Gratiot County Sheriff's Office and public safety
This page collects our public-safety reports from public records only: county board actions, minutes and posted statements. It does not name private individuals.
- When it meets
- We do not yet read a meeting calendar for this body. Ask the office, or watch the official pages linked below.
- Our reports
- 4 since Sept. 18, 2026. Latest: Animal Control Resolution Was Added From the Floor; the Administrator Cited Insurance Cost, the Dog Law and Chain of Command (Oct. 23, 2026).
What our reports have found
Our report on the Sheriff's Office restates the county's own minutes: eight people spoke in June about workplace concerns, a county review followed, and the board adopted a new policy (County Reviews Workplace Complaints at the Sheriff’s Office, Adopts a New Harassment Policy — Then Publicly Rebuts a Former Sergeant).
The county moved medical examiner work from Genesee County to a Cadillac firm effective April 8; the report gives the estimated annual cost (Gratiot Moved Its Medical Examiner Work From Genesee County to a Cadillac Firm).
How to speak
You may attend any meeting; Michigan's Open Meetings Act requires meetings of a public body to be open. Michigan's Open Meetings Act says a person must be permitted to address a meeting of a public body under rules the body establishes and records (MCL 15.263(5)). We have not found posted public-comment rules for this body, so ask its clerk or office. See also how to speak at any meeting we list.
Our latest reports
- Animal Control Resolution Was Added From the Floor; the Administrator Cited Insurance Cost, the Dog Law and Chain of CommandThe agenda posted on BoardBook listed one new-business item. At the start of the Oct. 20 meeting a resolution for animal control was added. The recording shows what the administrator said before the 5–0 vote.
- Board Rescinds Animal Control Firearms Authorization Less Than 20 Months After Placing Department Under SheriffResolution 26-468 passed on a unanimous roll-call vote Oct. 20. It moves Animal Control from the sheriff’s office to the county administrator and ends officers’ authorization to carry firearms and to respond to law enforcement calls.
- Update Oct. 3: the fiscal 2027 budget has been adoptedGratiot Moved Its Medical Examiner Work From Genesee County to a Cadillac FirmThe county now pays an estimated $98,863 a year to Mid-Michigan Medical Examiner Group. The switch took effect April 8, three weeks after the vote, at Genesee County’s request.
- County Reviews Workplace Complaints at the Sheriff’s Office, Adopts a New Harassment Policy — Then Publicly Rebuts a Former SergeantEight people raised workplace concerns at a June meeting. A county review followed, along with a new policy. A later public statement from the administrator responded to a TV interview by a fired corrections sergeant.
Terms you will hear
- FOIA
Michigan's Freedom of Information Act says all persons, except those held in state or local correctional facilities, are entitled to full and complete information about the affairs of government.
Source: Freedom of Information Act, MCL 15.231(2)
- Public record, exemption
Under FOIA, a public record is a writing prepared, owned, used, possessed or retained by a public body in performing an official function. Section 15.243 lists information a body may exempt from disclosure.
Source: Freedom of Information Act, MCL 15.232; MCL 15.243