Commissioner Ilona Varga questions the contract.
Wayne County commissioners think it's odd that the sheriff's department steered additional business to a company that provides electronic tethers to keep track of suspects and convicts who aren't locked up.
Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon’s staff acknowledged to the commissioners on Wednesday that something is wrong, reports John Wisely of the Detroit Free Press.
Figures provided by the county commission show the Sheriff’s Office already has paid Michigan Tether of Clinton Township more than $744,212 as of May 5, despite a contract limit of $499,000. Under the contract, the Sheriff’s Office is supposed to spend specific amounts with four tether vendors.
Lt. Dennis Ramel, who oversees the tether program for Napoleon, said the product offered by Michigan Tether includes additional features, such as two-way communication, monitoring services and a harder-to-cut metal strap — that are not offered by three other firms."
Not so, says Ben Aycock, a spokesman for competing firm Actron. Aycock says his firm offers the same features for 20 cents less daily per tether.
But he tells the Freep Ramel rejected his offer.
“Why do we bother to approve contracts if no one is going to follow them?” Commissioner Ilona Varga, D-Lincoln Park, said, according to the Freep. “It’s definitely bad management, but there may be more to it.”
Any perception of impropriety at the sheriff's department could prove troublesome for Sheriff Benny Napoleon, a front-runner for Detroit mayor.
