, is one of 22 candidates who are seeking their party's nomination for the seat in a Sept. 11 primary.

"If Dave Jaye speaks out as your senator and no one listens, do you have a voice?" reads the headline of a glossy, four-page brochure mailed this week to voters in Macomb County's 12th state Senate District.

"His former colleagues hate his guts. They don't listen to a word he says," according to the brochure.

The brochure was produced by the Committee for Law-Abiding State Senators. It is chaired by Jerry Moskwa, a retired teacher who was described by Jaye as a longtime political foe.

"Jerry Moskwa attended all the Senate hearings on my expulsion," Jaye said. "The voters should realize that someone who has been active in Democratic Party politics for years is now urging how they should vote in a Republican primary."

Moskwa could not be reached for comment.

Said Ed Bruley, who chairs Macomb's Democratic Party: "I'm not going to get involved in that."

Meanwhile, a Jaye ally, Bill McMaster, who heads Taxpayers United Inc., this week asked state House officials to investigate two members: Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond Township, and Sal Rocca, R-Sterling Heights.

Sanborn, also a candidate in the Senate Republican primary next month, is seen by many local political observers as Jaye's most formidable opponent. Rocca's wife, Sue, a Macomb County commissioner, is a candidate as well.

McMaster claims Sanborn and Rocca mailed literature at state expense within the 30-day limit before an election. McMaster further accused Sanborn of breaking other state election laws.

Sal Rocca dismissed the allegation against him. "I'm not a candidate, so I can mail out literature within 30 days of the election."

Sanborn called the McMaster effort "a typical Jaye tactic to throw mud on a campaign."

"He's running scared," Sanborn said. "We expected nothing less from him."

Who's in the race
Thirteen Republicans and nine Democrats are running in the Sept. 11 primary to fill the vacant seat created by the state Senate's expulsion of David Jaye.

* Republicans: In addition to Jaye, they are state Rep. Alan Sanborn, Macomb County Commissioner Sue Rocca, former Fraser Councilman Steve Thomas, former state Rep. Alvin Kukuk, John Bryan, Joseph P. Chirco, Tracy DeNise, Michael Dorman, Ahmad Sam Esman, Judy Landino, Robert Murphy and John M. Peterson.

* Democrats: Jim Ayres III, Robert Deninson, Curtis L. Hargrove, former Sterling Heights Mayor Al Martin, Treavor C. Smith, Lola Telmos, Utica school board member Carl Territo, William E. Tremper and Jerry M. Witt.

* The general election is Nov. 6.















Ousted State Senator on Comeback Trail
Stateline.org
August 27, 2001
David Jaye was the first senator in Michigan's 162 year history to be expelled from office.

Undaunted, the maverick ultra-conservative Republican now seeks to rewrite the history books again by becoming the first ousted lawmaker to recapture his old seat.

This unusual political comeback tale is being played out in one of Michigan's most volatile and nationally-known hot beds of political activity -- Macomb County, a suburb just north of Detroit. Birthplace of the Reagan Democrats, quirky Macomb is poised to send back to Lansing a legislator who was soundly drummed out of office for offenses he says he never committed. His fellow senators didn't believe him.

Jaye was accused, but never charged nor convicted, of beating his fiancee on two separate occasions.

In one of the cases, Sonia Kloss first told police that Jaye hit her.

Than she recanted. But by then the state Senate was up in arms. On top of the domestic violence allegations, Jaye had several previous drunk driving convictions. At one point, he'd served his constituents from a county jail cell.

His colleagues branded Jaye an embarrassment to the institution and one senator concluded he couldn't face his own wife and daughter as long as Jaye was around. 

Jaye has always been a thorn in the side of lawmakers whom he accuses of going along to get along. When they wanted to spend on pork barrel projects, he would single them out by name and blast their alleged frivolous spending habits. If Governor John Engler ordered Jaye to jump, he stood still. By his own admission he was not the most popular guy around, but he parlayed that into one election win after another as the voters back home loved him.

Removed from office this spring, Jaye is now pursuing his old seat claiming he was unfairly booted out, and he's giving the voters a chance to send Lansing a message and send him back.

To counteract the negative publicity over the abuse charges, Jaye has formed a Women for Jaye committee. Those female supporters say they don't believe he is a woman hater or beater. He'll need to convince other women that they are right.

The primary for the senate seat is September 11 with the run-off slated for November. Jaye's chances for winning increased when the field was finalized. When the dust settled, 13 Republican hopefuls were in the hunt.

Some theorize that the anti-Jaye vote will be divided among the other 12 while Jaye holds onto his base support and rides merrily back into office with less than 30% of the vote. He's won like that before but denies that he had anything to do with quietly recruiting the raft of candidates in the field.

The state's organized political establishment from the Chamber of Commerce to multi-client lobbyists has marshaled its money and manpower behind Rep. Alan Sanborn (R-Macomb County).
The more they pile on, the more Jaye plays the martyr seeking the sympathy vote. Jaye has beaten Sanborn before and as the mud flies, he's confident he can do it again.

The anti-Jaye theme is fairly simple: reelect this guy and nobody in the senate will give him the time of day, let alone any legislation that might benefit Macomb County. Jaye counters that he is an independent voice in tune with independent minded voters in the mercurial county.

Jaye's supporters chime in with attacks on Sanborn, saying he lied about bringing home $5 million for new roads while voting to spend $3 million on an airport in Kalamazoo about 200 miles from Macomb county.

There's already been one casualty in the fray. Senate Republican Leader Dan DeGrow, who almost single handily jump-started the expulsion proceedings against Jaye, has been deserted by his own party in a bid to become Michigan's next attorney general.

Lt. Governor Dick Posthumus, the odds-on favorite to win the GOP nomination for governor next year, told DeGrow this week that he was yanking his previous support for DeGrow's A.G. bid. Posthumus needs the conservative base in Macomb County to have any chance of replacing his pal and incumbent Gov. Engler. Since DeGrow had alienated voters there, Posthumus broke with him, citing the David Jaye flap as part of the reason.

David Jaye couldn't be happier.





Jaye vows comeback; some warn of toss-up
The Argus-Press
August 27, 2001
Lansing, Mich. [AP] - As David Jaye campaigns to become the once and future state senator from Macomb County, he makes one thing perfectly clear: If re-elected to his old Senate seat, he's not going to change his aggressive, populist style.

But that style and Jaye's expulsion from the Senate threaten Republicans' hold on the seat if he wins the GOP nomination, say some political observers.

