SENATOR DAVID JAYE POSTS:
Police: Jaye stopped after assault report
A witness at a gas station said he saw the state senator slap and kick his girlfriend, a police report says. Jaye was soon pulled over on Int. 75.
December 20, 2000
Grand Rapids Press, The (MI)
BAY CITY -- State troopers "had reason to believe that a life-threatening felony was being committed" by Sen. David Jaye and his brother Joseph when they detained the men on Int. 75 Nov. 19, according to a police report.
A man pumping gas at a service station told police that he saw a man -- later identified as Jaye -- slap and kick a woman before pushing her into his vehicle and speeding off, said the report.
Bay County officials filed an arrest warrant for Jaye, R-Washington Township, on Dec. 12, charging him with violating restrictions placed on his driver's license. The restrictions were from previous drunken driving convictions.
"Based on all the information provided to me, I do not believe that any other charge could be proven beyond a reasonable doubt," Bay County Prosecutor Joseph K. Sheeran said this morning.
Michigan State Police this morning provided a copy of the police report on the incident to The Bay City Times, which filed a Freedom of Information Act request for it on Monday.
The names and phone numbers of the witness who called police and the alleged victim were blocked out.
According to the report, a customer at the Mobil gas station at Int. 75 and Beaver Road in Monitor Township called police at 6:08 p.m. on Nov. 19, a Sunday.
The caller told police he had observed a man beat a woman before throwing her into his red Plymouth Sundance and heading south on the highway.
Once troopers pulled his vehicle over, Jaye told police that the woman -- whom he claimed was his fiancee -- had been taking too long in the women's rest room. He said he was returning to his Macomb County home after deer hunting and needed to get to the airport.
Jaye said he yelled at the woman and ordered her into the car, but that he didn't touch her.
The woman said she had been in the men's rest room at the gas station with two men and attempted to stand on the toilet seat and hide when Jaye entered the rest room.
Jaye became jealous when he saw her boots underneath a stall door, the woman said. She denied that he had physically assaulted her and stated that she just wanted to leave.
Troopers searched Jaye's 1989 vehicle with his consent, according to the report. They advised Jaye to place two long guns that were in the passenger compartment into his trunk.
"Due to the lack of cooperation by all parties involved, they were released," the trooper wrote.
The report says that Jaye told them he was on his way home from deer camp. When told that was a violation of his license restrictions, "Jaye stated that he was not in violation and that he had given a speech at Turtle Lake," a Montmorency County resort.
But Jaye produced no proof of being at Turtle Lake or of giving a speech, according to police.
Attorney Robert Huth Jr. said this morning that Jaye "has not done anything improper with respect to his driving," and that he had a sworn statement from organizers of the hunting meeting where Jaye spoke.
As far as the other allegations, Huth said, "I'm inclined to think that if there's any merit to it there would have been charges brought."
Jaye has waived arraignment and Huth said he expects his client to be found innocent or to have the case dismissed.
While a state representative in 1993, Jaye spent 10 days in jail after a drunken-driving conviction. Jaye was arrested March 5 in Macomb Township on his second drunken-driving offense. He was sentenced to 45 days but was released after 35 days in the St. Clair County Jail after being given time off for good behavior.
His restricted driver's license allowed him to drive only for work-related travel, medical and counseling appointments and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
Charges against Sen. Jaye to remain
Detroit News
December 21, 2000
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran said Wednesday he will not drop misdemeanor charges against state Sen. David Jaye, despite Jaye's claim that he did nothing wrong when stopped by state police and charged with driving on a restricted license.
Sheeran released a copy of the police report of the Nov. 19 traffic stop along Interstate 75 in Bay County, which showed troopers were responding to a call about a possible abduction of a woman by a man who later turned out to be Jaye.
"I don't normally give out these kinds of details," Sheeran said. "But I feel I owe it to the public to respond to some of the statements I've heard the last few days from Sen. Jaye and his allies."
Jaye, 42, R-Washington Township, told The Associated Press that he didn't know why he was stopped.
According to the police report, a witness at a Mobil gas station off Interstate 75 said he saw a man arguing with a woman. The man then slapped her with an open hand three or four times, kicked her twice in her legs, pushed her into his 1989 Plymouth Sundance and drove onto southbound I-75.
When troopers pulled over the car, the driver told them he was a state senator. "I advised him it did not matter at this time," Trooper Brad Cox wrote in his report.
Jaye's brother, Joseph, 34, of Warren, was a passenger in the rear of the car. The two men were handcuffed "until we could figure out what was going on," Cox wrote.
The woman in the car was Jameela Kloss, 36, of Ft. Myers, Fla. Jaye identified her to police as his girlfriend for the past two years. David Jaye and Kloss denied that he struck her.
Kloss told police that at the service station, David Jaye "began yelling at her for using the men's restroom," according to the report.
She said the women's restroom was full, so she went into the men's room, although two men were in there at the time. David Jaye told police he became upset because "he was running late and needed to get to the airport."
Kloss displayed no visible signs of injuries, police said.
The senator's lawyer, Robert Huth, denied that Jaye had assaulted Kloss.
"You have one witness saying an assault took place, but two other witnesses (David Jaye and Kloss) who say nothing happened," Huth said.
In a statement released Wednesday, Jaye said: "Couples occasionally have squabbles and it is unfortunate that this happened to occur in public."
Police found two long guns in the passenger compartment of the car. David Jaye said he had been hunting deer. The Jayes were released after being told to put the guns in their trunk.
David Jaye, who was convicted March 5 of drunken driving, was charged Monday with violating restrictions on his license. He is limited to driving between home and work, treatment or support group meetings, a probation office, community service and school.
An affidavit filed with the Bay County Prosecutor's Office says Jaye went to a deer camp near Atlanta, Mich., in mid-November to address landowners on hunting issues and the environment. That address makes the trip work-related, according to the affidavit.
Sen. Jaye will not face traffic charges
Arresting officer did not inform lawmaker of Miranda Rights
Detroit News
March 22, 2001
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- State Sen. David Jaye, known as much for his run-ins with the law as his controversial viewpoints, is off the hook after his latest encounter with police.
Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran on Wednesday dropped charges against the Washington Township senator for driving on a restricted license because a state trooper failed to read Jaye his Miranda rights last November.
Sheeran said without statements Jaye made to police -- which a Bay County District Court judge suppressed last week -- the case couldn't proceed. A trial was scheduled to start today.
"Without this evidence, I would not be able to prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt," Sheeran said.
Jaye was convicted March 5, 2000, of drunken driving. It was his second offense, and he served 35 days in jail. In 1993, he was jailed for 10 days for a similar offense.
His license was restricted last June, limiting him to driving between home and work, treatment or support group meetings and community service and school.
The 42-year-old Republican maintains he was on state business when he was stopped in November in Monitor Township near Bay City after a motorist notified police about a man kicking and slapping a woman at a nearby rest stop. Police pulled over Jaye, who was then handcuffed and questioned for 40 minutes.
Jaye's fiancee has denied being assaulted. Attorney Rob Huth said Jaye was on his way back from official business at the Turtle Creek Hunt Club in northern Michigan.
Jaye, a gun advocate, blamed Sheeran's anti-gun politics for his arrest.
"He apparently saw the situation as an opportunity to improperly persecute and embarrass me, and filed baseless charges for driving outside of the former restrictions permitted on my driver's license," Jaye said Wednesday.
Said Sheeran: "I'm a fair prosecutor that makes decision based on the facts of the law," Sheeran said.
'She wanted him to stop beating her'
Florida officer testifies before state Senate panel investigating David Jaye
Grand Rapids Press
May 9, 2001
LANSING-- A police officer from Florida, where state Sen. David Jaye is accused of hitting his fiancee, testified that the woman was cut and still bleeding when he arrived at the scene.
"She said he's hit her in the past," Cpl. Robert Macarelli of the Lee County sheriff's office said Tuesday. "She said she wanted him to stop beating her."
Jaye was arrested April 12 in Florida after a dispute with Sonia Kloss and spent the night in the Lee County Jail.
He has denied he struck Kloss, and she has recanted accusations against him.
The officer's comments came as a state Senate committee held its first full hearing on Jaye's right to remain in the Senate.
The hearing was to resume today.
Jaye attended the committee hearing with three attorneys but didn't comment. He issued a letter Tuesday complaining that the hearing violated his right to due process.
When it concludes its investigation, the six-member bipartisan committee could recommend that Jaye be expelled, censured or reprimanded.
In the letter he issued, Jaye argued that he hadn't had enough time to prepare and complained about "capricious and arbitrary committee rules" that would prevent discussion of other legislators' conduct besides his own.
The resolution recommending that Jaye be expelled cites a series of drunken driving convictions, a pending domestic battery charge in Florida and what it termed "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct."
Jaye said in his letter that he is owed a presumption of innocence on the domestic battery charge.
He promised Sunday to resign if the Florida court convicts him, but he said he expects to be acquitted and accused Senate opponents of violating his rights.
Meanwhile, a Florida judge on Tuesday delayed Jaye's hearing on the domestic battery charge for one week to give prosecutors more time to question witnesses.
Tony Schall, a spokesman for the state attorney's office in Florida, said the hearing is now scheduled for May 15.
On that date, prosecutors will decide whether to retain the domestic violence charge, amend the charge or drop it, Schall said.
Jaye panel views video denials
Some senators wary of fiancée's statements
Detroit News
May 10, 2001
LANSING -- Attorneys for embattled state Sen. David Jaye showed a videotape Wednesday in which his fiancee recanted statements to police and denied that Jaye assaulted her in Florida last month.
