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1/25/12
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1 comment
A new face at the Friend of the Court office
Kevin Bunch
Lisa Blehm stands at the Arenac County Friend of the Court office, where she has taken a position through Michigan Works helping cover the lunch period.
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ARENAC COUNTY — The Friend of the Court office in the Arenac County courthouse has hired a part-time clerk, allowing the office to continue serving clients without a midday break.
Friend of the Court Director Michael Friedgen said Lisa Blehm, a lifelong resident of Standish, was hired to serve as clerical support for the case managers and enforcement officer, as well as a receptionist. She will be working at the office for four-and-a-half hours on weekdays around lunch.
“It’s mostly clerical work, filing, answering phones, answering the window,” Blehm said. “I’m enjoying it.”
Friedgen said Blehm can also assist individuals by getting paperwork together while the enforcement officer is in a hearing, so they do not need to wait for the officer to return.
Blehm was offered the position after an interview process that started when the Arenac County Board of Commissioners approved the search to fill the position Dec. 6.
“We contacted Michigan Works to receive resumes in order to fill the position,” Friedgen said. “We conducted interviews over three days, and then talked to Michigan Works to let them know about our decision.”
Blehm said it was her first experience with Michigan Works, and it went well for her.
“It’s nice to have a local job so I don’t have to drive that far, and can help out the community I’ve lived in my whole life,” Blehm said.
The county has $11,652 budgeted annually for the position, and the fact that the position does not offer any health or retirement benefits keeps costs down. In addition, Friedgen said 66 percent of the budgeted funds are from a federal cooperative reimbursement program.
Friedgen said between the reimbursement program, money collected by the Friend of the Court office, and state incentives, the position ultimately did not cost the county any money in 2011, and he sees that trend continuing.
While the position is not a temporary one, Friedgen said the commissioners would need to renew it annually every December. Barring a loss of federal funds, however, he does not see that happening.
“They’ve been funding it for the past four years, and I don’t see it getting cut at this time,” he said.
The clerk position is not the last one Friedgen wants to fill. He said he is starting the hiring process in the next few weeks to get a new case manager for the office.
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I'm curious if the enforcement officer is running the hearing? I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice but as far as I know, the Friend of the Court Act only allows judges and referees to hold hearings, and does not provide the power to delegate such duties to the FOC. However, this would not be the first instance in which a local FOC has customarily held hearings in apparent violation of the plain language of the FOC Act.
Also, are these hearings properly recorded and does the FOC honor its moral and legal obligations to allow participants to make contemporaneous recordings of these hearings? (Michigan Court Rule 3.215) My guess, based on information from other local FOC offices, is "no".
These recordings might make awkward evidence against FOC workers who may be engaged in potentially de facto illegal imprisonment for debt, of which there is substantial evidence in other jurisdictions. Deadbeat parents who willfully fail to care for their children should go to jail, but imprisoning good parents who are down on their luck in what might be an attempt to extract money from their relatives, is both illegal and immoral. Unfortunately, there is evidence of this De Facto practice at some FOC offices.
These are not the only potentially criminal or immoral activities of which there is evidence. There are plenty more, including evidence of theft of child support in some jurisdictions.
Visit scribd dot com slash DougDante slash documents for more information.