"I think the Republicans would have trouble in the general election" if Jaye wins the Sept. 11 special primary election, said Tom Shields, a Republican consultant who heads Marketing Resource Group in Lansing.

A Jaye victory "makes this seat a toss-up," Shields said. "It's a potential quaqmire for the Republicans."

The traditionally Republican district extends from Fraser and Sterling Heights to Romeo and parts of Memphis in nothern Macomb County. Jaye was elected to the seat in a 1997 special election to replace the late Republican Sen. Doug Carl and was re-elected in 1998.

Republicans may sidestep the potential mess if some of the other leading GOP contenders in the field of 13 beat Jaye.

An Aug. 21-23 EPIC-MRA / Detroit Free Press poll indicates Jaye is in a close race with state Rep. Alan Sanborn of Richmond and Macomb County Commissioner Sue Rocca of Sterling Heights.

Sanborn had 25 percent, Rocca 20 percent and Jaye 15 percent in the survey of 500 voters in the district. The poll has a margin of error of 5 percentage points either way, so it's unclear if Sanborn actually has the lead. Twenty-two percent of the voters said they were undecided.
Jaye seems confident he'll win both the primary and general election. 

He said he has every intention of resuming his anti-tax, small-government campaign to cut state spending, reverse affirmative action policies and champion gun rights if re-elected.

"I'm the taxpayer's best friend," he boasted.

But Sanborn has gathered a flurry of endorsements from groups such as the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Association of Michigan, and the Macomb County Farm Bureau.

"We're gaining momentum," Sanborn said. "Clearly the voters want to see a change...They want a senator they can be proud of."

Jaye, from Macomb County's Washington Township, has dominated the Senate's attention for months. In May, he became the first senator to be expelled from office.

The Senate voted 33-2 for expulsion based on his record of three drunken driving convictions, accusations - but no charges - he assaulted his fiancée and allegations he verbally abused Senate staff.

Earlier this month, a district court judge fined Jaye $500 after ruling that he violated his probation by assaulting his girlfriend and failing to follow driving restrictions.

But Jaye remained eligible to run in the special election to fill his former seat. As a well-known politician with a strong core of conservative supporters, Jaye stands to do well in a crowded field that threatens to divide the anti-Jaye vite, political experts said.

"That's the best scenario for Jaye," said Bill Ballenger, editor of Inside Michigan Politics. Party leaders did everything they could to keep the field narrow, but it didn't work, he said.

Democratic leaders are salivating at the idea they could win the seat if Jaye wins the GOP nomination. Nine Democrats have filed for the seat. After the Sept. 11 special primaries, the winner will be chosen in a Nov. 6 special election.

"I think there is enough anti-Jaye sentiment among sane and rational people that it would be possible to take that seat," said Joyce Lalonde, Democratic chairwoman of the 10th Congressional District, which includes much of the 12th state Senate District.

"David Jaye has been a political embarrassment to the Republican Party and a political embarrassment in general," she said.

Political experts say top threats to Jaye in the primary election are Sanborn, Rocca, former Re. Alvin H. Kukuk of Macomb Township and Steve Thomas of Macomb, who ran unsuccessfully for Macomb County sheriff last year.

Thomas got 5 percent in the EPIC-MRA / Detroit Free Press poll; Kukuk got 4 percent. All other Republicans in the race got 2 percent or less.

Others in the GOP ballot are John Bryan of Shelby Township, Joseph P. Chirco of Macomb, Tracy DeNise of Utica, Michael Dorman of Shelby Township, Ahmad Sam Esman of Utica, Judy Landino of Sterling Heights, Robert Murphy of Sterling Heights, and John M. Peterson of Shelby Township.

The nine Democrats who filed to run are Jim Ayres III of Macomb, Robert Denison of Shelby Township, Curtis L. Hargrove of Macomb Township, Al Martin of Sterling Heights, Trevor C. Smith of Shelby Township, Lola Telmos of Romeo, Carl Territo of Shelby Township, William E. Tremper of Macomb Township and Jerry M. Witt of Shelby Township.















David Jaye's fiancée pregnant, won't marry ousted senator
FreeRepulic.com
August 28, 2001
Sonia Kloss, apparently pregnant and feeling abandoned by her fiancee, said Monday she has broken off her engagement with ex- senator David Jaye because she claims Jaye has had affairs with several other women.

Kloss, 36, said she no longer plans to marry Jaye in the spring and will not support him in the upcoming Sept. 11 special election. She accuses Jaye of sexual relations with 10 women since they've been engaged, and she said he's been unfaithful to her numerous times.

"I told him I don't want to have anything to do with him. I'm done with him," Kloss said in a telephone interview from her Fort Myers, Fla., home."

As far as I'm concerned, the engagement is off. I think he's using me. I can't keep putting up with his infidelities. Once he gets his Senate seat back, he'll dump me like a hot potato."

Jaye did not personally return repeated telephone calls for comment.
However, a spokesperson for Jaye, whose running in the Sept. 11 special election was prompted by his Senate expulsion, said the Washington Township Republican was the one who ended the relationship.

Jaye spokeswoman Susan Tabar said that Kloss has falsely accused Jaye of infidelities several times in the past. Jaye, 43, believes Kloss is falsely claiming to be pregnant as a sympathy ploy, Tabar added.

"He has made several attempts to mitigate the situation and it hasn't worked. Dave has ended the relationship. The damage is done," Tabar said.

The Washington Township Republican said as recently as Aug. 3 that he loved Kloss and would marry her this spring.

But Tabar said Kloss' heavy drinking and her extreme jealousy has taken its toll on the relationship."

She's been rambling on for two years. Whenever something goes wrong, she retaliates with another façade," said Tabar, a member of the political group known as Women Supporting Jaye.

On Monday, Kloss said she is about 2 1/2 months pregnant with Jaye's child and suffering daily from morning sickness. But she said the ex-senator's only interest is winning the September primary and Nov. 6 general election.

"I'm 2 1/2 months pregnant, I'm puking my guts out, and his words to me this morning were, 'Are you sure I'm the father?'" Kloss said. "He doesn't like kids. He doesn't want kids. But he's pro-life. Figure that out."

Kloss' accusations come at a time when a new poll shows Jaye trailing in third place in the Republican primary field, with just 15 percent of the vote. The EPIC/MRA poll indicated that only 10 percent of Republican women in the 12th Senate District will vote for him.