But some of the Senate committee's six members who watched the tape said it was less than convincing, particularly when weighed against police statements and earlier testimony from Sonia Kloss that Jaye had beaten her and had done so in the past. The panel is weighing a resolution to oust Jaye, R-Washington Township.
In other testimony Wednesday, a teen said he saw Jaye slap a woman at a gasoline station near Bay City on Nov. 19. And former senate staffer Cathy Rubley said that in September 1998 the senator was abusive and swore at her when she could not get him mailing labels when he wanted them. She said he called her a female dog.
In the video testimony, Kloss, 36, said she suffered scratches and cuts to her face when she and Jaye tussled over his garment bag and the bag struck her. "I am not in fear of my life," Kloss said.
Also appearing in a videotape was Jerry West, 52, who called 911 on April 12 to report that Jaye was assaulting Kloss in her Fort Myers home. "He never struck her," West said in the tape made by Roland Jerservic, one of Jaye's attorneys.
"It always raises questions when you have two conflicting reports," said Sen. Walter North, R-St. Ignace. "But the police were testifying under oath and she wasn't, so that's a consideration."
Jaye, 43, was jailed overnight following his arrest in Florida. His arraignment is next week.
Jaye denies ever striking Kloss, but James Matthews, 18, a cashier at a gas station along Interstate 75 in Bay County, identified Jaye as the man he saw slap a woman on Nov. 19. He said the woman, whom he thought was Kloss, had locked herself in a men's restroom stall with a man for about 15 minutes while Jaye and another man stood outside the locked stall.
Matthews said when the woman finally opened the door, Jaye "pulled her out by her arms." Once inside the party store, Matthews said Jaye "did slap her with an open hand."
Jaye could face domestic violence charges in Bay County stemming from the dispute at the service station.
Macomb County officials also are considering revoking Jaye's probation because of the Florida charges. He's on probation for a 2000 drunken-driving conviction -- his third.
Sen. Jaye's fiancée denies she was struck
The woman testifies by videotape at Jaye's Senate expulsion hearing
Grand Rapids Press
May 10, 2001
LANSING -- State Sen. David Jaye's fiancee said on a videotape that she and Jaye tussled over a garment bag and that Jaye did not hit her during an April incident in Florida.
The account came Wednesday, the second day of a hearing before a six-person, bipartisan Senate committee investigating whether Jaye should be expelled. If he is forced to leave, the Republican from Macomb County's Washington Township would be the first senator expelled in Michigan history. The hearing was to resume late this morning.
Jaye, 43, has said repeatedly he never struck Sonia Kloss and has offered to resign if found guilty of domestic battery charges in Florida.
Kloss said she and Jaye tussled April 12 over a garment bag outside her home in Fort Myers, Fla. According to the taped account, the bag struck her in the face when she pulled on it and he let go. She said she had been drinking heavily that day and said several times that she didn't recall details of the altercation.
"It was like a tussle, back and forth," she said. She said she had wanted Jaye to give back her keys, which she said she later found in her bag.
Asked several times on the tape if Jaye had struck or beaten her, she answered, "No."
The resolution recommending that Jaye be expelled cites a series of drunken driving convictions, the pending charge in Florida and what it termed "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct."
The committee met late into the night Wednesday, with the secretary of the Senate discussing pictures of a nude and seminude woman found on Jaye's Senate laptop computer.
Jaye also could face domestic violence charges in Bay County stemming from a dispute with Kloss last November at a Bay County service station. No charges were filed at the time, but Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran told the committee Tuesday he's reconsidering that decision.
Wednesday, a Bay County party-store clerk testified that last November he saw Jaye strike a woman.
David Jaye's love story
Embattled senator paints a tender picture of the woman he is accused of abusing
Detroit News
May 11, 2001
LANSING -- David Jaye and Sonia Kloss were friends before they became lovers.
They met four years ago, when the Michigan senator and his father ate a meal at the Backwaters Seafood restaurant Kloss owns in Ft. Myers Beach, Fla., but they didn't date until December 1998, after both were divorced.
"She was a stunning woman, someone who really stands out," Jaye said Thursday in a series of brief conversations with The Detroit News. "I saw right away what a beautiful person she was. But we both were married and I didn't think of her that way until after our divorces."
The day Jaye and Kloss met, Jaye said, he and his dad had just finished an afternoon of scuba diving. "We were hungry enough to eat a horse," he said.
Jaye said he remembers Kloss that day because she had made a big deal about serving him herself.
"I remember her coming out and smiling and saying, 'If there's a senator in my restaurant, I want to meet him myself.' She brought a big smile to my face," Jaye recalled.
That romantic picture contrasts sharply with the one that has been painted of the Kloss-Jaye relationship this week as a special Senate panel held hearings to decide whether Jaye, a Republican from Macomb County's Washington Township, should become the first senator in Michigan history to be expelled. The panel is looking at a number of legal run-ins Jaye has had during a 13-year legislative career, including two recent charges that Jaye physically assaulted Kloss, now his fiancee, in both Michigan and Florida.
Three days of testimony in support of the charges against Jaye wrapped up Thursday after seven topless pictures of Kloss were entered into the record. The pictures had been found on Jaye's Senate-owned laptop computer last November after Jaye requested help from a Senate staffer to retrieve some photos of a hunting trip.
"I consider them to be offensive. ... I was disgusted," Cathy Stewart, the Senate staff member, told the panel Thursday. The Senate expulsion resolution calls those photos "sexually explicit."
Jaye's attorneys dispute that characterization as well as much of what is contained in the 14-point bill of particulars against Jaye. They are to present their defense starting Tuesday.
Abuse charges
Although three drunken-driving convictions and several instances of verbal abuse of staff are included in the charges against Jaye, 43, it was the allegations of abuse of Kloss that dominated the six-member committee's attention this week.
Kloss, who has declined an invitation to appear before the Senate panel, has been variously depicted during the hearings as a party-loving flirt or as a dedicated mother and victim of domestic abuse. When reached at her Florida home Thursday by a reporter for the Ft. Myers News-Press, Kloss said: "I can't talk about this because there is an investigation going on. It's personal and not anyone's business."
Jaye told The News Thursday that regardless of the way his relationship with Kloss has been portrayed, the couple still plans to wed next April, although he said they intend to have premarital counseling. He said he hopes to be married at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Utica, where he is a parishioner.
"She and the boys are planning to spend the summer up here," Jaye said. "This is a distraction and very costly, but I am going to marry this woman. I won't give our enemies the satisfaction of destroying and intimidating us and trampling on our life. They will not make us buckle or keep quiet. I'm sorry for being rude and for drinking and driving. But that's behind me now."
The senator spoke warmly of the devotion of Kloss, a 36-year-old native of Trinidad, to her two boys, Joshua, 6, and Justin, 11. He said the couple's dates often involve bicycling, or fishing, or beach activities together with the boys. He recounted a fishing trip in the Gulf of Mexico last October that ended at an emergency room, where a hook cast by Josh was removed from Jaye's hand.
"It didn't seem so bad when we got to the emergency room, and some other guy was there with a fishhook in his lip," Jaye said. Afterward, he added, "I spent the whole night and the next day consoling Josh about what had happened. Yes, I was in pain, but I didn't want Josh traumatized."
Jay portrayed Kloss as a victim of an unforgiving public spotlight brought on by "a spat, a quarrel -- nothing more."
"Dating a senator is like taking a shower on the corner of an intersection: you have no privacy," Jaye said. "Squabbles are an exaggeration of the truth blown out of proportion."
Jaye said he has lost 10 pounds during the expulsion hearings, which have run as late as 11:30 p.m. He said the system isn't fair because "only negative deeds and accusations can be discussed."
"I'm asking people to look in their heart and imagine what it's like to be threatened with being fired from your job, without being able to produce any positive achievements or witnesses on your behalf," Jaye said.
Standing in jarring contrast with Jaye's comments were the testimony of law enforcement officers and witnesses to certain incidents, and video and audio evidence introduced this week in Lansing. Specifically, senators spent the most time delving into allegations that Jaye assaulted Kloss Nov. 19 in Bay County.
During Thursday's testimony, senators grilled a pair of Michigan State troopers about what went on in a gas-station restroom during that incident along Interstate 75. Kloss went into the men's room, according to a witness, and spent as long as 15 minutes in a locked restroom stall with an unidentified man.
The witness, James Matthews, an 18-year-old cashier, Tuesday had told the panel that he saw Jaye grab Kloss by the arms and wrestle her out of the restroom when she finally unlocked the door, and then slap her across the face before forcing her into his car and driving away. Jaye's car was pulled over a short time later, and he was handcuffed and held 45 minutes before being released. Two other witnesses testified they saw the assault, got the license plate of the car but couldn't identify Jaye.
Panel views videotape
The only chance committee members had to take a measure of Kloss came Wednesday when Jaye's attorneys played a videotape of her recanting her previous statements to police that Jaye had assaulted her in Florida April 12.
In the video recording, Kloss came across as a soft-spoken, nervous woman who frequently played with her long, curly, dark hair while giving brief answers. Kloss several times answered "no" when Jaye's attorney asked whether Jaye had ever hit, slapped, kicked or otherwise assaulted her. At one point, the camera zoomed in for a closeup of Kloss' face, which showed no signs of cuts or bruises. The recording was made 17 days after the Florida incident.
"I am not in fear of my life," she said. "David isn't like that." But on one occasion, when asked whether he ever struck her, she responded: "No, I don't recall that."
