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A one-time aide to former Republican House Speaker Lee Chatfield has reached a plea deal in a corruption case.
The bargain is between state prosecutors and Ann Minard, the former treasurer of Chatfield’s Peninsula Fund, a tax-exempt non-profit that raised money from unnamed donors.
The plea deal includes testifying against Chatfield, her former boss, in a trial set for next year with a list of potential witnesses that includes former lawmakers, Lansing lobbyists, and political donors.
Prosecutors are trying to reach a similar agreement with her husband, Rob Minard, who was Chatfield’s chief of staff.
Chatfield, his wife, Rebekah Chatfield, and the Minards are accused of siphoning money from the Peninsula Fund and using it for personal expenses.
As the state Capitol buzzes about how all this might play out, we turned to Honigman law firm’s Matthew Schneider for some perspective. He’s a former U.S. Attorney for western Michigan and a former top prosecutor in the Michigan Attorney General’s office.
Rick Pluta: Is there a case that you've been involved in that you think is comparable to the Chatfield case?
Matthew Schneider: I've handled many cases involving the same type of allegations, which is fraud. The difference here is that the allegations are playing out with a former elected official. Although that heightens the media publicity… I do tend to think that both the prosecutors and the defense attorneys are going to approach this as they would a lot of other cases – do the same type of investigation, do the same type of preparation. It's just that the figure [Chatfield] attached to it is going to achieve a lot more media publicity.
RP: Do you think that this case has - or will - pull back the curtain on how things get done in Lansing?
MS: It's an excellent question. And I think the answer is no, because if you look at the allegations, it involves people giving money to Chatfield or his entities. And from what we can tell in the public filings, a lot of people had no idea that wrongdoing was taking place, and people wouldn't have given money if they thought wrongdoing was taking place. So there's a lot of people here who will continue to donate to political causes that they believe in. They'll continue to do that because they have no idea that the money might be being misused.
RP: Do you think it will change anything about how business is done in Lansing?
MS: Well, if the people accepting the money are committing crimes, it should change that. But as we've seen from the beginning of this country's history, there's always been political actors who've taken money improperly. And that has been happening for the last several hundred years. And I just don't think this one case is going to change the course of American history moving forward.
RP: Or human nature.
MS: Yes, that's correct. You know, it's interesting, because the same question came up when [former Detroit Mayor] Kwame Kilpatrick was charged. And the question was “well, isn't this the end of corruption?” And some people said, “yes.” Well, I indicted [former Macomb County Prosecutor] Eric Smith and he was prosecuted and convicted and we are still talking about elected officials committing crimes involving fraud. We all would like to have that as an impact for future actors. But that's not always the case.
RP: Although if you go back in time, the House Fiscal Agency scandal - which cost a House appropriations chair his job and saw senior legislative staff indicted - arguably changed things. Is that different?
MS: Yeah, I mean, that's up to the Legislature in some respects about if they want to put other controls in place. I don't think we can change human nature. But, of course, we could put different controls in place to make things harder to do. I'm sure that those ideas will be coming up.
The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
In the meantime, hearing from Ann Minard in court won’t happen before October 2026 at the earliest. That’s when the Chatfields’ trial is supposed to begin. So, we had to ask Schneider what he makes of the fact that the case has been scheduled for a year away. “This time frame, that would be pretty normal for a federal case… but typically state cases move faster than that. So, because this isn’t moving faster, that makes me think that there’s a lot more evidence that both the defense and the government need to go through. That it’s just more complicated than maybe what meets the eye.”
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Have questions about Michigan politics? Or, just want to let us know what you want more of (less of?) in the newsletter? We always want to hear from you! Shoot us an email at politics@michiganpublic.org!
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What we’re talking about at the dinner table
Business Class: Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s high-stakes efforts to bring an electric vehicle battery factory to Michigan collapsed this week. The state accused Chinese-backed Gotion of failing to follow through on its end of a deal and the embattled Michigan Economic Development Corporation is now trying to claw back the $23.6 million it offered to help buy a plot of land for a factory near Big Rapids. Cash incentives for business attraction have a long and complicated history in Michigan dating back to 1992, when General Motors decided to move vehicle production from the Willow Run plant in Ypsilanti to Arlington, Texas. Then-Governor John Engler said government shouldn’t be using taxpayer money to pick “winners and losers” in the marketplace.The project (and the jobs) went instead to Texas. That was a culture-shift moment and Michigan’s been trying to crack the code on the perfect balance of taxpayer-funded incentives ever since. This will, once again, be a question for gubernatorial candidates in 2026. Keep in mind when listening to their answers that it is a lot easier to rail against “corporate welfare” on the campaign trail than it is to stand by with crossed fingers when a business walks through the door with plans for big investments and lots of jobs.
Marriage rights: The U.S. Supreme Court could decide next month whether to hear a case that could reverse same-sex marriage rights established in the Obergefell cases. The Michigan DeBoer v. Snyder case was part of the decision that rendered Michgan’s same-sex marriage ban unenforceable. Now, a county clerk in Kentucky says being required to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples violates her religious freedom rights. Rick has covered the Michigan same-sex marriage case from the (now dormant) 1995 state law and 2004 amendment to the state constitution to the U.S. Supreme Court arguments and decision. According to SCOTUSBlog, if there is a decision to refuse the case, we could get word after the justices’ November 10 conference.
Wild kingdom: Animal rights are making state headlines as the Michigan Supreme Court will be asked to weigh in after an appeals court refused to rule that a group of chimpanzees in a private zoo has rights against unlawful imprisonment. An animal rights group is seeking a court ruling that chimpanzees are biologically close enough to humans to qualify for constitutional habeus corpus rights. In the meantime, a Michigan House committee opened hearings this week on a bill to outlaw medical experiments on dogs that could cause the animals “pain or distress.” The House bill has wide bipartisan support.
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Yours in political nerdiness,
Rick Pluta & Zoe Clark
Co-hosts, It’s Just Politics
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