When allegations arose that Jaye had assaulted Kloss in Bay County in November and at her Florida home in April, Kloss said she was standing by her man. She denied Jaye had ever hit her and urged the Senate not to expel him because of the alleged assaults.

After the expulsion, Kloss testified on Jaye's behalf at his August probation hearing. The former lawmaker had never been charged with either assault but he was found guilty of violating his probation in the Florida incident.

When the probation hearing concluded on Aug. 3, Kloss campaigned for Jaye later that day. But she returned to Florida about a day later to be with her two sons and hasn't returned to Michigan since.

Jaye and Kloss announced their engagement in February but Kloss has been telling people that they're engaged since at least September 1999.

Their relationship apparently unraveled last week when Jaye put out a press release announcing that his ex-wife, Sharon Jaye, was endorsing his candidacy. The ex-senator and Kloss had quarreled in the past about Jaye's continued friendship with his former wife.
Kloss admitted Monday that she is upset with Jaye's relationship with his former wife.

Sharon Jaye, however, said she remains friends with her ex-husband.
"I really don't want to lower myself to her (Kloss') level. I am not romantic with David," she said.

A Shelby Township resident, Sharon Jaye filed for divorce in 1998 and the divorce became final in 1999. She said Kloss has placed harassing phone calls to her -- sometimes in the middle of the night -- for nearly two years.

Kloss, who is not a registered voter in Michigan, said she will not support Jaye's bid to win back his Senate seat but will instead back one of Jaye's opponents in the 22-person field. She would not say who will gain her endorsement.

"David was not serious about marrying me," she said. "He was only interested in politics."

















She says he cheats; he calls her a drunk 
Bitter breakup for Jaye, fiancée
Detroit News
August 29, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- David Jaye was rousted out of a sound sleep about 3:30 Monday morning by fiancée Sonia Kloss, apparently drunk and definitely miffed about their stormy relationship.

It was the latest in a series of late-night calls Kloss made to Jaye from her home in Fort Myers, Fla., and it was the straw that broke their 18-month relationship.

Now that relationship is unraveling publicly even as the Washington Township Republican fights to get back the state Senate seat he was booted from in May. Think Melrose Place without the swanky condos, and with plenty of risks for the embattled arch conservative who faces 12 opponents in the primary just two weeks away.

The biggest risk could be the latest salvo by Kloss, who stood by Jaye during numerous court hearings and his expulsion from the state Senate. Kloss now says Jaye did indeed beat her and she is planning to try to reopen a Florida assault case against him.

The tenor of the breakup is bitter: Kloss says Jaye has a woman supporting him in the campaign and in bed. Jaye says Kloss is a drunk, and is probably lying about being pregnant with his baby.

As for Monday morning's endgame, Jaye, who denies he was unfaithful to Kloss, told his aides that Kloss was "very inebriated, very hostile" because he enlisted his former wife, Sharon, to help in his campaign.

"The last year and a half dating Sonia was a serious mistake for me," Jaye said Tuesday in a written statement. "I belatedly realized we were wrong for each other."

Kloss said reconciliation is out of the question. "He could come begging on his four claws and if he touches me I will turn to stone."

Kloss, in a phone interview from her Florida home, confirmed the two argued Monday, as they have before, about Sharon Jaye's continued presence in his life. Kloss also said it was she who broke things off when David Jaye questioned her claim of being pregnant with his child.

Sharon Jaye, Kloss said, is who the couple was arguing about in an April 12 bout at her Fort Myers home that landed the then-state Sen. Jaye in trouble with Florida authorities and his Lansing colleagues.

"I told him I did not want him to have any communication with that woman because she called my kids (a racial epithet) and called me a (racial epithet) and a Democrat. She kept saying it," Kloss said.

Kloss is originally from Trinidad and has two sons from a previous marriage.

Sharon Jaye said she has never called anyone names and that Kloss is jealous for no reason and "is a very insecure, troubled lady ... who always wanted (Jaye) to hate me."

"David and me, we are real buddies," Sharon Jaye said. "We will always be buddies. Marriage? I don't foresee that. Will I get intimate with him again: No. It is an unusual situation we have, but David is unusual."

Sharon Jaye said her relationship with David Jaye has remained platonic since 1999, and that if he were sleeping around, he would have told her -- as a friend.

"We have an amicable, but not romantic, relationship. Period. I have always stood by him politically and philosophically," she said.

Deciding to break it off
Jaye's supporters say the breakup can only help their candidate.

"She was very disruptive and Dave decided he had had enough and decided to break it off," said William McMasters, a spokesman for Jaye. "We (his staff) are jubilant over this development. She was a terrible millstone. When you look at Dave's trouble in Florida and Bay City, she was central to both of them."

Jaye declined an interview, saying only he wasn't worried about Kloss' threats to reopen the Florida case. In his statement, he questioned Kloss' pregnancy.

"Sonia has made false pregnancy claims before," Jaye said. "If Sonia is truly pregnant this time, of course I will support my child."

Jaye also said that Kloss has been drinking heavily and needs professional help. "Sonia has turned to a wild, out-of-control lifestyle and is self-destructive. She was in a Florida treatment program, but has turned to heavy drinking and blackouts leading to irrational behavior."

Jaye said ending the relationship with Sonia is something he needed to do. "I've promised voters in Macomb County I needed changes in my life. Not drinking and closing the Sonia chapter are two important changes."

Kloss admitted she has been drinking heavily at times, but blamed it on the stress of her relationship with Jaye.

Kloss said she got pregnant with Jaye's child when she was in Michigan during the state Senate hearings that led to Jaye's expulsion.

Charges of infidelity
The sex-soaked soap opera, political analysts said, with charges and counter-charges of infidelity and drunkenness, all but dooms Jaye's chances to get elected to his old Senate seat. Jaye is in a tight race with several well-known Republican challengers in the Sept. 11 primary.

And to make matters worse, Kloss said Tuesday she is going to re-open the Florida assault cases against her former beau.

Jaye was arrested for the alleged assault last April 12 at Kloss' Fort Myers home, but charges were never filed because there was not enough evidence -- mainly because she refused to say he had hit her.

"When I talked to the prosecutor at the time I said he didn't do it, but the prosecutor said if there was new evidence, new facts they would re-open the case," Kloss said. "I will re-open the case. Yes, he did assault me. If they reopen the Florida case, I will say he assaulted me."

Jaye said Tuesday he's not worried because Kloss has testified three times under oath that the attack never occurred.

