by Jon King, Michigan Advance
After nearly 25 years of serving on the board of a local domestic violence prevention agency, Livingston County Sheriff Mike Murphy has resigned amid the fallout from hosting former President Donald Trump last month at the sheriff’s office in Howell.
LACASA Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advocating for victims of child abuse, domestic violence and sexual violence, announced Tuesday that it has accepted Murphy’s voluntary resignation from its Board of Directors, citing the “distraction” that resulted from Trump’s Aug. 20 visit.
“We are proud of our unwavering commitment to advocate for survivors,” said LACASA President & CEO Bobette Schrandt. “We thank Sheriff Murphy for the years he spent on our board, and for recognizing that there is no room for distraction from our critical mission.”
Schrandt said while LACASA had worked diligently to cultivate a solid working relationship with local law enforcement, the agency would always keep the voices of victims and survivors at the forefront of its mission.
For his part, Murphy said he made the decision to step down because he did not want to cloud the important work LACASA does.
“As a board member for close to 25 years, I have always been an advocate for LACASA using my time, talents, and money to help where I could,” said Murphy. “I have never intentionally or unintentionally done anything to hurt the organization, and it’s unfortunate some can’t see that.”
The visit by Trump was heralded as a “crime and safety” press conference, but instead featured the GOP presidential nominee spending close to an hour attacking Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden and Democrats in general on crime, border security, trade and foreign policy.
Trump ended up only taking a single question at the very end in which he deflected criticism that his visit came on the heels of white supremacists marching through Howell chanting “We love Hitler. We love Trump.”
Shortly after the visit, the Michigan Secretary of State’s office confirmed that the Bureau of Elections had received two complaints against the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office and Murphy regarding alleged violations of the Michigan Campaign Finance Act, namely that the visit illegally utilized public resources for a partisan political purpose. Those remain under investigation.
Murphy has gained headlines in the past for his actions as sheriff. In 2021, Murphy’s office sought to charge a Howell woman, Kasey Helton, after she posted a series of tweets calling out health care workers for spreading misinformation about COVID-19 at public meetings. No charges were ever brought in the case.
Murphy also said last year he had no intention of enforcing recently passed “red flag” laws to keep guns away from people deemed by a judge to be a threat to themselves or others, saying they were unconstitutional. Ironically, he reversed his position and was found to be among authorities in Michigan using the statute to confiscate weapons when needed.
Meanwhile, LACASA Board Chair Patricia Claffey said the important work that takes place at LACASA, which recently opened a new $15 million shelter, continues uninterrupted.
“For more than 40 years, LACASA has provided a safe and supportive environment for victims and survivors of child abuse, domestic violence, and sexual violence, and a place where they are believed, trusted, and empowered,” said Claffey. “We thank Sheriff Murphy for his service to our organization, and will continue to work closely with him and his staff as our law enforcement partners.”
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