In the video statement, Kloss said she had been drinking and had been up for 36 hours before the incident. She said the cuts and scratches were actually the result of a garment bag hitting her in the face when Jaye let go of it after the pair had wrestled for it.
Separately, Jerry West, 52, the boarder at Sonia Kloss' home who called 911 the night of the alleged assault, was arrested Monday by police in Collier County, Fla., and has been jailed on charges of driving drunk and running into another car three times. West didn't respond to a subpoena to testify before the Michigan Senate committee. Like Kloss, West has recanted a previous accusation against Jaye, arguing that his statement was coerced by police.
The videotape left some committee members unconvinced. The committee also had heard the audio tape of a 911 phone call to Florida authorities two months ago.
"... He smash (sic) me in my mouth, and I'm bleeding," Kloss says at one point. Then she says to Jaye, who is at her house, during the call: "Look at my hands. Look at my nose. Look at my mouth. How many more bruises you gonna put on me. ... When you finish with my face you know what? Nobody's gonna want to look at me."
The tape also has Jaye in the background denying that he had harmed her.
Kloss wrote a letter April 23 to Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron, defending Jaye. She said the Florida case had been "blown all out of proportion" and noted that she was the one who put up the $2,500 to get Jaye out jail, putting up her house in a gated community as collateral for the bond.
"I am sometimes out of control with my relationship with David," she wrote. "I am sometimes very emotional since we love each other so much and face pressures of a long-distance relationship.
"David and I have been going to counseling together. I am seeing a counselor in Florida to help me and my family," she wrote. "David has made great improvements in his personal life and has gotten more family oriented, his counseling is helping him very much but it takes time."
Jaye's probation could be revoked
Detroit News
May 11, 2001
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- The Macomb County Prosecutor's Office expects to ask 41-A District Judge Douglas Shepard on Monday to revoke state Sen. David Jaye's probation for drunken driving.
Assistant Prosecutor John Courie said his office is seeking to have Jaye's probation rescinded because of allegations that the senator hit his fiancee in Bay County and Florida, in addition to driving while on a restricted license.
If Shepard considers the charges serious enough, he could sign a warrant Monday that would set an arraignment date that would precede a probation violation hearing.
While on probation "the judge has control of you," Courie said. "He at any time can modify his sentence."
Jaye was sentenced to one year in jail after being convicted of a March 2000 drunken driving case. He only served 45 days in jail before being released on probation.
Courie said Thursday he is acting on behalf of the Macomb County Probation Department by bringing the warrant against Jaye to the judge.
Jaye could face jail at hearing on probation
Macomb officials cite latest brushes with law
Detroit Free Press.
May 12, 2001
Macomb County probation officials will ask a judge Monday to consider sending Sen. David Jaye back to jail as a result of two run-ins with the law since November. Officials plan to submit a probation violation report Monday to Judge Douglas Shepherd in Shelby Township's 41A District Court, said Assistant Macomb County Prosecutor John Courie, who has reviewed the report. The probation department is requesting that the judge review a 45-day jail sentence on a drunken-driving...
Macomb officials cite latest brushes with law
Detroit Free Press.
May 12, 2001
Macomb County probation officials will ask a judge Monday to consider sending Sen. David Jaye back to jail as a result of two run-ins with the law since November. Officials plan to submit a probation violation report Monday to Judge Douglas Shepherd in Shelby Township's 41A District Court, said Assistant Macomb County Prosecutor John Courie, who has reviewed the report. The probation department is requesting that the judge review a 45-day jail sentence on a drunken-driving...
Florida officials won’t charge Jaye
Muskegon Chronicle
May 14, 2001
Florida officials have decided not to charge state Sen. David Jaye with domestic battery.
The Republican from Macomb County’s Washington Township spent April 12 in the Lee County, Fla., jail after a dispute earlier in the day at the home of his fiancee in Fort Myers, Fla. He was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of domestic battery.
Today, the Office of the State Attorney in Fort Myers said no formal charges would be filed against Jaye.
Jaye is facing possible expulsion from the Michigan Senate, in part because of two reports he hit fiancee Sonia Kloss. She has repeatedly denied he hit her and had tried to get the Florida charges dropped.
The case against Jaye was undermined when Kloss denied Jaye hit her, even though she had said in a 911 call that she was bleeding.
In a taped interview conducted by one of Jaye’s lawyers, Kloss said her face had been cut when the two had tussled over a garment bag and the bag had hit her in the face when he let go.
A man living at Kloss’ home also denied Jaye hit her.
Florida won't charge Jaye; Marlinga: Jail him anyway
And Senate will go on with expulsion hearing
Detroit News
May 15, 2001
LANSING -- State Sen. David Jaye caught a break in Florida.
But he couldn't catch one in his home state of Michigan.
Florida officials on Monday decided not to charge Jaye with domestic battery. Nevertheless, Carl Marlinga, the Macomb County prosecutor, still wants to put him in jail for parole violation. And Senate Republican leaders are still intent on kicking him out of the Senate.
Unfazed, Jaye declared: "This is the first time in a while I have been smiling and grinning ear to ear."
In an appearance on the Macomb County Courthouse steps, the Washington Township Republican reiterated his contention that Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow, R-Port Huron, is trying to railroad him out of office. "They can't get rid of me politically through the ballot box so they're trying to do it this way," he said.
And so the spectacle of the Senate's Republican leadership moving to remove a fellow GOP lawmaker over a series of misdemeanors and alleged misdemeanors continued. Rusty Hills, chairman of the Michigan Republican Party, couldn't be reached Monday. Republican Gov. John Engler's spokeswoman said he is leaving it up to the Senate "to conduct its business." In the past, Engler has called Jaye "an embarrassment." DeGrow declined to comment.
In Fort Myers, Fla., Assistant State Attorney Paul Poland said his office decided not to charge Jaye over his alleged April 12 assault of his fiancee, Sonia Kloss. It was that incident that got the ouster movement under way in the Michigan Senate.
Poland said the decision reflected Kloss' withdrawal of her earlier statements about the incident and her request that the matter be dropped. Jerry West, a boarder at Kloss' home, who was the only witness to the incident, gave inconsistent statements when questioned last Thursday, Poland said.
"We felt there was insufficient evidence to go forward," Poland said. "Theoretically, if new evidence came to light, we could charge him. But for right now we consider the case closed.
"We're not saying a crime did or did not take place," he added, "but simply saying there is not enough evidence to support us filing a charge."
In Lansing, Sen. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Livonia, the chairman of the panel weighing allegations against Jaye, declared that the Florida action "doesn't mean we can't, as a factual matter, try to determine what happened there. Does that decision mean it didn't happen?"
He said senators can draw their own conclusions about what happened in Florida based on evidence they heard in three days of hearings last week. That included Kloss' call after the incident to 911 in which she accused Jaye of beating her. In addition, Florida police officers who responded to the call testified that they believed a bloodied Kloss had in fact been assaulted.
The list of particulars against Jaye that the committee is investigating includes a trio of drunken-driving convictions the alleged assault of Kloss in Florida and another incident in Bay County last Nov. 19 that is still under review by the local prosecutor complaints about Jaye's use of vulgar language directed at female Senate staffers and the storing of semi-nude photographs of Kloss on Jaye's Senate-owned computer.
Ruling pleases fiancée
Kloss, 36, said she was relieved Jaye was not charged and repeated that the couple intends to wed next April. "I told them exactly what happened, and they decided not even to press charges," she said from her home in Fort Myers Beach, Fla. "People need to realize that you have to let everyone have their rights and have them go to court first and see if they are convicted."
Jaye said he is pleased that the Florida charges are being dropped and that a related order barring him from having contact with Kloss has been lifted. "I am thrilled that my fiancee, Sonia, and I can now speak to and visit each other, and I am free to take her (two) children fishing again," he said.
Philip Thomas, one of Jaye's attorneys, said: "I have felt all along that David Jaye's opponents have been investigating and looking into his background and then, lo and behold, this big firecracker fell into their hands on April 12. But we knew the firecracker would go out with a dud. My client did not do these things he has been accused of."
Sen. Leon Stille, R-Spring Lake, who introduced the expulsion resolution against Jaye, said the case will go on as planned. "It's not one incident," Stille said. "It's the whole litany of things that have been compiled over the years."
Sen. Donald Koivisto, an Ironwood Democrat who sits on the Senate panel, said the Florida decision "does have an impact to a degree because the two most significant charges in the expulsion resolution in a lot of people's minds were the two alleged assaults in Bay County and in Florida. I think most people will consider the action in Florida to be significant."
Koivisto, like most other senators, said he won't decide how to cast his vote until he hears Jaye's side.
"It would premature for Mr. Jaye to gloat," Koivisto warned. "If I were him I'd wait for the committee to bring this to a resolution without adding fuel to the fire, and that's what gloating does."
Florida still a factor
Further clouding the Jaye situation was word that Marlinga, the Macomb County prosecutor, will ask a judge to return Jaye to jail for 101/2 months for violating the terms of a drunken-driving conviction last year.
He said the now-dropped Florida assault case will still be used against Jaye because the evidence in a probation-violation hearing has a less-strict standard than in a criminal matter. He said he would need to prove only that the assault occurred based on the "preponderance of evidence," not "beyond a reasonable doubt" as needed in a criminal case.
Jaye last year was sentenced to one year in jail on the drunken-driving conviction, but served only 35 days before he was released.
"Since he got off light under the promise that he would (not break any more laws), we feel he now owes the state of Michigan another 101/2 months," Marlinga said.