Paul Poland, a Florida state attorney, said he would look at the case again if Kloss decides she wants to reopen the file. "We will have to look at the facts and circumstances -- what she has to present to us, what she has to say. Obviously, we're going to have to deal with her credibility. But I want to hear her out. I don't want to prejudge anything."

Kloss said she realizes this latest brouhaha could seriously damage Jaye's re-election chances.

"I went through all of this for him and then he does this to me," Kloss said. "Of course this will hurt him. That's what I want. He doesn't deserve to be senator."

Pregnancy questioned
Karen Watkins, one of the organizers of the Women for Jaye Committee, said she still supports Jaye, and questioned whether Kloss' pregnancy was real.

"I wonder if Sonia is absolutely certain," said Watkins, an office manager for an automotive supply company. "We continue to support Jaye because he is committed to what he is doing in Lansing as far as protecting constitutional rights, reducing taxes and voting against tax increases."

But two Lansing-based political analysts say the end of Jaye's political career may be nigh.

"It probably sinks him into a 40-mile deep mine shaft," said Bill Ballenger, who publishes Inside Michigan Politics. "Politically, recovery at this point would be remarkable ... worthy of Lazarus."

Ed Sarpolous, vice-president of the polling firm, EPIC/MRA, expects the issue to further erode support from women voters.

"The focus shifts back to him and his problems," Sarpolous said.

Polls conducted by Sarpolous last week showed Jaye trailing his chief opponent, state Rep. Alan Sanborn in one poll and placed him third in another.

"This was not unexpected," Sarpolous said. "David Jaye's life could be a story from Peyton Place."
















Jaye walking; fiancée says she sent him packing 
Two weeks before the primary, the engagement is off between the expelled state senator and his fiancée
Grand Rapids Press
August 29, 2001  
MOUNT CLEMENS -- Sonia Kloss, who steadfastly supported David Jaye through his expulsion from the Michigan Senate and accusations of domestic abuse, says she has broken off her engagement with Jaye because he has had affairs with other women.

In a statement Tuesday, Jaye said: "The last year and a half of dating Sonia was a serious mistake for me. I belatedly realize we are wrong for each other."

Kloss, in comments from Florida on Tuesday, called herself free and dismissed the relationship.

"I don't want to see his face anymore," she said. "I broke off the relationship. He's been unfaithful to me. I can prove it."

Kloss earlier told The Macomb Daily that she's pregnant but that Jaye is interested only in politics and doesn't want children.

"I can't keep putting up with his infidelities. Once he gets his Senate seat back, he'll dump me like a hot potato," she said.

Kloss said that she is about 21/2 months pregnant with Jaye's child and suffering daily from morning sickness.

Jaye said that Kloss has made false pregnancy claims before, but added, "of course I will support my child" if Kloss is pregnant.

The exchange came two weeks before the Sept. 11 primary election for Jaye's former Senate seat. He was expelled in May, and is running to regain the seat. The general election is Nov. 6.

"Sonia has turned to a wild, out-of-control lifestyle and is self-destructive," Jaye said. He said she has engaged in "heavy drinking and blackouts leading to irrational behavior," including phone calls to reporters and his political foes.

Kloss heatedly rejected Jaye's comments.

"I drink a lot and I party hard, but it doesn't make me an insane person," she said. "It's all over. It's done. It's finished."

Kloss, 36, said that she no longer plans to marry Jaye in the spring and will not support him in the special election. Jaye, of Macomb County's Washington Township, is one of 13 Republicans and nine Democrats running in the primary election to fill out his term, which runs through Dec. 31, 2002.

The Senate voted 33-2 for expulsion based on his record of three drunken driving convictions, accusations -- but no charges -- he assaulted Kloss and allegations he verbally abused Senate staff.

When allegations arose that Jaye had assaulted Kloss in Bay County in November and at her Florida home in April, Kloss denied Jaye had ever hit her and urged the Senate not to expel him because of the alleged assaults.

Tuesday, Kloss said she would reopen the Florida case.

"When I talked to the prosecutor at the time I said he didn't do it, but the prosecutor said if there was new evidence, new facts they would reopen the Florida case," Kloss said. "I will reopen the case. Yes, he did assault me. If they reopen the Florida case, I will say he assaulted me."

Jaye said he isn't worried because Kloss has testified under oath that he never struck her.

Jaye and Kloss announced their engagement in February, but Kloss has been telling people that they're engaged since at least September 1999.















Ousted lawmaker gets a warning
Jaye's use of Senator title called illegal
Detroit Free Press
August 31, 2001
By reading the campaign literature that calls him Sen. Dave Jaye and his Web site titled Michigan State Senator Dave Jaye Information Center, one might never know that Jaye isn't a senator at all. To call himself one in such correspondence is illegal, says William Harding of the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office. If the ousted lawmaker-turned-candidate for his old seat doesn't cease with the senatorial references, he will be ticketed for violating...















Michigan Today
Detroit Free Press
September 1, 2001
MACOMB COUNTY - Jaye says he's not only non-senator running Former state senator David Jaye said Friday he will remove the word "senator" from his campaign literature and accused the Macomb County prosecutor of dirty politics and last-minute trickery. Jaye said other political candidates should be required to change their literature, specifically one of his opponents for the state Senate, Alan Sanborn. A Sanborn campaign flyer reads...















22 candidates, one issue: Jaye
Ex-Senator humble and apologetic as he tries for a comeback
Detroit Free Press
September 6, 2001
Face to face with a voter who said she couldn't support him this time around, former state Sen. David Jaye stood humbled and offered an apology. "I'm a man, not a priest. I'm a politician, not a saint," he told the woman in front of the Sterling Heights Senior Activity Center. "I apologize about the drinking. I've been dry for a year and a half. My fiancée, she left me." On a recent...
















In This Corner, Sonia Kloss
Former Fiancé Of Michigan Sen. David Jaye Not Accepting Accusations Jaye Heaps Upon Her
Michigan Lawyers Weekly 
September 10, 2001  
Sonia Kloss, now former fiancée of ousted Sen. David Jaye, is not passively accepting the accusations Jaye has heaped upon her recently.

Jaye is hoping to regain the senate seat he lost in May. Kloss, who has accused Jaye of infidelity, says she is about three months pregnant and that Jaye is the father of her child.

While Jaye has called Kloss "wild" and "out of control," Kloss explained, "I drink a lot and I party hard, but it doesn't make me an insane person."

Kloss has also threatened to reopen the Florida case against Jaye.

"Yes he did assault me," she said. "If they reopen the Florida case, I will say he assaulted me."

