<div dir="ltr">Last year our penal fines were down by $4000.00 this year it was only down by $1000.00. It is not easy to budget when it is up and down.</div><br><div class="gmail_quote gmail_quote_container"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Wed, Aug 6, 2025 at 2:26 PM WCCL Amy Stockwell via Michlib-l <<a href="mailto:michlib-l@mcls.org">michlib-l@mcls.org</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex"><div class="msg-3289541584032015781"><div lang="EN-US"><div class="m_-3289541584032015781WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal">Sorry. I was overly vague in my response. They did collect penal fines, but it was about half as the previous years. For the county it was around $68,000 and last year it was $131,000. The county dispersed what they had, but said that they can’t disperse what isn’t collected by the courts. <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal">So I have to assume that our officers are being rather lenient with tickets. Maybe I should start speeding! <span style="font-family:"Segoe UI Emoji",sans-serif">😊</span> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><div><div style="border-right:none;border-bottom:none;border-left:none;border-top:1pt solid rgb(225,225,225);padding:3pt 0in 0in"><p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> Membiela, Clare (MDE) <<a href="mailto:MembielaC@michigan.gov" target="_blank">MembielaC@michigan.gov</a>> <br><b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:52 PM<br><b>To:</b> WCCL Amy Stockwell <<a href="mailto:amy@whitecloudlibrary.org" target="_blank">amy@whitecloudlibrary.org</a>>; <a href="mailto:michlib-l@mcls.org" target="_blank">michlib-l@mcls.org</a><br><b>Cc:</b> Hamlin, Joseph (MDE) <<a href="mailto:HamlinJ2@michigan.gov" target="_blank">HamlinJ2@michigan.gov</a>><br><b>Subject:</b> RE: [Michlib-l] Penal Fines drastic cut<u></u><u></u></p></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">So , just so I understand, the courts did not send any penal fines to the county treasurer?<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">That sounds pretty suspicious to me – I’ll send Joe a note and we’ll confirm this.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">There are sometimes some misunderstandings about what is a penal fine – either Joe or I will get back to you.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Clare<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Clare D. Membiela, MLS, J.D.</span><span style="font-family:Aptos"><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Library Law Consultant<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Library of Michigan<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><a href="mailto:MembielaC@michigan.gov" target="_blank">MembielaC@michigan.gov</a><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">517-335-8132<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Aptos">The research and resources above are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem.<u></u><u></u></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPSMT;color:black"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12pt"><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPSMT;color:black">“the State may not, consistently with the spirit of the First Amendment, contract the spectrum of available knowledge</span></i><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPSMT">.”</span></i><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Aptos"> </span></i><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPS-ItalicMT">Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479, 482 (1965).<u></u><u></u></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Michigan’s <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mde/resources/michigan-top-10-strategic-education-plan" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(70,120,134)">Top 10 Strategic Education Plan</span></a> provides focused direction to drive educational achievement in support of all learners. <u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Aptos"><img border="0" width="185" height="28" style="width: 1.927in; height: 0.2916in;" id="m_-3289541584032015781Picture_x0020_517224705" src="cid:ii_19880a972894cff311"><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Nourishing Michigan’s Future during the summer! <u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Find a Summer Food Service Program site nearest you and encourage Michigan’s children to Meet Up and Eat Up! <a href="http://www.michigan.gov/meetupeatup" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(70,120,134)">Michigan.gov/MeetUpEatUp</span></a>.<u></u><u></u></span></p><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="638" style="width:6.65in;border-collapse:collapse"><tbody><tr style="height:63.05pt"><td width="638" valign="top" style="width:6.65in;padding:0in 5.4pt;height:63.05pt"><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family:Aptos;color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="197" height="38" style="width: 2.052in; height: 0.3958in;" id="m_-3289541584032015781_x0000_i1026" src="cid:ii_19880a9728a5b16b22" alt="Michigan.gov/Vote logo