The new warrant filed by Macomb officials carries three charges: that Jaye assaulted Kloss in Bay County, that he assaulted her in Florida, and that he violated the driving restrictions on his license when he was stopped by state police during the Bay County incident.
Jaye was driving home from a hunting trip to northern Michigan when he was stopped by troopers on I-75 in Bay County. Under terms of his drunken-driving conviction, Jaye was barred from driving except on official business.
But charges of driving on a restricted license were dropped after a judge decided police had not properly advised Jaye of his Miranda rights.
Jaye is scheduled to be arraigned on the probation warrant June 7 by 41-A District Judge Douglas Shepherd in Shelby Township. Thomas, his attorney, had asked for the delay because of Jaye's other pending legal problems.
Bay County Prosecutor Joseph Sheeran repeated Monday that his office is still reviewing statements from new witnesses who have stepped forward with information about the November incident. He said Jaye could still be charged in that incident.
Eventful day
Monday was busy for state Sen. David Jaye:
* Florida officials decided not to charge Jaye with an alleged April 12 assault of his fiancee, Sonia Kloss, in her Fort Myers, Fla., home. Prosecutors said they didn't have much of a case left after Kloss and the only eyewitness recanted earlier statements accusing Jaye.
Jaye bolstered by Florida news
However, "It's not one incident," said state Sen. Leon Stille, R-Spring Lake. "It's the whole litany of things that have been compiled over the years."
Grand Rapids Press
May 15, 2001
LANSING-- State Sen. David Jaye said a decision by Florida officials not to charge him with domestic battery is a sign he may be able to face down his detractors in the case for expelling him from the Senate.
"They can't get rid of me politically through the ballot box so they're trying to do it this way," said Jaye, 43, of the expulsion effort.
Lawyers for Jaye today were to begin presenting evidence to a six-member, bipartisan Senate panel.
The panel is charged with investigating whether the Republican from Macomb County's Washington Township should be punished for a series of drunken driving convictions, allegations of domestic violence and what it termed "a recurring pattern of personal misconduct."
The committee last week heard reports that Jaye hit fiancee Sonia Kloss in Florida and Michigan. Kloss, 36, has repeatedly denied he hit her. She expressed relief Monday that officials had decided not to charge Jaye with the misdemeanor.
"I told them exactly what happened and they decided not even to press charges," she said Monday from her home in Fort Myers, Fla., where she runs a restaurant. "People need to realize that you have to let everyone have their rights and have them to go to court first and see if they are convicted."
Kloss said that now that a no-contact order between the couple had been dropped, she planned to come to Michigan to see him. The couple plan to marry next April.
Sen. Leon Stille, who sponsored the resolution to expel Jaye, said he doesn't expect the Florida decision will slow the Senate's work.
"It's not one incident," said Stille, R-Spring Lake. "It's the whole litany of things that have been compiled over the years."
He referred to Jaye's three drunken-driving convictions and testimony that Jaye stored about a half-dozen pictures of a seminude Kloss on his Senate laptop computer and verbally abused Senate staff members.
Jaye attorney Philip Thomas said Monday's decision not to formally charge Jaye in Florida undermines the Senate's case against him. He called the abuse allegations a "big firecracker that fell into their hands."
Jaye's legal problems, however, could be far from over.
A Macomb County judge agreed Monday to hear arguments on whether Jaye's probation on drunken driving charges should be revoked. District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd signed a warrant Monday scheduling Jaye's arraignment for June 7.
Macomb County officials want to revoke Jaye's probation because of the Florida charge and accounts Jaye dragged Kloss out of a men's bathroom and struck her while the two were at a Bay County gas station last Nov. 19.
Kloss: Our lives are turned upside down
Fiancée defends Jaye before the historic Senate vote that resulted in his expulsion
Detroit News
May 25, 2001
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Sonia Kloss paced nervously through the first floor of the brick two-story home, answering the intermittent telephone calls, waiting.
The 36-year-old former restaurant owner from Fort Myers, Fla., smoked what seemed like a never-ending supply of cigarettes, hoping that the news would be good, that her fiance David Jaye would again foil his political enemies and remain a state senator.
A stranger's voice on a boom box brought the news about the crushing vote in the Senate to expel Jaye. The message echoed through her fiance's home, that the Washington Township Republican's fight to retain his office had come to a sad, embarrassing end.
"It has to be hard for him," Kloss said in an exclusive interview Thursday with The Detroit News. "My life has been turned upside down. David's life has been turned upside down."
Less than an hour before the final vote, Kloss spoke with Jaye, who said Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow was calling topless photos of her found on his office computer "extreme porn."
Jaye told Kloss that Majority Leader Sen. Dan DeGrow was making accusations that pictures of her found on his office computer were "extreme porn."
"That was not porn. That was personal pictures taken in Florida," Kloss said after hanging up. "I have no idea how they ended up on his computer. I think he was looking for some other pictures and those got accidentally downloaded."
Kloss continued the chain of cigarettes -- breaking Jaye's rule of no smoking in his house -- while answering a growing stream of calls from supporters.
During the last few months, Kloss had come to learn and live in the shadow of Jaye's notoriety. In years past, he was vilified in the press for his drunken driving arrests and for his positions on gun owner's rights and against affirmative action.
Kloss, a native of Trinidad, is the mother of two children from a previous marriage. She found herself dragged into the headlines as Jaye stood accused, arrested and released for allegedly assaulting her. Their personal lives were exposed when the topless photos of Kloss were seen on Jaye's Senate-issued laptop computer.
"He is a good politician who works hard for his constituents," she said. "This is like a death in his family. Politics is his first love."
Photos of the couple, from before the assault charges, hung from walls and sat on tables in Jaye's Washington Township home. The house was decorated more like a bachelor's pad than the abode of a state senator. Considering Jaye's 18 years in elective office, few political mementos were visible.
Paintings by amateur artists of a space-shuttle liftoff, of deep space and of wildlife hung on the plain white walls. The furniture had a tired look.
"He lives like a bachelor because his ex-wife took all of his furniture," Kloss explained.
Boxes of papers appeared to have taken root in the living room.
One photo in a ceramic frame covered with sea shells showed Jaye with Kloss and her two sons.
"He would take the boys fishing and show them the outdoors," she said. "The boys wouldn't call him David. They called him "senator ... smiling senator."
While awaiting the vote in Lansing, where Jaye was vehemently defending himself before his peers, Kloss chopped vegetables preparing a shepherd's pie -- one of her mother's specialties. Regardless of the outcome, her fiance would have something to eat when he returned home.
"As a kid, I would love it when my mom would cook shepherd's pie," Kloss said. The thought brought a rare smile on this cold, wet, emotionally overcast day. "It was one of my favorite dishes."
Kloss sat on a white leather sofa covered with a colorful blanket Jaye bought while visiting Mexico. She reminisced about the bumpy road of the couple's two-and-half-year relationship.
Jaye and a staffer were vacationing in Fort Myers when he met Kloss through a waitress at her Backwater Seafood Restaurant, she said. The restaurant was owned by Kloss and her ex-husband.
As her relationship with the tall, dark-haired politician grew, Jaye and Kloss began to spend more time together. Rarely, if ever, did six weeks go by before they found a way to see each other.
Then came the last six months.
Kloss admitted to making mistakes that led police to confront Jaye last November in Bay County and then a few weeks ago in Florida. She openly wished she had not made them.
Kloss flatly denied any abuse by Jaye as they left a service-station restroom along I-75 in Bay County in November. Kloss said she was running late to catch a flight back to Florida and had used the men's room because the women's restroom was full.
That upset Jaye, she said.
"I was trying to tell him my side of the story, and he was trying to get me in the car because we were running late," Kloss said. "If I were a victim, I would have been the first to call for help."
The incident in Florida last month came after an argument about Jaye's ex-wife, who was supposedly calling him on the phone. As Jaye was leaving her home, she said, he was trying to pull his bag from Kloss, and it smacked her in the face.
"I got a minor scratch that (a police) picture couldn't even pick up," she recalled.
For much of Thursday, Kloss didn't cry. She forcefully held back the flow of tears.
When she received a call Jaye's former sister-in-law who said the family was behind him, Kloss walked to a sliding door overlooking a small pond. There she cried.
"Michigan has a political Mafia ganging up on David ... they're all jealous of his career and his constituents loving him," she said. "That committee .. it had all the pawns and the rules and you're just there and you're not allowed to make a move because it was checkmate from the start. These people all have their motives and prejudged him."
With careful steps, Kloss walked to the sofa and sat down, unsure of what the future holds for the couple.
She admitted that Jaye's family did not approve of their engagement. She is unsure about what the Republican Party thought of their relationship, considering she is not an American citizen.
"I talked about breaking up because I didn't want to put him in the postion of breaking off the relationship," she said. "I wouldn't blame him if he would have broken up with me.
"I don't know what's going to happen. I feel guilty. I think that DeGrow used me as excuse."
What it means
* Senate expels Jaye immediately and removes him and his staff from Capitol.
* Jaye no longer gets his $77,400 salary but will start collecting $40,248 pension at 55.
What's next
* Governor will call a special election with the primary no sooner than 45 days later.
* Jaye may run in the election and, if he wins, would be allowed back in the Senate.
'Exclusive' interview again & again
Grand Rapids Press
May 28, 2001
Sonia Kloss refused to testify during the expulsion hearing of her fiancee, deposed state Sen. David Jaye.
But she made herself available for several "exclusive" interviews with Detroit broadcast and print media outlets Thursday.