Jaye has accused Kloss of being violent and, in a press release announcing their breakup, he stated, "Before I started dating her, she pled guilty to hitting her ex-husband over the head with a barstool."
















State's voters head to the polls
Grand Rapids Press
September 11, 2001  
Office-seekers in Michigan should find out today if they would survive primary elections that would keep their political hopes alive until November.

Most of today's high-stakes elections were clustered in metropolitan Detroit. Voters were weighing the merits of mayoral candidates in Detroit, Dearborn, Pontiac and Hamtramck and no fewer than 97 candidates for the Detroit City Council.

Another crowded ballot faced voters in Macomb County's 12th Senate District, where former Sen. David Jaye was battling to regain the seat stripped of him in May after a series of brushes with the law.

In Traverse City, voters were to narrow the field of mayoral candidates from five to two and whittle eight candidates for three City Commission seats down to six.

Other elections were scheduled in communities as large as Pontiac, which was to decide finalists for mayor and City Council, and as small as Schoolcraft County's Inwood Township, where an operating and fire-protection millage was on the ballot.

In Detroit, 21 mayoral candidates were campaigning to win one of two slots on the Nov. 6 general election ballot. The winner that day would succeed Dennis Archer, who announced in April that he was not seeking a third term as mayor of the nation's 10th-largest city.

Incumbent City Council President Gil Hill, 69, went into today's primary leading in the polls, followed by state House Minority Leader Kwame Kilpatrick and City Councilman Nicholas Hood III.

The large field of City Council candidates was to be reduced to 18 today, then to nine in the Nov. 6 general election. Six of the nine were seeking re-election.

Thirteen Republicans were on the ballot in the 12th Senate district. Polls showed Jaye in third place, behind state Rep. Alan Sanborn and Macomb County Commissioner Sue Rocca -- each of whom was outspending the one-time senator by margins exceeding 6-to-1.

The winner of the GOP primary in the traditionally Republican district was likely to prevail in the general election over the top vote-getter among nine Democrats on today's ballot.

In Dearborn, 15-year incumbent Mayor Michael Guido faces three challengers, including former Police Chief Ronald Deziel. Guido ran unopposed for the office in 1993 and won 87 percent of the vote in 1997.

Traverse City voters will vote for mayor for the first time since 1940. A City Charter amendment approved by voters in 2000 changed the office post from an annual City Commission appointment to a two-year elected post.

Incumbent Commissioners Margaret Dodd, Phill Orth and Jim Tompkins are running for the mayor's post, along with former Commissioner Jasper Weese and Northwestern Michigan College student Bill Potter.
















Sanborn wins in Macomb 
Jaye concedes defeat in 12th District GOP primary race
Detroit News
September 12, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- State Rep. Alan B. Sanborn won the Republican primary Tuesday to succeed the disgraced David Jaye in the state Senate.

Jaye was expelled from the Senate four months ago his political career may be over.

Jaye conceded late Tuesday, blaming the media's intrusion in to his personal life for the defeat.

Sanborn surged into the lead over Jaye and another strong candidate, county commissioner Sue Rocca, in returns from Sterling Heights, Macomb Township, Utica and the townships of Shelby, Richmond, Bruce and Armada.

In some communities, Sanborn, 43, of Richmond Township, held huge 3-1 leads over Jaye and even wider margins over Rocca.

Sanborn will face the Democratic nominee Nov. 6. The winner of that primary was unclear late Tuesday.

Jaye was kicked out of the Senate in May by his colleagues following lengthy hearings into misconduct charges. Tuesday's special primary election was created by Gov. John Engler to fill the vacancy.

Jaye is the first senator ever expelled from office in the state.

A check of some of the key communities in the district showed the number of voters going to the polls was running well below 20 percent.

"The weather was perfect. Everything was perfect. But I think people (were) glued to their television sets," Shelby Township Clerk Terri Kowal said
















Jaye loses primary bid for redemption, Senate
Grand Rapids Press
September 12, 2001  
MOUNT CLEMENS -- State Rep. Alan Sanborn won the Republican primary Tuesday in the 12th Senate District, ending expelled Sen. David Jaye's bid to have voters return him to the Senate.

With 87 percent of precincts reporting, Sanborn had 10,531 votes, or 48 percent, former Rep. Sue Rocca of Sterling Heights had 4,975 votes, or 23 percent, and Jaye had 4,183 votes, or 19 percent.

"The special interests won this election," said Jaye, who conceded.

He thanked voters for getting to the polls despite the tragedies in Washington and New York.

Thirteen candidates ran in the GOP primary for Michigan's 12th Senate District that takes in parts of Macomb County.

At Virgil Grissom Middle School, Joe Rubino said he voted to make sure Jaye does not get re-elected. Jaye, of Washington Township, was expelled from the Senate in May on a 33-2 vote for behavior that included three drunken driving convictions and accusations -- but no charges -- that he assaulted his fiancée.

"He's a low-life character who shouldn't get back into office," said Rubino, a 47-year-old truck driver.

"I think it might actually help because people are thinking about who they want in office to make the government run more smoothly," Rubino said.

Helen and George Jarzab said they voted for Jaye because they disagreed with his expulsion.

The Senate "did an injustice to him," Helen Jarzab said. "It was very important to vote today."

Jaye was elected to the seat in a 1997 special election to replace the late Republican Sen. Doug Carl and re-elected in 1998. His fiancee defended him during the Senate investigation that led to his expulsion and denied several times that he ever hit her.

But when she publicly broke off their engagement two weeks ago, she and Jaye blamed each other and said the other's poor behavior was the reason for the breakup.

Jaye blamed the media coverage of his troubles for his loss.

"Tabloid journalism triumphed over the issues in this campaign," Jaye said. "There's been a double standard in the media going after my private life."

He said he has not ruled out a future in politics.

Gerald Tromontine, 38, said he's sorry Macomb County voters had to deal with the upheaval left by Jaye's expulsion.

"He's been a bit of a goof ball," said Tromontine, a tool and die worker. "It never should have gotten to this point. But there are a lot of good candidates in this race and there's really no reason voters should put him back in office."

Others on the GOP ballot are Steve Thomas of Macomb, with 6 percent, former Rep. Alvin Kukuk of Macomb Township, with 2 percent, and John Bryan of Shelby Township and Michael Dorman of Shelby Township, with 1 percent each. The remaining candidates: Tracy DeNise of Utica; Joseph P. Chirco of Macomb; Judy Landino of Sterling Heights; Robert Murphy of Sterling Heights; John M. Peterson of Shelby Township; and Ahmad Sam Esman of Utica all had less than 1 percent of votes.

