Public Safety

July 31, 2011

MARIJUANA DISPENSARY QUESTIONED
A judge signed a subpoena requested by Garfield Township that will force
the owners and landlord of the Green Things Plus dispensary to answer some
questions.
At issue is whether the marijuana store on South Airport Road opened
during a temporary moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries that went
into effect in the township in January.
The agents of the business claim they opened before the moratorium;
township attorney Scott Howard says permit applications and social media
posts from the company say otherwise, according to a circuit court file.
Judge Philip Rodgers granted the subpoena request this week, saying there
was reasonable cause to believe the business is operating in violation of
the township moratorium. Business agents Sid Finfrock and Art Jones and
agents for landlord Hillside Plaza Limited Partnership will likely have to
answer questions from the township later this month and Green Things Plus
could face closure.

MORE CHARGES FOR FOSTER
GRANDDAD
An Antrim County foster granddad who already faces two criminal cases
involving allegations of child sexual abuse faces a third case.
Jere Wendell Clark faces three counts of first-degree criminal sexual
conduct involving an alleged victim who is related to him, according to
charges filed recently in the 86th District Court in Bellaire.
The charges related to alleged incidents that date back to 1998, according
to the charges. The other cases against Clark, involving allegations of
sexual misconduct that Clark denied, were profiled in the July 11 edition
of the Northern Express.

BEAVER ISLAND MOTORCYCLE
CRASH
A man who suffered a severe leg injury in a crash on Beaver Island was
evacuated by helicopter for medical treatment in Traverse City.
The man was reportedly 23 years old but it was unknown whether he was an
island resident or a visitor, said Lt. j.g. Chris Breuer, Air Station
Traverse City public affairs officer.
Breuer said the crash happened as the man rode his motorcycle around a
corner and collided with a car at around 9 p.m. on July 27.
Paramedics on Beaver Island requested the evacuation and an MH-65 Dolphin
rescue helicopter was deployed.
The man’s name was not released.

TWO INJURED IN
CRASH
Alcohol and speed apparently caused a single-vehicle crash that left two
men in the hospital, police said.
The crash happened at around 1:15 a.m. July 27 in the city of Cheboygan.
The driver of a vehicle on Huron Street lost control and struck a tree,
said Kurt Jones, director of public safety.
The driver, David Middaugh, 25, Onaway, suffered a head injury and was
eventually taken to Munson Medical Center in Traverse City. The passenger,
Joshua Beck, 19, Cheboygan, had to be extricated from the vehicle by
firefighters and wound up at Northern Michigan Hospital in Petoskey.
MAN INDECENTLY EXPOSED
Police arrested a man accused of exposing himself to young girls at the
beach at the Jones Lake Campground in Lovells Township.
The first incident was reported to deputies on July 25 after two young
girls made a report, Crawford County Sheriff Kirk Wakefield said.
More young females reported a man exposing himself the next day and
deputies located a man hiding in the woods near the beach who admitted to
the deviant behavior, Wakefield said.

PETOSKEY BREAK-IN
Residents of an apartment on Emmet Street returned from a late-evening
walk to discover their home had been the scene of a break-in, police said.
The tenants discovered lap-top computers and other valuables were gone,
according to Det. David Schultz of the Petoskey Department of Public
Safety.
Other residents reported to police that a suspicious person was seen in
the area. Anyone with information is asked to call the Petoskey police at
(231) 347-2500.

SIGHTSEERS RESCUED
Two people needed to be airlifted from a sightseeing cruise boat that
washed ashore in rough water near Empire on July 25.
The tour boat Pictured Rocks called for help shortly after 8 p.m. after
its captain purposely ran aground out of concern for the safety of the 61
people aboard, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
All but two passengers were able to get out of the boat and wade ashore
with assistance from the crew. A rescue helicopter crew helped the
remaining two passengers ashore with a hoist, officials said.

Child Porn arrest
A Traverse City man faces six felony charges after investigators allegedly
found remnants of child porn on his computer.
Grand Traverse Sheriff’s deputies arrested John Gregory Posada, 39, of TC,
on five counts of possession of child porn and a charge of using a
computer to commit a crime. The charges carry up to 10 years in prison.
Posada first came to the attention of authorities when a federal task
force looking into child porn identified a computer in TC and asked a
sheriff’s detective who specializes in computers, Todd Heller, to
investigate.
Heller executed a search warrant and Posada was arrested July 26 and held
on $50,000 bond.

Health Department Break-in
Thieves threw a rock through a rear window and climbed into the Benzie
Leelanau Health Department in Lake Leelanau sometime on July 27 or 28,
making off with thousands in property.
Whoever got inside searched the offices and snatched three laptop
computers and an LCD projector, Leelanau Sheriff Mike Oltersdorf said.
The stolen property is valued at $10,000.
Anyone with informa-tion about the crime is urged to call the sheriff’s
department at (231)
256-8800.