WE DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY
Northern Michigan for Accountable Government (NMAG) is a collective of concerned citizens demanding transparency and accountability from Grand Traverse County government, beginning with the Sheriff’s Office. We are concerned about the administration’s failure to fulfill its mission to “preserve, protect, and defend the rights of the citizens and visitors of Grand Traverse County.”
Every taxpayer should be enraged by the sexual assault of women, the mistreatment of people experiencing addiction, and the unconstitutional detainment of immigrants that have occurred on Sheriff Tom Bensley’s watch. Community safety is assured only when all community members are free from an exploitative, stigmatizing, and isolating jail system.
THE ISSUES
THE RITTER REPORT
For years, Sheriff Bensley has dismissed and ignored the alleged sexual abuse and alarmingly high numbers of suicide attempts occurring at the Grand Traverse Country Jail under disgraced Captain Todd Ritter.
MISUSE OF TAXPAYER FUNDS
Sheriff Bensley continues to funnel taxpayer funds to the private health provider WellPath in spite of their failure to deliver healthcare to inmates. Bensley falsely claims that oversight of inmate health is “not my job.”
FAILURE TO LEAD
The Sheriff’s office receives 40% of the Grand Traverse County’s budget. Grand Traverse citizens deserve a Sheriff that will use their hard-earned money for the betterment of their community.