Among Democrats, with 86 percent of the precincts reporting, Carl Territo of Macomb led with 24 percent of the vote and Robert Denison of Shelby Township had 18 percent. Al Martin of Sterling Heights had 11 percent and Jim Ayres III of Macomb had 10 percent.

Lola Telmos of Romeo had 9 percent, Jerry M. Witt of Shelby Township had 8 percent, Curtis L. Hargrove of Macomb Township had 7 percent, Treavor C. Smith of Shelby Township had 7 percent, and William E. Tremper of Macomb Township, 5 percent.

The district extends from Fraser and Sterling Heights to Romeo and parts of Memphis in northern Macomb County. It's traditionally Republican, although Democrats think they have a chance to win the seat if Jaye wins the GOP primary.

The winners of the Republican and Democratic primaries will meet each other in the Nov. 6 general election.

The winner will hold the seat until Dec. 31, 2002.

The outcome won't have much effect on the Senate's makeup, since Republicans already have a 22-15 majority.
















Jaye loses bid to regain Senate seat 
Kirkpatrick and Hill win Detroit mayoral primary
Holland Sentinel
September 12, 2001  
State Rep. Alan Sanborn won the Republican primary in the 12th Senate District Tuesday, ending expelled Sen. David Jaye's bid to have voters return him to the Senate.

With 87 percent of precincts reporting, Sanborn had 10,531 votes, or 48 percent, former Rep. Sue Rocca of Sterling Heights had 4,975 votes, or 23 percent, and Jaye had 4,183 votes, or 19 percent.

"The special interests won this election," said Jaye, who conceded.

He thanked voters for getting to the polls despite the tragedies in Washington and New York.

Sanborn said he outworked Jaye.

"I think he got out of touch with his district," Sanborn said. "They didn't want to be bogged down by controversy anymore."

In Detroit, state House Minority Leader Kwame Kilpatrick and City Council President Gil Hill were the top two finishers in Tuesday's mayoral primary and will square off in the general election to succeed Mayor Dennis Archer.

With 75 percent of precincts reporting, Kilpatrick had 46,126 votes, or 51 percent, followed by Hill with 30,970 votes, or 34 percent.
















Defeated Jaye may plan state House run 
But analysts say he has to clean up his personal life to win
Detroit News
September 13, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- David Jaye failed to regain his state senate seat Tuesday, but his sound defeat may not be the end of his political career, analysts say.

Jaye, a Washington Township Republican, could re-emerge on the Macomb County political scene as early as this fall as a candidate for the 32nd state House seat in northern Macomb County.

The seat is held by Alan Sanborn, who won the Republican primary Tuesday for Jaye's old senate seat. Sanborn faces Democrat Carl Territo Sr. in the Nov. 6 general election and is considered a shoo-in in the heavily Republican district.

Shortly after Jaye conceded defeat, he broached the possibility of running for another office, including Sanborn's house seat.

"I've been active in gun issues and tax issues since I was a teen-ager," Jaye said. "This is a lifelong commitment."

Lansing political analyst Craig Ruff agrees that Jaye is too young to be written off as a politician.

"You never say that about someone who is only 43 years old," said Ruff, president of Public Sector Consultants in Lansing. "In addition, people in politics say the most valuable experience sometimes come from an election defeat.

"It will be a tough row to hoe for him to re-emerge as a political personality," Ruff said. "Stability in his personal life would help."

Jaye's tumultuous personal life was one of the key factors in his defeat, according to Macomb County political analyst Richard Sabaugh.

"If he cleans up his act, there is life after defeat," Sabaugh said. "But he has to prove to the voters that he is a different person than he was. Clearly, the election was not decided on any issues, but on his personal problems."

Jaye said that the problems he had, such as drunken driving, are all in his past.

Sabaugh said whether Jaye would have a chance to win Sanborn's old house seat depends on what other candidates run for it.

"But seasoned politicians might say he should retire into the shadows for awhile before re-emerging," Ruff said.

Ed Sarpolus, vice-president of EPIC/MRA, a Lansing-based polling firm, said what is so significant about Jaye's defeat is the 3 to 1 loss in his home community.

"That's devastating for him," Sarpolus said. "Unless the voting public falls asleep, or he goes through penance, he couldn't make a comeback in the immediate future."
















Jaye's car linked to bicycle incident at Stony Creek
Detroit News
December 10, 2001  
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Rangers at the Stony Creek Metropark continue their investigation into an incident in which a car owned by expelled state Sen. David Jaye may have forced a bicyclist off the road.

Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga said Sunday there doesn't appear to be enough evidence to charge Jaye with a crime, but the case remains open because rangers have not yet interviewed Jaye about the episode that happened Oct. 15.

Marlinga said the investigation shows that a car registered to Jaye encountered the 36-year-old bicyclist on the roadway portion of a street at Stony Creek and forced the bicyclist off the road.

"The car was driving in an erratic and possibly aggressive manner," Marlinga said. "After the car sped past, the bicyclist got the car's license plate number and the car came back registered to David Jaye."

The bicyclist was unable to identify Jaye from a photo lineup in which the cyclist was shown photographs of the ex-senator and other men with similar physical characteristics, Marlinga said. Without the identification, Jaye could not be charged, Marlinga said.

"The bicyclist could not make a positive identification, but that doesn't surprise me because it was a quick incident," that happened at dusk, Marlinga said.

Jaye was unavailable for comment, but his former attorney said it doesn't appear as if the prosecutor has evidence against the ex-senator and should officially close the case.

"Based upon what I've been told by the news media, it sounds like they have a case that is closed," said Grosse Pointe attorney Phil Thomas. "They should leave this man alone and they shouldn't be discussing this case with the news until the investigation is completed."

Thomas, who has represented Jaye in several cases, stressed he is not Jaye's attorney at present and hasn't spoken to him since the summer.

Thomas said he sees two serious problems with the case. The bicyclist's inability to identify the driver of the car is one problem.

"And how can they be sure the identity of the car license plate was accurate," Thomas said. "There have been cases in the past where people have taken down license plate numbers and they were wrong."
















David Jaye takes job in South Korea
Grand Rapids Press
December 21, 2001  
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- Ousted state Sen. David Jaye is moving to South Korea to teach American government for at least two months, his lawyer said.

