Krystal Crittendon possible run for Mayor of Detroit

This morning at 7am City Attorney Krystal Crittendon was the featured guest on the Mildred Gaddis Show. She made an announcement that an exploratory committee has been formed as she is considering running for Mayor of Detroit this fall. Free Detroit No Consent has been very supportive of her former position as lead Corporation Counsel, defending and ensuring the City Charter is upheld as our constitution.

Early in the segment Crittendon stated "Detroit doesn’t need an emergency manager. Detroit needs to manage its emergency." She also stated that any demand for payment of "funds from the State of Michigan to the City is required to come through the Mayor". Mayor Bing has yet to request the State for 1) current past due obligations, 2) bond funds which the city is currently paying interest on. One has to wonder why the Mayor has not requested hundreds of millions of dollars that the State admits is payable.

During the show Crittendon mentioned the Consent Agreement and Emergency Manager Law are things we are dealing with now but they may not be long-term issues. She took a number of calls from listeners and indicated while her committee is roughly 10 people she knows she has well over 100 committed persons assisting in her quest for office as Mayor. Most calls coming into the show were very supportive.

Strengths That Krystal Crittendon Possesses

• Crittendon is a lifelong resident of the city 
  She has many community relationships across the city and to those interested in support for the city.
• Provides protection to the city through her legal background 
  The current state of affairs requires utmost attention to legal needs. She has an intimate "in the trenches" understanding of the Consent Agreement and the Emergency Manager Laws.
• Believes Detroit is more than a strong Downtown and Midtown 
  The city as a whole needs attention throughout all the neighborhoods.
• Experience with the current issues of the city 
  Her supporters come from the neighborhoods around the city. Many of them elder voters whom admire her integrity in standing up for what is right and decent. 
• She has had a busy legal review schedule since appointment in 2009 
  The 2012 revision to the City Charter brought changes addressing weaknesses in the 1997 Charter that allowed corruption to come to a head with the criminal removal of the former Mayor.

The list of possible candidates announcing consideration of positions as Mayor and into City Council continues to grow. Money to support a campaign for mayor she estimates at least $2 million will be needed.

Mayor is more than working with business matters, there are people issues and services that must be continued for survival, continued well-being and growth. Special interests will show up around each candidate as their background and connections are revealed. We need a Mayor that can speak knowledgeably about how the city interacts with business and enables the people to unite as community with services to support them.

Free Detroit No Consent will be ready with an endorsement should the exploratory committee move forward declaring Krystal Crittendon's candidacy for Mayor of the City of Detroit.

City Council TODAY: Belle Isle, Ethics Complaints, and more

Today's City Council sessions will be extremely busy and we would like to make sure you have documentation in advance. A 107 page Supporting Documents package is available through this link. Agendas can be found through these links [Formal Session Agenda | New Business Agenda].

Substantial topics to be addressed included in the Supporting Documents:

• Acquisition and immediate sale of Lafayette Towers
• Zoning ordinance amendments aimed at car sales rooms and surface lots
• DDOT seeks authorization for revised grant funding for the Job Access and Reverse Commute Program (JARC), this will increase funding $1,921,121 ($849,051 from FTA and $1,072,070 from MDOT)
• Cass Apartments to be approved for payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) and increased MSHDA funding.
• RAD presentation of Proposed City Council Rules nad Procedures for Forfeiture of Elective City Office -- please note this clarifies the Board of Ethics and Ethics Complaint process and brings to light the rules do not address a circumstance in which multiple Council Members might be subject to forfeiture proceedings. (see note below)

Note regarding the RAD presentation last mentioned above: Free Detroit No Consent has been instrumental in the filing of over 500 Ethics Complaints which cite multiple city council members need to be investigated for forfeiture of office. A current copy of the Ethics Complaint form which has been used citing violations can be found through this link and by clicking on the graphic box on this post and in the sidebar for the website. 

Belle Isle Lease Session at 1:00 pm

Included in the Supporting Documents package are details for the 1:00pm meeting of City Council with attendance by Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, Governor's Office of Urban & Metropolitan Initiatives, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Michigan Department of Transportation, Mayor's Office, Recreation, Budget, Finance and Law Departments. The most recent documents for the lease arrangement are in the supporting documents package. The Belle Isle Lease Proposal as offered last week can be accessed through this link.