Radio station WWJ said one of its reporters had spoken "exclusively" with Kloss in Macomb County Thursday morning. And during its 10 p.m. newscast that night, television station WJBK said it also had spoken "exclusively" with Kloss Thursday.
She appeared on camera and denied that Jaye had struck her in Florida or in Bay County.
Those were two of the charges that got Jaye booted from the Senate.
WWJ said Kloss told one of its reporters that Jaye was depressed over the expulsion hearing and would never be the same again.
We can only hope.
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 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.
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.
Jaye's fiancée may testify
Sonia Kloss to be subpoenaed for his probation hearing
Detroit News
June 6, 2001
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga will try to subpoena the fiancee of former state Sen. David Jaye while she is in Michigan to compel her to testify at the deposed lawmaker's upcoming probation violation hearing.
Efforts to subpoena Sonia Kloss are part of an all-out campaign to send Jaye back to jail for violating his probation, Marlinga said.
The case's importance is underscored by the fact that Marlinga will write many of the legal briefs and Chief Trial Lawyer Eric Kaiser will argue the case before District Court Judge Doug Shepherd of Shelby Township.
Jaye will be arraigned Thursday before Shepherd, the first step in proceedings that could send him back to jail for 10 months.
The Republican was sentenced last year to one year in jail on a drunken-driving conviction but was released after two months.
Marlinga, a Democrat, said Jaye violated probation when he allegedly assaulted Kloss near Bay City and again in Florida and also went on a hunting trip in northern Michigan last November in violation of his driving restrictions. Jaye was supposed to drive only on state legislative matters.
Kloss has said Jaye did not assault her either time. Marlinga said he can bring up evidence in the two cases even though there were no convictions because the burden of proof is less than in criminal cases.
"I am innocent. I am innocent," Jaye said in a spirited phone interview Tuesday. "How many times do I have to wash a shirt before it is clean? Why is Carl (Marlinga) prosecuting me a third time when Florida authorities found me innocent and Bay County authorities found me innocent?"
Kloss, who has been living with Jaye at his Washington Township home, was unavailable for comment. Jaye said she is back in Florida, looking after her two young sons.
"I don't know if she will come to testify," Jaye said. "She wants to avoid the media frenzy and the paparazzi. She's thinking about that."
Marlinga acknowledged that media interest is one reason he is helping draft court briefs. "I want to make sure it is done right," the prosecutor said. "But I do this on numerous cases, especially when there are interesting evidentiary questions. And the reason I want Sonia Kloss to testify is that it slightly better for Mr. Jaye. She offers better explanations."
If she has returned to Florida, he cannot compel her to testify and will have to rely on her statements to police.
An interesting legal issue is that even though Jaye was not given his Miranda warning against self-incrimination in the Bay County case, evidence can still be used on the upcoming probation violation charge. The case was dismissed in the Bay County assault case because Jaye was not read his legal rights.
"It will not affect this case because the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that that exclusionary rule is not applicable in probation violation cases," Marlinga said.
Andrea Klinken, Jaye's neighbor, said Macomb County Probation Department officers questioned her and neighbors recently about whether they ever saw the ex-senator driving around town in violation of his restricted license. Neighbors said that Jaye had a Ford Taurus with Ohio license plates and often went on personal errands. Jaye denied it.
"I said I saw him drive to the grocery store and others said they saw him at the gym," Klinken said. "That does not bode well for him."
What's next
David Jaye will be arraigned at 11 a.m. Thursday before 41st-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd in the Shelby Township court building on Van Dyke, north of 23 Mile. Shepherd will set bond. A pre-trial hearing also is expected to be held after the arraignment to discuss a possible trial date and deadlines for filing motions on various legal issues.
Ex state senator David Jaye in more trouble
Northern Michigan 9 & 10 News
Northern Michigan 9 & 10 News
June 07, 2001
http://www.9and10news.com/category/story/?id=65037
(Shelby Township-AP) -- Ex state Senator David Jaye was arraigned today on charges of violating the probation set in a drunken driving case.
http://www.9and10news.com/category/story/?id=65037
(Shelby Township-AP) -- Ex state Senator David Jaye was arraigned today on charges of violating the probation set in a drunken driving case.
He was charged in Macomb County's Shelby Township with three counts of violating his probation. He's free on bond.
He says he's innocent.
Jaye ticketed before court date
Grand Rapids Press
June 7, 2001
WARREN -- Due in court today on allegations he violated probation on a driving conviction, ex-state Senator David Jaye was ticketed and cited last week for two traffic violations in Warren.
Warren police cited Jaye last week for making a prohibited right turn on red and for lacking proof of insurance. The infractions took place on an I-696 service drive.
Jaye, who was expelled from the Michigan Senate on May 24, has an extensive record of driving infractions over the past 20 years. He now faces a $25 fine and two points on his record for the illegal right turn.
A separate $155 fine can be avoided if the Washington Township Republican shows proof of insurance within 14 days.
Jaye arraigned on probation violation charges
Muskegon Chronicle
June 7, 2001
Expelled state Sen. David Jaye was arraigned today on three counts of violating his probation for a drunken driving conviction.
The charges stem from allegations he twice assaulted his fiancee and other claims that he drove while his driving privileges were curtailed. If his probation is revoked, he faces up to 10 1/2 months in jail. Jaye has said he is innocent.
In May, the state Senate expelled Jaye, citing behavior not fit for a senator.
The Republican was sentenced last year to one year in jail on a drunken-driving conviction but was released after two months.
Prosecutors say Jaye violated probation when he allegedly assaulted fiancee Sonia Kloss 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.
Meanwhile, Jaye was ticketed and cited last week for two traffic violations in Warren. Jaye was cited for making a prohibited right turn on red and for lacking proof of insurance.
Jaye wants fiancée at trial
Lawyers say she will be a critical witness in his defense case
Detroit News
June 8, 2001
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Lawyers for ex-State Sen. David Jaye said they want the former lawmaker's fiancee to testify at his probation violation trial next month, either in person or by a videotaped deposition.
Attorney Philip Thomas said that Sonia Kloss is the critical witness in the case and could spare the expelled senator from doing another 10 1/2 months in jail.
"I believe she is going to be the key witness ... that she will testify conclusively that David Jaye did not assault her," Thomas said.
Jaye is charged with violating his drunken driving probation by assaulting Kloss in northern Michigan on Nov. 19 and again in Lee County, Fla., last April, according to charges filed Thursday by the Macomb County prosecutor's office.
The third charge claims that Jaye also violated probation by driving while on a hunting trip last November. Terms of his probation restricted his driving to legislative matters.
Jaye pleaded innocent to the probation violation charges at his arraignment Thursday before Shelby Township District Judge Douglas Shepherd. He was released under $10,000 personal bond.
His trial is scheduled to last two days and likely will be held in July, Shepherd said.
The Senate expelled Jaye last month, citing a series of misbehaviors,including the alleged assaults. Kloss recanted the assaults in a videotape played to the Senate committee hearing the expulsion case.
Thomas said in court that he wanted Kloss to testify at the trial, but asked Shepherd to allow a videotaped deposition to be taken instead if she balks at coming back to Michigan.
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 fiancee 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.
Jaye’s fiancée ordered to testify
Muskegon Chronicle
July 12, 2001
The fiancee of ousted state Sen. David Jaye has been ordered to testify at Jaye’s upcoming probation violation hearing about allegations that he twice assaulted her.
A Florida resident, Sonia Kloss had avoided a subpoena until last week when she was served at Jaye’s Washington Township home by two investigators from the Macomb County prosecutor’s office.
Jaye faces up to 10 1/2 months in jail for allegedly assaulting Kloss in Bay County in November and in Florida in April. A third charge claims Jaye violated his restricted driver’s license, which had been issued due to a drunken driving conviction.
In May, those three incidents were the foundation for the “pattern of personal misconduct” that led to Jaye becoming the first senator in Michigan history to be expelled from office. Kloss has denied the alleged assault in Bay County.
In the Florida case, she told police Jaye had beaten her, then later recanted. Because Kloss was issued a subpoena in Michigan, not Florida, she must comply and testify, according to Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga.
Jaye learns today if he goes to jail
Judge will decide if expelled senator violated probation
Detroit News
July 23, 2001
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- A Shelby Township district court judge will decide today whether to dismiss probation violation charges against former state Sen. David Jaye -- a move that could keep the expelled lawmaker from going to jail.
Jaye was charged with violating his probation, that stemmed from a drunken driving conviction, because he allegedly assaulted his fiancee twice in the last year and violated his driving restrictions by going deer hunting last November.
But the attorney for Jaye filed a motion asking 41-A District Judge Douglas P. Shepherd to throw out the probation violation case because the assault allegations are unfounded.
Furthermore, attorney Phil Thomas said the probation violation case started six months after the alleged assault and deer hunting incidents surfaced and the delay violates Jaye's constitutional rights.
"When probation violation proceedings are commenced, they must be carried out with due diligence," Thomas said in the legal briefs. "The six month delay ... has violated defendant's due process rights."
Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga said there were valid reasons for the six-month delay.
"The probation department wanted to see what the evidence was, and plus, I granted additional time because (Jaye) was involved in the senate hearings," Marlinga said. "We were ready to file probation violation charges three months before that, but we waited to show him mercy. And showing mercy cannot be used against us."
The state Senate expelled Jaye from office in May following a lengthy inquiry into allegations of supposed misconduct including the incidents involving his fiancee, Jameela Sonia Kloss. The probation violation charges were filed immediately after the expulsion.
