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	The Ypsilanti Courier A Heritage Newspaper Weekly Publication

County sheriff drops lawsuit

Sheriff, county now working toward common goal

By Austen Smith, Editor

PUBLISHED: March 22, 2007

A six-month legal battle between Sheriff Dan Minzey and Washtenaw County officials has seemingly ended.

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After talks be-tween Minzey and county officials markedly improved over the past several weeks, Minzey last week decided to drop a lawsuit against the county over the handling of jail overcrowding issues.

Minzey credits the change of events with the County Board's "newfound determination" to resolve jail overcrowding and develop a "sound policy" for boarding out inmates.

"It is a dramatic change, I personally feel it," Minzey said. "When you take out stuff like the finger pointing and finally sit down and talk with all parties involved, you're able to say, 'OK, let's figure out where we're at.'"

A combined effort from Minzey and Board Chairman Jeff Irwin has improved communications between the two sides, which were, less than six months ago, not talking at all.

"I have seen a dramatic change since the first of the year in the chairman. He has really made himself available," Minzey said.

Irwin said he is delighted that Minzey dropped the lawsuit and is committed to moving forward.

"(The board) tries very hard to work on communicating with the sheriff, and all of county departments, as we try to evaluate (Minzey's) needs against ours and others," he said.

"Its always good to hear (Minzey) say that we are working better together and moving forward. I would definitely say that the board has gotten better at communicating with the sheriff and our relationships are improving, which just helps us provide better service to county residents."

Last week, Minzey called together a meeting with county officials. After some discussion, Minzey said he eventually realized that he and Irwin shared a lot of the same concerns and goals.

"What happened was that I already was having talks with the chairman. I called together a meeting that brought together both sides and asked, 'Is there any middle ground where we might be able to go from here?'

"So, because communication was better at the present time, I told them that I would agree, at the time, to ask the judge to dismiss the lawsuit without prejudice," Minzey said.

Irwin also said that he and the sheriff share a lot of the same concerns with the jail and will try to hammer out those concerns in the future.

"We both realized that if we if we just focus on these issues, rather than wading through lawsuits, that's a better strategy as far as moving forward, and I certainly share that sentiment," Irwin said.

Washtenaw County Administrator Bob Guenzel said he was pleased with Minzey's decision. He said that both sides have a renewed commitment to put the past behind them.

"It was good step forward, it's a good sign," he said. "I think the time was right to begin discussions again. (Irwin) has been very much hands on with the jail and that's good."