Free Detroit No Consent would like to thank the hundreds of citizens that came for the Hands Off Our Island rally on Saturday held at Shed 2 on Belle Isle. Some of the photos from the day can be found in the slideshow below. Live streamed video can be found through this link (note this is not edited footage).

Miller Canfield Letters of Engagement ... coming soon?

Today at City Council's Standing Committee for Internal Affairs the issue of identifying the manner in which Miller Canfield Paddock Stone, PLC is being paid for services.

This issue was brought forward from the Internal Affairs Standing Committee agenda from July 11. The representative from the Mayor's administration indicated CFO Jack Martin is gathering up the various letters of engagement that have been filed. The promise is these will be produced by next week.

Our representative from Free Detroit No Consent questioned how letters of engagement were being created. Were these through Miller Canfield? If so, they are not Corporation Counsel, which is the approving body granting the ability to represent the City.

When people in government are not performing in an ethical manner, file a complaint. Depending on the seriousness of the problem those named could be fined, removed from office, and possibly face judicial prosecution.

Miller Canfield vs Crittendon

Mayor Bing filed through Miller Canfield on Thursday July 12 around 5pm with 3rd District Court to fire Krystal Crittendon.

This was openly discussed at the Mayor's town hall meeting in Rosedale Park. Cecily McClellan from Free Detroit queried Mayor Bing as to the legality of this suit, and asked for an explanation, none was offered. The public attending applauded the inquiry by McClellan.

We encourage contact in support of Krystal Crittendon at 313-237-3418.

Call Mayor Bing at 313-224-3400 to indicate your outrage that he would work through Miller Canfield an illegal motion late in the day. Under the 2012 revision of the City Charter attorney Crittendon can only be removed without cause by a majority vote of the City Council.

The Mayor appeared before City Council several weeks ago and walked out before seeking their approval for her removal, for a second time.

Crittendon and Hollowell Speak

Thursday June 28 a number of Free Detroit - No Consent members attended the NAACP Detroit Branch meeting and had a wonderful discussion on two highly controversial matters being discussed in Detroit and Michigan. Speakers for the evening were Butch Hollowell from Stand Up For Democracy speaking about the Repeal of Public Act 4, and Krystal Crittendon, Detroit Corporation Counsel speaking about the Consent Agreement. It was an evening for the public to become informed on how democracy for the people is being fought for locally and in the state.

Each speaker's presentation was valuable for anyone that has only had news stories and bits of information to bring the stories together. You were given the breadth of
the story to know how it has evolved, what issues are currently being faced, and the action steps that are being taken.

Repeal of Public Act 4

Stand Up For Democracy has a team of attorneys working together to remove Emergency Manager Laws from Michigan. Our speaker was Melvin "Butch" Hollowell, Detroit Branch NAACP attorney.

Current action is the motion requesting immediate implementation of the order to place the Repeal of Public Act 4 on the November ballot. Additionally voter legislation was headed for approval by Governor Snyder.

The Consent Agreement of Detroit

Voter Legislation Bills 

Yesterday Governor Snyder vetoed the following "voter suppression" bills. 11 voter registration bills were signed into law.

• SB 754 [VETO] - sought training for organizations registering voters. The governor stated timing on this would be too tight to accomplish and would further confuse voter registration efforts.
• SB 803 & HB 5061 [VETO] - prevent voting fraud by requiring a voter to reaffirm U.S. citizenship before receiving a ballot and requiring photo ID when picking up an absentee ballot.

Support Corporation Counsel

Contact Corporation Counsel to express support in the fight for jobs and justice through the City Charter. Mayor Dave Bing has conspired with Governor Rick Snyder to eliminate jobs and hired private attorneys from Miller-Canfield whom are in a conflict of interest. These are the same attorneys that have:

• Drafted the changes to Public Act 4 of 2011, replacing Public Act 72
• Drafted the Financial Stability Agreement between the City of Detroit and State of Michigan
• Represented Mayor Bing in court and before City Council. Billing for such services has not been tracked and made available to Corporation Counsel as required through the City Charter.
• Miller-Canfield's attorneys Michael Hodges and Michael McGee intervened unjustly in the case filed June 1, 2012 by Corporation Counsel between the City of Detroit and State of Michigan testing the authenticity of the Financial Stability Agreement. The Mayor's counsel filed a brief, and Judge Collette failed to follow City Charter 2012 sec 7.5-201(1) and 7.5-208, which were included by Corporation Counsel in its filing.
  The reason for the case (upholding Charter sec 7.5-209) was not allowed to be heard in Claims Court by Judge Collette on June 14, 2012. The case was never adjudicated as a result. Mayor's counsel was conflicted to intervene on behalf of the Mayor or City due to its interests with the State Treasurer in writing the document in question.