Jaye could go back to jail for as long as 101/2 months if convicted. The trial is scheduled to start Aug. 2, but Thomas is hopeful Judge Shepherd will dismiss the case today.
The probation department said in court pleadings that one attack happened last Nov. 19 in Michigan and the other last April 12 in Florida. Kloss has denied that Jaye assaulted her and no charges were ever filed in either case, Thomas said.
Kloss, a Florida resident, was served a subpoena to testify when she visited Jaye at his Washington Township home last month. Thomas, who wants Kloss to testify in a videotaped deposition, is concerned Kloss will be badgered by the media during the proceedings.
But Marlinga said extra security will be added to allow Kloss to come and go from court without being harassed.
Thomas said the more compelling reason the probation violation charge should be dismissed is because Kloss says the attacks never happened.
"The mere fact that Ms. Kloss originally told the Florida authorities she was assaulted is not sufficient," Thomas said in his pleadings.
"Some type of corroborative information was necessary, prior to charging the defendant with probation violation," Thomas added.
"To say that victims of domestic violence often recant charges of abuse in order to protect their husband/boyfriend, and then allow that statement to serve as justification for filing a probation violation is not only unreasonable, but unconstitutional as well."
Marlinga said Thomas is "absolutely wrong" because witnesses statements do not have to be corroborated in probation cases.
"The district court judge will be able to make the determination of what happened," Marlinga said. "We only have to show by the preponderance of evidence what occurred, not beyond a reasonable doubt.
"It' a common-sense situation. It will be what the judge honestly believes happened. Everyone who is familiar with this case knows that David Jaye assaulted his girlfriend."
Thomas said he will have witnesses testify that Jaye did not violate his driving restrictions when he went to a deer hunting camp. Jaye was prohibited from using his car for personal reasons as terms of his probation on drunk driving.
Jaye went to the camp not to hunt, but to talk to hunters about environmental and other issues.
Marlinga said if Thomas uses that defense, it would further damage Jaye's credibility.
Michigan's Jaye to face probation - violation charges
The Blade
Toledo, Ohio
July 24, 2001
Lansing - As former state Sen. David Jaye mulls running in a special election for the seat he was expelled from this year, a judge ruled yesterday that Mr. Jaye will face charges of violating probation.
Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd ruled that Mr. Jaye will face charges he violated the probation for a drunken-driving conviction. Mr. Jaye had three drunken-driving convictions and allegations he assaulted his fiancée, Sonia Kloss. She said Mr. Jaye did nothing wrong.
The Blade
Toledo, Ohio
July 24, 2001
Lansing - As former state Sen. David Jaye mulls running in a special election for the seat he was expelled from this year, a judge ruled yesterday that Mr. Jaye will face charges of violating probation.
Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd ruled that Mr. Jaye will face charges he violated the probation for a drunken-driving conviction. Mr. Jaye had three drunken-driving convictions and allegations he assaulted his fiancée, Sonia Kloss. She said Mr. Jaye did nothing wrong.
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 fiancee, 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.
Background Facts for the News Media and the Public on the Aug. 2 & 3 Court Hearing on Former State Senator Dave Jaye
SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Aug. 1 /PRNewswire/ --
The following was compiled by Bill McMaster, for Michigan Senate Candidate Dave Jaye, "Taxpayers' Best Friend" in Lansing for 13 years.
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Background+Facts+for+the+News+Media+and+the+Public+on+the+Aug.+2+%26+3...-a076913030
Dave Jaye will participate in hearings starting at 8 a.m. Thursday and concluding Friday (Aug. 2 & 3) before Shelby Township 41st-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd to determine whether or not Jaye violated terms of his OUIL probation.
Terms of probation were established after Senator Jaye did not dispute the findings of the Macomb County Sheriff Department that he blew .11 on the Breathalyzer while driving home alone after an evening of strenuous wallyball interspersed by pizza and beer on Saturday, March 5, 2000.
On June 12, 2000, the 41st-A District Court sentenced Sen. Jaye to the harshest penalty in Michigan history for Second offense OUIL (almost seven years apart) not involving an accident: 45 days in jail, two years of probation including two AA meetings a week and medical health counseling. Sen. Jaye served his jail time during the summer break and still finished the year with one of the best voting records: 97% attendance voting 95% of the time with Republican leadership.
Having a clean record for complying with the terms of his driving restrictions and no drinking, Jaye's full driving license privileges were returned to him on January 4, 2001.
On May 10 this year, Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga, an opportunist Democratic candidate for U.S. Congress, abused the power of his office by concocting three "Probation violations" allegedly committed by Sen. Jaye. District Court Judge Shepherd will conduct the hearing on Marlinga's allegations without concern for Jaye's constitutional right to a jury or double jeopardy.
In U.S. for allegations against Jaye's conduct which were already found totally without merit in four prior legal proceedings. The three probation "respects" Jaye is accused by political opponents of violating are:
"1. On November 19, 2000, the Defendant engaged in assaultive behavior against Jameela Sonia Kloss in Bay County Michigan."
Jaye's Factual Response: There was no assaultive behavior. No evidence has been found after nine months of investigation in Bay County to substantiate a charge being brought against Jaye. In fact, the gas station's security video tape, which was introduced to the legal record during State Senate hearings last May, vividly and truthfully contradicts the sworn testimony of Jaye's principal accuser from the gas station/mini mart. The preponderance of evidence.
In a civil case, the plaintiff has the burden of proving the facts and claims asserted in the complaint. proves Jaye is innocent of hitting Ms. Kloss ... or anybody.
"2. On April 12, 2001, the defendant engaged in assaultive behavior against Jameela Sonia Kloss in Lee County Florida, being arrested for Domestic Violence Battery."
Jaye's Factual Response: Upon complete investigation by the authorities in Florida, Jaye was permanently cleared of the allegation of Domestic Violence before he was even charged or ordered to stand trial. District Court Judge Shepherd in Michigan cannot logically weigh the preponderance of evidence in a Florida case that never was.
"3. On or about November 19, 2000, the Defendant drove in violation of the restrictions on his drivers license"
Jaye's Factual Response: The two State Troopers who stopped Jaye driving on I-75 after the November 19 complaint of the Bay County gas station attendant checked with their Law Enforcement Information Network computer at roadside. They both gave sworn testimony to the Senate Hearing that Jaye was not violating the restrictions on his drivers license. Even after the Bay County Prosecutor (another politically ambitious Democrat hostile to Jaye's political action) three weeks later ordered the Troopers to further investigate, no evidence was found to charge Jaye with violating even one of the restrictions, or his probation in any "respect." How fair is it for Judge Shepherd in Macomb County to try to assemble the preponderance of evidence against Jaye nine months after the fact in a Bay County case where there wasn't enough evidence to even bring the complaint to a jury trial?
News media has ignored the fact that none of the "respects" before Judge Shepherd involve drinking. Jaye has repeatedly stated he is sorry he didn't stop drinking before his March 2000 arrest. He is taking his punishment like a man. And he is adhering to a higher standard of conduct expected of elected officials by complying completely and without complaint with all of the driving restrictions and probation requirements he agreed to follow.
Former State Senator Dave Jaye has filed as a Republican candidate for his currently vacant seat. The only Republican candidate against him so far in the September 11 Primary Election is State Representative Alan Sanborn, a former Macomb County Probation Officer. Campaign finance records for Sanborn and Judge Shepherd show they are contributors and active supporters in each others' political campaigns.
8 a.m. Thursday, August 2. Concluded Friday.
Case No. 00-629-SD "State of Michigan vs David G. Jaye"
41st-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd
51660 Van Dyke, Shelby Twp., MI 48316
SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Aug. 1 /PRNewswire/ --
The following was compiled by Bill McMaster, for Michigan Senate Candidate Dave Jaye, "Taxpayers' Best Friend" in Lansing for 13 years.
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Background+Facts+for+the+News+Media+and+the+Public+on+the+Aug.+2+%26+3...-a076913030
Dave Jaye will participate in hearings starting at 8 a.m. Thursday and concluding Friday (Aug. 2 & 3) before Shelby Township 41st-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd to determine whether or not Jaye violated terms of his OUIL probation.
Terms of probation were established after Senator Jaye did not dispute the findings of the Macomb County Sheriff Department that he blew .11 on the Breathalyzer while driving home alone after an evening of strenuous wallyball interspersed by pizza and beer on Saturday, March 5, 2000.
On June 12, 2000, the 41st-A District Court sentenced Sen. Jaye to the harshest penalty in Michigan history for Second offense OUIL (almost seven years apart) not involving an accident: 45 days in jail, two years of probation including two AA meetings a week and medical health counseling. Sen. Jaye served his jail time during the summer break and still finished the year with one of the best voting records: 97% attendance voting 95% of the time with Republican leadership.
Having a clean record for complying with the terms of his driving restrictions and no drinking, Jaye's full driving license privileges were returned to him on January 4, 2001.
On May 10 this year, Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga, an opportunist Democratic candidate for U.S. Congress, abused the power of his office by concocting three "Probation violations" allegedly committed by Sen. Jaye. District Court Judge Shepherd will conduct the hearing on Marlinga's allegations without concern for Jaye's constitutional right to a jury or double jeopardy.
In U.S. for allegations against Jaye's conduct which were already found totally without merit in four prior legal proceedings. The three probation "respects" Jaye is accused by political opponents of violating are:
"1. On November 19, 2000, the Defendant engaged in assaultive behavior against Jameela Sonia Kloss in Bay County Michigan."