Macomb County District Judge Doug Shepherd on Thursday gave Jaye permission to take the job, but told the former Republican lawmaker he must keep in touch with his probation officer, attorney Rob Huth said.

Jaye also must continue attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in Korea, if possible, and continue to pay oversight fees to the court.

Jaye was expelled from the state Senate in May following drunken driving arrests and allegations he struck his then-fiancée. He tried to regain his Senate seat in the special election called to replace him but came in third in the Sept. 11 primary.

State Rep. Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond, now holds the seat.

Jaye was recruited for the teaching job by a company that saw his resume on the job Web site Monster.com. He will teach either U.S. soldiers or South Korean citizens, Huth said. The job has a two-month probationary period. After that Jaye and the company may decide to extend the position, the lawyer said.
















Former state Sen. David Jaye accused of threatening jogger on Macomb bike trail
The Detroit News
September 09, 2014
Washington Township – — A former state senator has been charged with disorderly conduct after police said he threatened a jogger and had a backpack of beer.

David Jaye, expelled from the Legislature in 2001 when he was a Republican from Washington Township, was arrested just before 10 p.m. Sunday after a male jogger called police about a disorderly person on the Macomb Orchard Trail near Campground and Van Dyke, said Lt. John Michalke of the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office Tuesday.

The jogger told police Jaye, of Bonita Springs, Florida, had been chanting and made threats to “hurt” him. Jaye was on a bicycle and wearing a backpack. Michalke said Jaye had slurred speech and smelled of alcohol.

When police searched his backpack they found cans of beer.

Jaye, 56, was taken to the Macomb County jail. He was video-arraigned Monday in the 42nd District Court of Romeo, granted a $1,000 personal bond and released.

Michalke said Jaye told police he was in Michigan because he owns property in Shelby Township, a claim police weren’t able to substantiate.

Jaye was expelled from the state Legislature in 2001 for drunken driving convictions, assault allegations by his fiancée in Fort Myers, Florida, and other problems. After his expulsion Jaye was a visiting professor at Hanyang Graduate School of International Studies in South Korea, according to his LinkedIn page.

But he had to continue attending Alcoholics Anonymous classes in Korea and report monthly to Macomb County probation officials.

The most recent job Jaye held, according to his LinkedIn page, was as an English for speakers of other languages teacher for nighttime classes at Collier County Schools Adult Education in Naples, Florida. A Collier County Schools staffer said Jaye hadn’t work as for them in more than a year. It’s unclear where he’s currently working.

He is next scheduled to appear in 42nd District Court of Romeo at 9 a.m. Sept 25.
















Ex-state senator charged with disorderly conduct 
David Jaye accused of threatening jogger on Macomb bicycle trail
Detroit News
September 10, 2014  
Washington Township – A former state senator has been charged with disorderly conduct after police said he threatened a jogger and had a backpack of beer.

David Jaye, expelled from the Legislature in 2001 when he was a Republican from Washington Township, was arrested just before 10 p.m. Sunday after a male jogger called police about a disorderly person on the Macomb Orchard Trail near Campground and Van Dyke, said Lt. John Michalke of the Macomb County Sheriff's Office Tuesday.

The jogger told police Jaye, of Bonita Springs, Florida, had been chanting and made threats to "hurt" him. Jaye was on a bicycle and wearing a backpack. Michalke said Jaye had slurred speech and smelled of alcohol.

When police searched his backpack they found cans of beer.

Jaye, 56, was taken to the Macomb County jail. He was video-arraigned Monday in the 42nd District Court of Romeo, granted a $1,000 personal bond and released.

Michalke said Jaye told police he was in Michigan because he owns property in Shelby Township, a claim police weren't able to substantiate.

Jaye was expelled from the state Legislature in 2001 for drunken driving convictions, assault allegations by his fiancée in Fort Myers, Florida, and other problems. After his expulsion Jaye was a visiting professor at Hanyang Graduate School of International Studies in South Korea, according to his LinkedIn page.

But he had to continue attending Alcoholics Anonymous classes in Korea and report monthly to Macomb County probation officials.

The most recent job Jaye held, according to his LinkedIn page, was as an English for speakers of other languages teacher for nighttime classes at Collier County Schools Adult Education in Naples, Florida. A Collier County Schools staffer said Jaye hadn't work as for them in more than a year. It's unclear where he's currently working.

He is next scheduled to appear in 42nd District Court of Romeo at 9 a.m. Sept 25.
















Former Macomb legislator David Jaye arrested after apparent drunken confrontation
Macomb Daily
September 10, 2014  
David Jaye, the controversial former state senator who struggled for years with excessive drinking, was arrested on Sunday night for disorderly conduct after engaging in an apparently drunken confrontation with a jogger on the Macomb Orchard Trail in Washington Township.

According to the Macomb County Sheriff's Department, Jaye at the time smelled of alcohol, was slurring his speech and looked "sloppy" when he was detained by deputies near Campground Road and Van Dyke. He was riding a bike with beer cans in his backpack when he had a verbal confrontation with the jogger and said: "Don't make me come after you."

Jaye refused to take a portable breathalyzer test, so his blood-alcohol level at the time is unknown. Michigan's disorderly conduct law includes provisions for evidence that a person may have been intoxicated, based on what the arresting officers witnessed.

The only member of the Michigan Senate ever to be removed from office by his colleagues, Jaye, 56, was arrested and jailed by sheriff's deputies shortly before 10 p.m. when the frightened jogger called police. The former lawmaker was also chanting while riding on the trail, but sheriff's Lt. John Michalke refused to identify what the chant consisted of.

A longtime Jaye friend said that he had returned to Macomb County about six weeks ago to rehabilitate the Washington Township home that he lived in during his years in the state Legislature and still owns.

Joe Munem said that Jaye had been consistently sober and had shown no signs of a relapse after struggling with drinking problems for two decades.

"I wouldn't have thought something like this would have happened at this point in his life. I have not seen Dave drink in … 10 years," said Munem, a former political consultant from Sterling Heights.

After his removal from the Senate in 2001 for drunken, assaultive behavior at a gas station, Jaye eventually moved to South Korea, where he taught English as a second language to adults. He has also lived in China, teaching American business customs at the university level.

More recently he established residence in Bonita Springs, Fla., where he landed a county government job handling recycling programs and grant writing.

At the time of his arrest Sunday, which occurred after dark, police found no evidence that Jaye had physically harmed anyone and he appeared to be uninjured despite his erratic bike riding. He was wearing camouflage shorts and a white T-shirt in addition to the black backpack.

