Brian Donnelly recall, Kalkaska County, Michigan (2011)
| Kalkaska County Prosecutor recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2011 Recalls in Michigan Michigan recall laws County official recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall Brian Donnelly from his position as the Kalkaska County Prosecutor was launched in September 2011.[1] Donnelly had supported a recall effort against four Kalkaska County Commissioners. Donnelly passed away in January 2012.[2]
Background
Jeff West of Rapid City filed a recall petition against Donnelly on September 29th. West says that Donnelly violated the civil rights of medical patients by filing confidential records in a case. He accuses Donnelly of violating privacy provisions of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Initiative of 2008 and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.[1]
Regarding the hearing at which Donnelly has been accused of violating patient privacy rights, he says, "I was not there, I was not present at any time that day for that hearing." The court video from the hearing date listed on the recall petition shows that Donnelly was not present.[3]
Donnelly said that “West’s main dissatisfaction with me is, as fire chief of Clearwater Township, he had buildings to be moved to another property and he was attempting to do that in the Rapid City area without getting a permit. He expected I would give him preferential treatment and I charged him with moving a house without a permit.”[1]
Path to the ballot
The recall petition against Donnelly was approved by the election board in October. Recall organizers had until November 25th to get enough votes to place the recall question on the February 2012 ballot.[3]
On October 20th, Donnelly appealed the election board's approval of petition language to the 46th Circuit Court. He included 17 rebuttals to the decision to approve language on the recall petition against him.[4]
It was decided that 13th Circuit Court Judge Thomas Power would hear Donnelly's appeal.[5] On November 10th, Powers denied Donnelly's appeal and ruled that the petition language was clear.[6]
The November 25th deadline for signature submission passed without recall organizers submitting signatures to the Michigan Secretary of State for approval. The petitions did not have enough signatures to force a recall election. Recall organizers are now attempting to get the Donnelly recall question on the May 2012 ballot. They must submit signatures by January 2012.[7]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Leader, "County prosecutor now facing recall after electoral board holds clarity hearing," October 12, 2011
- ↑ 9&10 News, "Kalkaska Co. Grieving Death Of Prosecutor Brian Donnelly," January 16, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 UpNorthLive.com, "Kalkaska County Prosecutor speaks out against recall allegations, some county commissioners ," October 18, 2011
- ↑ The Leader, "Prosecutor appeals petition language; says clarity hearing conducted ‘illegally’," October 26, 2011
- ↑ The Leader, "A prosecutor’s battle: Hearing scheduled for Friday," November 2, 2011
- ↑ The Leader, "Recalls 'a go' for four county commissioners; prosecutor appeal denied," November 16, 2011
- ↑ The Leader, "Signed, sealed, delivered: Petitions against Cox submitted; petitions facing prosecutor MIA," November 30, 2011