Jaye's Factual Response: There was no assaultive behavior. No evidence has been found after nine months of investigation in Bay County to substantiate a charge being brought against Jaye. In fact, the gas station's security video tape, which was introduced to the legal record during State Senate hearings last May, vividly and truthfully contradicts the sworn testimony of Jaye's principal accuser from the gas station/mini mart. The preponderance of evidence.
In a civil case, the plaintiff has the burden of proving the facts and claims asserted in the complaint. proves Jaye is innocent of hitting Ms. Kloss ... or anybody.
"2. On April 12, 2001, the defendant engaged in assaultive behavior against Jameela Sonia Kloss in Lee County Florida, being arrested for Domestic Violence Battery."
Jaye's Factual Response: Upon complete investigation by the authorities in Florida, Jaye was permanently cleared of the allegation of Domestic Violence before he was even charged or ordered to stand trial. District Court Judge Shepherd in Michigan cannot logically weigh the preponderance of evidence in a Florida case that never was.
"3. On or about November 19, 2000, the Defendant drove in violation of the restrictions on his drivers license"
Jaye's Factual Response: The two State Troopers who stopped Jaye driving on I-75 after the November 19 complaint of the Bay County gas station attendant checked with their Law Enforcement Information Network computer at roadside. They both gave sworn testimony to the Senate Hearing that Jaye was not violating the restrictions on his drivers license. Even after the Bay County Prosecutor (another politically ambitious Democrat hostile to Jaye's political action) three weeks later ordered the Troopers to further investigate, no evidence was found to charge Jaye with violating even one of the restrictions, or his probation in any "respect." How fair is it for Judge Shepherd in Macomb County to try to assemble the preponderance of evidence against Jaye nine months after the fact in a Bay County case where there wasn't enough evidence to even bring the complaint to a jury trial?
News media has ignored the fact that none of the "respects" before Judge Shepherd involve drinking. Jaye has repeatedly stated he is sorry he didn't stop drinking before his March 2000 arrest. He is taking his punishment like a man. And he is adhering to a higher standard of conduct expected of elected officials by complying completely and without complaint with all of the driving restrictions and probation requirements he agreed to follow.
Former State Senator Dave Jaye has filed as a Republican candidate for his currently vacant seat. The only Republican candidate against him so far in the September 11 Primary Election is State Representative Alan Sanborn, a former Macomb County Probation Officer. Campaign finance records for Sanborn and Judge Shepherd show they are contributors and active supporters in each others' political campaigns.
8 a.m. Thursday, August 2. Concluded Friday.
Case No. 00-629-SD "State of Michigan vs David G. Jaye"
41st-A District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd
51660 Van Dyke, Shelby Twp., MI 48316
Ex-senator's probation trial begins
Ludington Daily News
August 2, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. [AP] - A probation violation trial begins Thursday for David Jaye, the only senator in Michigan history to be expelled from his seat.
The Macomb County District Court trial's outcome could decide whether Jaye, of Washington Township, is eligible to run again for the seat he was ousted from in May.
His Senate peers voted 33-2 to expel him, citing a "recurring pattern of personal misconduct."
Jaye has filed his candidacy for the upcoming special election, which Gov. John Engler announced will be Sept. 11.
The general election is scheduled for Nov. 6.
But if found guilty Jaye faces up to 10 1/2 months in jail.
The trial is expected to last two days, with more than a dozen witnesses called to testify, The Macomb Daily of Mount Clemens reported Thursday.
Ex-senator guilty of probation violation
Ludington Daily News
August 3, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. [AP] - 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 10-and-a-half months, but I don't that would be the right thing for me to do," Shepherd said.
Jaye could have been ordered to spend up to 10 1/2 months in jail for violating his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction.
Prosecutors claimed Jaye assaulted his fiancee 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 restify in his own defense, but those plans never came to be as his attorney rested without calling him to the stand.
Jaye didn't hit me, fiancée tells court
She doesn't recall what she said to police
The Blade
Toledo Ohio
August 3, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. - David jaye's fiancee testified yesterday that the former state senator did not hit her during the two incidents that prosecutors point to as violations of Mr. Jaye's probation on a drunken driving conviction.
Sonia Kloss testified as part of Mr. Jaye's probation violation trial, which got under way yesterday.
He was expelled from the Senate in May after most of his fellow senators said he no longer deserved to serve, in part because of three drunken driving convictions and allegations he hit Ms. Kloss.
The trial in Macomb County Circuit Court could decide whether Mr. Jaye of Washington Township must run for his old seat with a probation conviction on his record. If Judge Douglas Shepherd determines Mr. Jaye violated his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction, Mr. Jaye might have to finish serving his sentence.
That could mean spending 10 1/2 months in jail. Mr. Jaye, who insists he hasn't violated his probation, has filed to run for the Sept. 11 special election to determine his successor in the Senate.
Mr. Jaye called yesterday's proceedings "double jepordy" because he was subjected to Senate hearings over the alleged incidents.
Yesterday Ms. Kloss appeared confused and upset through much of her testimony. Her hands shook as she looked at transcripts. She had to take two breaks while testifying.
Although she denied Mr. Jaye hit her during an April 12 incident in Florida or during a Nov. 19 incident at a Bay County, Michigan gas station, she admitted she had been drinking heavily before both events.
When asked if she told police that Mr. Jaye hit her after the November incident, she said: "I was up for 36 hours. I was drinking all night and partying. I don't know what I said." She said Mr. Jaye did pull her to the car but did not hit or kick her. "He yelled and screamed. He wanted to get me in the car," Ms. Kloss said.
Proceedings were to resume Friday morning."
Ludington Daily News
August 2, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. [AP] - A probation violation trial begins Thursday for David Jaye, the only senator in Michigan history to be expelled from his seat.
The Macomb County District Court trial's outcome could decide whether Jaye, of Washington Township, is eligible to run again for the seat he was ousted from in May.
His Senate peers voted 33-2 to expel him, citing a "recurring pattern of personal misconduct."
Jaye has filed his candidacy for the upcoming special election, which Gov. John Engler announced will be Sept. 11.
The general election is scheduled for Nov. 6.
But if found guilty Jaye faces up to 10 1/2 months in jail.
The trial is expected to last two days, with more than a dozen witnesses called to testify, The Macomb Daily of Mount Clemens reported Thursday.
Deputies to testify at Jaye trial
Fla. lawman will give evidence in Shelby of alleged assault on ex-senator's fiancée
Detroit News
August 2, 2001
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- Jameela Sonia Kloss, fiancee of ousted state senator David Jaye, won't be the only witness coming from Florida to testify at his probation violation trial today in Shelby Township District Court.
Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga said Lee County, Fla., sheriff's deputies who took statements from Kloss on April 12 that Jaye had assaulted her in her Fort Myers home will also be taking the stand.
The deputies will repeat the statements that Kloss gave that day about the confrontation with Jaye and describe her appearance, Marlinga said. "They will also give their observations about the redness (of Kloss' face) ... an indication there was physical contact" between the couple.
Marlinga said the Florida assault case is one of three "mini-trials" his office will be conducting against Jaye to prove he violated probation from his second drunken-driving conviction.
If convicted, Jaye could spend up to 101/2 months in jail. But defense attorney Phil Thomas said Jaye will be acquitted of the probation-violation charge because the allegations are unfounded.
Thomas said the scratch Kloss received "during the brouhaha" with Jaye in Florida was caused during a scuffle over Jaye's travel bag.
The other two episodes center on an alleged assault against Kloss by Jaye on Nov. 19 in Michigan's Bay County and a deer-hunting trip Jaye took about the same time. It is charged that Jaye was in violation of his restricted license by driving on the trip. Jaye was only allowed to drive on work-related matters at that time.
Jaye said he will testify at his trial, and said he's nervous because it will not be a jury trial. Jaye also said he feels uncomfortable because Shelby Township District Court Judge Douglas Shepherd made a $50 contribution last year to state Rep. Alan Sanborn, one of his opponents in the Sept. 11 Republican primary.
"I've been saying all along I am innocent," Jaye said. "I have my fiancee here with me now. I love her. She loves me. I didn't hit her, and all the courts have said that. This is just a political witch hunt."
Jaye was never charged in the Bay County or Florida assault cases. In Florida, Kloss told authorities Jaye assaulted her, but she has since recanted her statements.
Marlinga said if Jaye is convicted, he will ask that the former senator be sentenced immediately.
Ludington Daily News
August 3, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. [AP] - 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 10-and-a-half months, but I don't that would be the right thing for me to do," Shepherd said.
Jaye could have been ordered to spend up to 10 1/2 months in jail for violating his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction.
Prosecutors claimed Jaye assaulted his fiancee 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 restify in his own defense, but those plans never came to be as his attorney rested without calling him to the stand.
She doesn't recall what she said to police
The Blade
Toledo Ohio
August 3, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. - David jaye's fiancee testified yesterday that the former state senator did not hit her during the two incidents that prosecutors point to as violations of Mr. Jaye's probation on a drunken driving conviction.
Sonia Kloss testified as part of Mr. Jaye's probation violation trial, which got under way yesterday.
He was expelled from the Senate in May after most of his fellow senators said he no longer deserved to serve, in part because of three drunken driving convictions and allegations he hit Ms. Kloss.
The trial in Macomb County Circuit Court could decide whether Mr. Jaye of Washington Township must run for his old seat with a probation conviction on his record. If Judge Douglas Shepherd determines Mr. Jaye violated his probation for a 2000 drunken driving conviction, Mr. Jaye might have to finish serving his sentence.