Description automatically generated"></span></a><span style="font-family:Aptos"><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Get personalized voter information on early voting and other topics at <a href="https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(70,120,134)">Michigan.gov/Vote</span></a>.<b><u></u><u></u></b></span></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><div><div style="border-right:none;border-bottom:none;border-left:none;border-top:1pt solid rgb(225,225,225);padding:3pt 0in 0in"><p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> WCCL Amy Stockwell <<a href="mailto:amy@whitecloudlibrary.org" target="_blank">amy@whitecloudlibrary.org</a>> <br><b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:48 PM<br><b>To:</b> Membiela, Clare (MDE) <<a href="mailto:MembielaC@michigan.gov" target="_blank">MembielaC@michigan.gov</a>>; <a href="mailto:michlib-l@mcls.org" target="_blank">michlib-l@mcls.org</a><br><b>Cc:</b> Hamlin, Joseph (MDE) <<a href="mailto:HamlinJ2@michigan.gov" target="_blank">HamlinJ2@michigan.gov</a>><br><b>Subject:</b> RE: [Michlib-l] Penal Fines drastic cut<u></u><u></u></p></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><div style="border:2.25pt solid black;padding:4pt"><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;background:rgb(255,255,136)"><strong><span style="font-family:"sans-serif 10pt";color:black">CAUTION: This is an External email. Please send suspicious emails to <a href="mailto:abuse@michigan.gov" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight:normal">abuse@michigan.gov</span></a></span></strong><u></u><u></u></p></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal">Thank you! <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal">I am good friends with our deputy treasurer for the county and my text to her was “Do we no longer arrest people in this county?? What happened to my penal fines?!” They simply didn’t collect them so there isn’t anything to disperse. I was kind of hoping that it was actually a diversion so I had someone somewhere to blame other than the judge who might try one of my cases someday. <span style="font-family:"Segoe UI Emoji",sans-serif">😊</span> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><div><div style="border-right:none;border-bottom:none;border-left:none;border-top:1pt solid rgb(225,225,225);padding:3pt 0in 0in"><p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> Membiela, Clare (MDE) <<a href="mailto:MembielaC@michigan.gov" target="_blank">MembielaC@michigan.gov</a>> <br><b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:33 PM<br><b>To:</b> WCCL Amy Stockwell <<a href="mailto:amy@whitecloudlibrary.org" target="_blank">amy@whitecloudlibrary.org</a>>; <a href="mailto:michlib-l@mcls.org" target="_blank">michlib-l@mcls.org</a><br><b>Cc:</b> Hamlin, Joseph (MDE) <<a href="mailto:HamlinJ2@michigan.gov" target="_blank">HamlinJ2@michigan.gov</a>><br><b>Subject:</b> RE: [Michlib-l] Penal Fines drastic cut<u></u><u></u></p></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Hello Amy:<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Joe Hamlin, who manages the penal fine program for LM, is on vacation until the end of this week. I can tell you, however, that all of the information we receive from the County Treasurers regarding the amount of penal fines they distributed has not yet been fully received and analyzed.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Penal fines can be affected by many factors including caseload, changes in the laws, local police enforcement, etc. Penal fines vary so drastically from county to county, the amounts other libraries received may not be of much help to you in why yours were less.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">It is unlikely a diversion (which actually rarely happens) but if you e-mail Joe at <a href="mailto:hamlinJ2@michigan.gov" target="_blank">hamlinJ2@michigan.gov</a> and let him know how much you received and your concerns, he can assist you.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">In addition, you should contact your county treasurer because they are the best source to explain how they arrived at the amount of money you received.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">I “cc’d” Joe on this e-mail and he will see it when he returns.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">I hope this helps!<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Sincerely,<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Clare<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Clare D. Membiela, MLS, J.D.</span><span style="font-family:Aptos"><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Library Law Consultant<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">Library of Michigan<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><a href="mailto:MembielaC@michigan.gov" target="_blank">MembielaC@michigan.gov</a><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos">517-335-8132<u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Aptos">The research and resources above are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem.<u></u><u></u></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPSMT;color:black"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12pt"><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPSMT;color:black">“the State may not, consistently with the spirit of the First Amendment, contract the spectrum of available knowledge</span></i><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPSMT">.”</span></i><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Aptos"> </span></i><i><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:TimesNewRomanPS-ItalicMT">Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479, 482 (1965).<u></u><u></u></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:6pt"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Michigan’s <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mde/resources/michigan-top-10-strategic-education-plan" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(70,120,134)">Top 10 Strategic Education Plan</span></a> provides focused direction to drive educational achievement in support of all learners. <u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Aptos"><img border="0" width="185" height="28" style="width: 1.927in; height: 0.2916in;" id="m_-3289541584032015781Picture_x0020_1028062470" src="cid:ii_19880a972894cff311"><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Nourishing Michigan’s Future during the summer! <u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:105%"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Find a Summer Food Service Program site nearest you and encourage Michigan’s children to Meet Up and Eat Up! <a href="http://www.michigan.gov/meetupeatup" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(70,120,134)">Michigan.gov/MeetUpEatUp</span></a>.<u></u><u></u></span></p><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="638" style="width:6.65in;border-collapse:collapse"><tbody><tr style="height:63.05pt"><td width="638" valign="top" style="width:6.65in;padding:0in 5.4pt;height:63.05pt"><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family:Aptos;color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="197" height="38" style="width: 2.052in; height: 0.3958in;" id="m_-3289541584032015781Picture_x0020_3" src="cid:ii_19880a9728a7745b43" alt="Michigan.gov/Vote logo
Description automatically generated"></span></a><span style="font-family:Aptos"><u></u><u></u></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana,sans-serif">Get personalized voter information on early voting and other topics at <a href="https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(70,120,134)">Michigan.gov/Vote</span></a>.<b><u></u><u></u></b></span></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><div><div style="border-right:none;border-bottom:none;border-left:none;border-top:1pt solid rgb(225,225,225);padding:3pt 0in 0in"><p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> Michlib-l <<a href="mailto:michlib-l-bounces@mcls.org" target="_blank">michlib-l-bounces@mcls.org</a>> <b>On Behalf Of </b>WCCL Amy Stockwell via Michlib-l<br><b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:20 PM<br><b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:michlib-l@mcls.org" target="_blank">michlib-l@mcls.org</a><br><b>Subject:</b> [Michlib-l] Penal Fines drastic cut<u></u><u></u></p></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><div style="border:2.25pt solid black;padding:4pt"><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;background:rgb(255,255,136)"><strong><span style="font-family:"sans-serif 10pt";color:black">CAUTION: This is an External email. Please send suspicious emails to <a href="mailto:abuse@michigan.gov" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight:normal">abuse@michigan.gov</span></a></span></strong><u></u><u></u></p></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Aptos"><u></u> <u></u></span></p><div><p class="MsoNormal">Hello, <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal">I am just checking to see if other counties had a drastic cut to their penal fines this year? Our County just paid out and it was HALF what all of us had budgeted for the year, based on the past 10+ years. <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal">Was there a diversion of funds from Penal Fines that I didn’t catch or is my county just not issuing enough fines? <span style="font-family:"Segoe UI Emoji",sans-serif">😊</span> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal">Thanks! <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><img border="0" width="376" height="134" style="width: 3.9166in; height: 1.3958in;" id="m_-3289541584032015781Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:ii_19880a9728a855d354" alt="Amy.org Signature"><u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <u></u><u></u></p></div></div></div></div>_______________________________________________<br>
Michlib-l mailing list<br>
<a href="mailto:Michlib-l@mcls.org" target="_blank">Michlib-l@mcls.org</a><br>
<a href="https://mail3.mcls.org/mailman/listinfo/michlib-l" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">https://mail3.mcls.org/mailman/listinfo/michlib-l</a><br>
</div></blockquote></div>