Crittendon vs Bing, Round 2

Rally in support of Krystal Crittendon at the Spirit of Detroit from 1pm - 1:30pm. 

The City's favored lawyer, Krystal Crittendon will be the subject of discussion between Mayor Bing and City Council Friday June 22 at 2pm. It seems the righteous mainstream propaganda press has chosen to create her as problem in the midst of the Mayor's battle to appropriate the City's assets and turn them over to the State of Michigan and private interests, as directed by his personal legal counsel Mike McGee of Miller-Canfield.

The proceedings requested by Krystal Crittendon, Corporation Counsel to the City of Detroit, have been properly carried out and stopped by

City Council Neighborhood Meeting

Tonight at 7pm City Council will be meeting at University of Detroit Mercy. Free Detroit has heard that Mayor Bing is continuing to press for removal of Corporation Counsel Krystal Crittendon. The foundation of these requests we feel is frustration from the Mayor and fear that he continues to be held to the City Charter. The case heard by Judge Collette was dismissed on the question of whether Corporation Counsel was following the direction of the Mayor in bringing the case to the court. The City Charter does not require counsel to do this. The charter was intentionally revised in January 2012 to address corruption within city government and require elected officials, appointees, and department directors to follow the framework of the City Charter. There has been no evidence that Corporation Counsel has operated outside the law of the charter. Free Detroit is continuing to revise our attachment for ethics complaints as we find additional actions that violate it. These complaints are to be notarized and filed with the Board of Ethics for review and action. The next meeting of the Board of Ethics will be July 27 at 3pm in the City Council Committee of the Whole Room, 2 Woodward Ave, 13th Floor, Detroit MI 48226.

Consent Agreement in Court Wednesday

Wednesday June 13 at 10am Judge William Collette will be hearing the case of The City of Detroit vs State of Michigan, et al, case 1266-MK. This case presented by Corporation Counsel, James Noseda, will test the legitimacy of the Financial Stability Agreement (aka Consent Agreement).

Update: Corporation Counsel Krystal Crittendon will be meeting with Detroit City Council at 2:30 pm on Wednesday (closed session).

Board the Bus to Lansing

Free Detroit - No Consent is arranging for bus transport to the hearing. Please email info@freedetroit.org with your name and phone number if you are planning to travel in the group. We will be gathering at 7:30am at Bethany Baptist Church, 15122 West Chicago Street  Detroit, MI 48228

A Day of Justice is Dawning for Detroit

The people of Detroit are requested to stand up for our rights given by law. Please attend a very fateful date of meetings on Monday, June 11, 2012 beginning early in the morning - we suggest 7:30 am arrival. Protest pickets are very welcome as we hope the meeting room will be overflowing. We will be requesting the meeting moved into the Erma Henderson Auditorium, but experience has shown the will of the people has not been served.

Corporation Counsel, Attorney Krystal Crittendon, is standing firm with a lawsuit from the City of Detroit against the State of Michigan stating the  Financial Stability Agreement is illegitimate. She faces opposition by the Governor of the State of Michigan, State Treasurer, Mayor Bing, members of Detroit City Council, and City of Detroit appointees of the mayor.

Free Detroit - No Consent has been working all day on a plan of action in support of Corporation Counsel and the law written in the Detroit City Charter. The practice of law in governing the City of Detroit is paramount. Your support in seeing this through is needed.

City Council, Mayor Bing, and appointees meet with Corporation Counsel Krystal Crittendon Coleman A Young Municipal Building 2 Woodward Ave, 13th floor, Detroit (enter from Larned or Woodward) Be there by 7:30am, pack the meeting room - insist on the auditorium Know the Law - Know the City Charter

Please share information about this event with every concerned Detroiter you know. Days of Justice for the City of Detroit are dawning Monday.

Wednesday Corporation Counsel will be in Ingham County Court for The City of Detroit vs The State of Michigan - the battle to prove the Financial Stability Agreement null and void is on.

[Facebook event link]

NOTE: A new page for the website "Ethics Guide" is being assembled as quickly as we can make it happen.