That could mean spending 10 1/2 months in jail. Mr. Jaye, who insists he hasn't violated his probation, has filed to run for the Sept. 11 special election to determine his successor in the Senate.
Mr. Jaye called yesterday's proceedings "double jepordy" because he was subjected to Senate hearings over the alleged incidents.
Yesterday Ms. Kloss appeared confused and upset through much of her testimony. Her hands shook as she looked at transcripts. She had to take two breaks while testifying.
Although she denied Mr. Jaye hit her during an April 12 incident in Florida or during a Nov. 19 incident at a Bay County, Michigan gas station, she admitted she had been drinking heavily before both events.
When asked if she told police that Mr. Jaye hit her after the November incident, she said: "I was up for 36 hours. I was drinking all night and partying. I don't know what I said." She said Mr. Jaye did pull her to the car but did not hit or kick her. "He yelled and screamed. He wanted to get me in the car," Ms. Kloss said.
Proceedings were to resume Friday morning."
She blames jealousy, drinking for quarrel
August 3, 2001
Detroit Free Press.
Flailing her arms and gently shoving a prosecutor, the fiancée of ousted state Sen. David Jaye demonstrated in court Thursday how she struggled with Jaye as he escorted her from a gas station and into a car during a quarrel. Sonia Kloss, who spent much of her two hours on the witness stand defending Jaye, said she was drunk and witness statements were false when Jaye was accused of assault Nov. 19 in a police stop in Bay County. Testifying about another argument, she cited jealous...
Jaye violated probation, Michigan judge rules
The Blade
Toledo, Ohio
August 4, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. - A judge ruled yesterday that David Jaye violated his probation by assaulting his girlfriend and failing to follow driving restrictions, but it appears the expelled state senator will not be returning to jail.
Mr. Jaye was sentenced to 30 days in jail, but if he pays a $500 fine within 21 days, he can avoid jail time. He was ordered by Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd to attend anger management classes and his probation is continued.
Mr. 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 his fiancee, Sonia Kloss. Mr. Jaye, who was ousted on a 33-2 vote, is the first senator in state history to be expelled. He has filed to run for the Sept. 11 special election to determine his successor in the Senate.
Fiancée: Jaye didn't assault me
Testimony at odds with police report in probation trial
Detroit News
August 3, 2001
SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- David Jaye's fiancee denied in court Thursday that the ex-lawmaker assaulted her in Florida or Michigan, but admitted she had been drinking heavily on both occasions and couldn't remember all of the details.
Jameela Sonia Kloss' testimony not only contradicted statements of witnesses in both assaults, it also was contrary to statements she gave police about the attacks and a taped 911 call she made to the Lee County (Fla.) Sheriff's Department on April 12.
The testimony came on the opening day of Jaye's probation violation trial before 41st-A District Judge Douglas Shepherd in Shelby Township. The charges stem from a drunken driving conviction last year. If convicted, Jaye could go to jail for as long as 10 1/2 months.
Macomb County Chief Trial Lawyer Eric Kaiser said Kloss' testimony was enough to convict Jaye of violating probation because the former state senator violated his driving restrictions levied from the drunken driving case.
Kloss said Jaye was driving his car when stopped by Michigan State Police troopers last Nov. 19 in Bay County. "That should do it. He was driving in violation of his restrictions," Kaiser said during a recess.
Jaye, a Washington Township Republican, claims he was driving in Bay County in his role as state senator -- a job he held until he was kicked out by his fellow senators in May.
A special primary will be held Sept. 11 to fill his seat, and Jaye is one of the candidates.
Kaiser said the prosecution recently obtained photographs which show Jaye drinking beer at the Citrus Bowl game last New Year's Day. Kaiser said that was another violation of the probation.
Shepherd prohibited Kaiser from asking Kloss if Jaye had been drinking at the game because it was beyond the scope of the case.
Meanwhile, Mark Satawa, Kloss' attorney, said she has been threatened with criminal charges and possible deportation to her native Trinidad because authorities believe she lied to Florida police that Jaye assaulted her.
But Robert Macarelli, a Lee County sheriff's corporal, testified that he saw blood on her nose and chin, and bruising on her cheek when responding to the 911 call at Kloss' Ft. Myers, Fla., home.
"She said she wouldn't give her keys to Jaye, so he hit her in the face ... in the mouth area," Macarelli said.
Kloss testified that she was injured during a tug-of-war with Jaye over a heavily-buckled travel bag.
Jaye trial highlights
* When asked by Macomb Chief Trial Lawyer Eric Kaiser about statements Sonia Kloss gave police that she wanted Jaye to stop beating her, Kloss responded: "I was up for 36 hours. I was partying. I don't remember what I said. I blacked out."
* When Kaiser questioned Kloss about reports that Jaye had beaten and kicked her in Bay County last Nov. 19, she said: "I can't remember," Kloss testified. "I was drinking very heavily that week. I can't remember the past week. I don't remember very much."
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 fiancee'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 fiance, 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 fiancee 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 fiancee, 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.
Jaye violated probation, Michigan judge rules
The Blade
Toledo, Ohio
August 4, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. - A judge ruled yesterday that David Jaye violated his probation by assaulting his girlfriend and failing to follow driving restrictions, but it appears the expelled state senator will not be returning to jail.
Mr. Jaye was sentenced to 30 days in jail, but if he pays a $500 fine within 21 days, he can avoid jail time. He was ordered by Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd to attend anger management classes and his probation is continued.
Mr. 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 his fiancee, Sonia Kloss. Mr. Jaye, who was ousted on a 33-2 vote, is the first senator in state history to be expelled. He has filed to run for the Sept. 11 special election to determine his successor in the Senate.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
August 4, 2001
Shelby Township, Mich. - A lawmaker expelled by the state Senate violated his probation by assaulting his girlfriend and failing to follow driving restrictions, a judge ruled Friday.
David Jaye was sentenced to 30 days in jail, but if he pays a $500 fine within 21 days, he can avoid jail time.
Macomb County District Judge Douglas Shepherd also ordered Jaye to attend anger management classes. He faced up to 10 1/2 months in jail for violating his probation for a drunken driving conviction last year.
Prosecutors claimed Jaye assaulted his fiancee and violated restrictions on his driver's license by driving to northern Michigan for a hunting trip.
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 fiance 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 fiancee, 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."
Jaye: Class will help relationship
Course can get ex-senator to control anger, stop blaming others for actions, prosecutor says
Detroit News
August 5, 2001
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- Macomb County's prosecutor has this advice for former state senator David Jaye: Admit you're a woman-beater and get on with your life.
Carl Marlinga made that observation as Jaye prepares to enter an extensive anger management class, called Alternatives to Domestic Aggression, at the Macomb Family Services in Mt. Clemens after he was found guilty Friday of violating probation for a past drunken driving conviction.
During a trial that took less than two days, Jaye also was accused of assaulting his fiancee in Florida six months ago.
As a prosecutor deeply involved in domestic abuse cases and a sponsor of anti-domestic abuse legislation, Marlinga is familiar with the 36-week course the Washington Township Republican faces.
"It causes the batterer to face reality that he is a batterer and to stop shifting the blame," Marlinga said. "His type of behavior fits the classic pattern of a batterer: the continuous nature of battering and denial and control of the victim."
Jaye still insists he has been prosecuted unfairly for political reasons. "Women are supporting me for Senate," he said Friday. "These are strong women, very forceful women. If they thought for one second I was abusing women, they wouldn't support me."
But Jaye did say his mandatory classes will be useful. "This kind of counseling will help improve communications with my fiancee, help defuse anxiety and to manage stress."
In the probation violation petition, Jaye was charged twice with assaulting Jameela Sonia Kloss -- once in Michigan's Bay County on Nov. 19, 2000, and again on April 12 in Fort Myers, Fla.
Judge Douglas Shepherd of 41-A District Court found Jaye innocent in the first case. However, Shepherd did find Jaye in violation of his probation by attacking Kloss at her Fort Myers home and driving with a restricted license. Along with the sentence to attend anger classes, Jaye was fined $500 and undetermined court costs and will remain on probation through next July.
Jaye said he never attacked Kloss in Fort Myers. He said Kloss was injured during a struggle over a garment bag.
Jaye was expelled from office by fellow senators in May for a series of offenses, including the alleged assaults and a drunken driving conviction from last year. He has filed to run in a special election Sept. 11 to fill his vacant seat.
"Of course I would have liked to have been completely exonerated -- had the charges completely dismissed -- but this was a mixed decision," Jaye said. "It won't hurt my campaign."
In the eight-month temper control course, Jaye will receive individual therapy and group sessions, Marlinga said.
"It's useful in breaking down the wall of the batterer," Marlinga said. "He will listen to others who went down the same path and listen to them say they initially said it was their wife's fault, the fault of the cops, or their girlfriend's fault. Then they will admit it was their fault.
"Judge Shepherd was well-attuned to the fact that most of Jaye's troubles revolved around this one relationship and that is why this Alternatives to Domestic Aggression program came to the forefront for treatment for Mr. Jaye."
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.
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.
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."
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.
Judge grants Jaye permission to leave
Detroit Free Press
December 21, 2001
David Jaye plans to end a whirlwind year -- in which he had his ear smashed in jail after an arrest, was booted from the state Senate and broke up with his fiancée -- by leaving the country to teach American government in South Korea. Jaye plans to leave Saturday, said his lawyer, Robert Huth. Although he is on probation, which is scheduled to end in July, Jaye's move was made legal Thursday after 41A District Judge Douglas Shepherd...
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 fiancee 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.