Jaye was formally charged in a video arraignment handled by the 42nd District Court in Romeo. The former lawmaker was granted a $1,000 personal bond and was released.

His next court date is Sept. 25 in the 42nd District Court.
















Friend says he saw no indication of Jaye return to drunkenness
Oakland Press
September 10, 2014  
Dave Jaye, the infamous former state senator who struggled for years with excessive drinking, was arrested on Sunday night for disorderly conduct after engaging in an apparently drunken confrontation with a jogger on the Macomb Orchard Trail in Washington Township.

According to the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office, Jaye at the time smelled of alcohol, was slurring his speech and looked “sloppy” when he was detained by deputies near Campground Road and Van Dyke. He was riding a bike with beer cans in his backpack when he had a verbal confrontation with the jogger and said: “Don’t make me come after you.”

Jaye refused to take a portable breathalyzer test so his blood-alcohol level at the time is unknown. Michigan’s disorderly person law includes provisions for evidence that a person may have been intoxicated, based on what the arresting officers witnessed.

The only member of the Michigan Senate ever to be removed from office by his colleagues, Jaye, 56, was arrested and jailed by sheriff’s deputies shortly before 10 p.m. when the frightened jogger called police.

The former lawmaker was also chanting while riding on the hike/bike trail but sheriff’s Lt. John Michalke refused to identify what the chant consisted of.

A longtime Jaye friend said the controversial former lawmaker had returned to Macomb County about six weeks ago to rehabilitate the Washington Township home that he lived in during his years in the state Legislature and still owns.

Joe Munem said Jaye had been consistently sober and had shown no signs of a relapse after struggling with drinking problems for two decades.

“I wouldn’t have thought something like this would have happened at this point in his life. I have not seen Dave drink in … 10 years,” said Munem, a former political consultant from Sterling Heights.

After his removal from the Senate in 2001 for drunken, assaultive behavior at a gas station, Jaye eventually moved to South Korea, where he taught English as a second language to adults. He has also lived in China, teaching American business customs at the university level.

More recently he established residence in Bonita Springs, Fla., where he landed a county government job handling recycling programs and grant writing.

At the time of his arrest on Sunday, which occurred after dark, police found no evidence that Jaye had physically harmed anyone, and he appeared to be uninjured despite his erratic bike riding. He was wearing camouflage shorts and a white T-shirt in addition to the black backpack.

Jaye was formerly charged on Monday in a video arraignment handled by the 42nd District Court in Romeo. The former lawmaker was granted a $1,000 personal bond and was released.

His next court date is Sept. 25 in the 42nd District Court.

Known for his vociferous, politically incorrect comments and his conservative Republican politics, Jaye’s political career began with a 2-year stint on the Macomb County Board of Commissioners in 1985-86.

He was elected to the state House in 1988 and served there for 10 years until he won a special election to replace the late state senator Doug Carl. Among the many reasons for his Senate expulsion, the most cited were his three drunken driving convictions.

His expulsion trial in front of a Senate panel received frenzied media coverage and produce big newspaper headlines across the state.

After attracting considerable public attention for 15 years, his attempted political comeback after being expelled fell flat in a Sept. 11, 2001, special election that was completely overshadowed by the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

Yet, Munem said he saw a “more mellow and mature Dave Jaye” in recent times, a man who had become more health conscious and had hopes of creating a new chapter in his life in the business world, not in politics. Munem said he has no idea what could have triggered Jaye’s behavior on Sunday.

“In my conversations with him, he’s been fairly upbeat and positive,” Munem explained. “He’s demonstrated a lot of self-confidence about what he wants to do next.”
















Ex-state Sen. Jaye gets plea deal in Macomb County
The Detroit News
September 26, 2014
Mount Clemens — A former state senator has taken a plea deal for a disorderly conduct charge in Macomb County.

David Jaye, 56, on Thursday pleaded no contest in 42nd District Court in Romeo to the misdemeanor charge following a drunken incident in Washington Township. He also paid a $625 fine. The plea deal allows the arrest to be wiped from his criminal record if he has no other violations within one year.

On Sept. 7, Jaye was charged with disorderly conduct after police said he threatened a jogger and had a backpack of beer.

The jogger told police Jaye of Bonita Springs, Florida, had been chanting and made threats to “hurt” him. Jaye was on a bicycle and wearing a backpack. Police said Jaye had slurred speech and smelled of alcohol.

When police searched his backpack they found cans of beer.

Jaye was expelled from the state Legislature in 2001 for drunken driving convictions, assault allegations by his fiancée in Fort Myers, Florida, and other problems. After his expulsion, Jaye was a visiting professor at Hanyang Graduate School of International Studies in South Korea, according to his LinkedIn page.

But he had to continue attending Alcoholics Anonymous classes in Korea and report monthly to Macomb County probation officials.

The most recent job Jaye held, according to his LinkedIn page, was as an English for speakers of other languages teacher for nighttime classes at Collier County Schools Adult Education in Naples, Florida. A Collier County Schools staffer said Jaye hadn’t work there in more than a year. It’s unclear where he’s currently working.
















In history, 3 Michigan lawmakers expelled
Manistee News Advocate
September 12, 2015  
LANSING — Only three Michigan lawmakers have been expelled from the Legislature, though several have resigned when facing the prospect of an expulsion vote.

That number could increase as Rep. Todd Courser, R-Lapeer, and Rep. Cindy Gamrat, R-Plainwell, face the possibility of expulsion. A House select committee voted Thursday to expel both of them, with all the Republicans on the committee voting in favor of expulsion, and the two Democrats abstaining. The recommendation stalled in the full House late Thursday, where a two-thirds majority vote would be required to expel Courser or Gamrat.

Both admitted misusing House resources to help try to cover up an extramarital affair they were having.

The most recent expulsion case — and the only case involving a state senator — involved Sen. David Jaye in 2001. Jaye, a Washington Township Republican, was expelled for misconduct, including three drunken driving convictions and claims that the lawmaker assaulted his fiancée.

Before that, in 1978, state Rep. Monte Geralds was expelled from the House. The Madison Heights Democrat refused to resign after he was convicted of embezzling $24,000 from a client of his private law practice.

The first Michigan lawmaker expelled, according to Gongwer News Service, was Rep. Milo Dakin of Saginaw, back in 1887. He was accused of attempting to bribe his House colleagues in connection with a vote related to changes to the Saginaw city charter. Dakin was elected to the House as a fusion candidate, when the Greenback Party and Democrats ran together, the newsletter reported.






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