ABC57 speaks with Cass County Commissioners, Judge and Interim Prosecutor
CASSOPOLIS, Mich. -- It's a new era in the Cass County Prosecutor's Office today.
Six prosecutors resigned and won't be in the office on June 1, which led to the swearing in of Interim Prosecutor Sarah Scoggin in Thursday.
This all stems from a press conference called by the now former Cass County prosecutor of 23 years, Victor Fitz. He and his staff stepped down from their positions. He claims the County Commissioners were unwilling to raise wages and described a toxic environment.
Resolution 08 -2026, this is the resolution former Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz says could have kept him and five other prosecutors in Cass County.
It allowed a one, two or three step increase to retain attorneys.
"Approximately an hour before the vote, Clerk Monica McMichael, Sheriff Clinton Roach and Treasurer Hope Anderson sent an email to the commissioners about the resolution, something that they had supported unanimously a couple days ago, and they requested instead at this point that each commissioner vote against the retention resolution that Clerk McMichael herself had sponsored," said Fitz at his press conference.
This is screenshot of the memorandum Fitz is referring to that was sent to ABC57.
It expresses concerns about the three-step increases being used more broadly and inconsistently, ultimately functioning less as a retention tool and more as a mechanism for county-wide pay increases.
District 2 Commissioner James Lawrence says he was contacted directly by the Sheriff, Clerk and Treasurer.
"The words are, I do not hate Victor Fitz, but he's the only one that will use this, that was the words," Lawrence said. He also shared that the retention resolution would've benefitted other elected officials, not just Fitz or the Prosecutor's office.
The resolution failed seven to one. Commissioner Alan Northrop was the one supporting vote. We asked Commissioner Lawrence if the letter had any impact on the vote.
"Yes, it did. I believe we had enough votes to pass it prior to that."
Now, he says he regrets his vote.
"I feel that I was a patsy and I was used to do some things that probably shouldn't have been done."
We also asked Commission Chair Jeremiah Jones if the Commission ever received a letter asking them to vote against the resolution, which is how the letter was described to the media by Fitz.
"No ma'am, that would be unethical, unlawful, and immoral, you know, we have a tight-knit group here, we work as a team, and we try to stay within the rules as much as possible," Jones shared.
When we sent him the memorandum after the interview, he said "they aren't actually saying not to vote either way. It did not sway my vote... I made a decision based on my constituents."
In the end, six prosecutors are out and Interim Prosecutor Sarah Scoggin is in.
"My first goal is to, you know, learn exactly what needs to be done to keep things running smoothly, you know, that that will be first," explained Scoggin.
She is now the only prosecutor in the office come June 1, but she's looking to fill the empty seats.
"We already have gotten offers of assistance from other counties. They're not only prosecuting attorney, but they've also offered help from their assistant prosecuting attorneys as well."
Judge Mark Herman shared what the coming weeks will look like.
"We don't expect that she's going to be stepping into jury trials next week. She hasn't even reviewed the files, so you know, trials, trials will be adjourned, but I think some things like sentencings and things like that, which I hated to see a lot of those things adjourned, because people have you know, pled or either been convicted, either to trial or had pled guilty, and we have to have sentencing and get sentencing schedules. I think those are things that can be done and can still and can be handled," Herman explained.
There is an election in 2027; a new prosecutor would take over in 2028. The Prosecutor and Assistant Prosecutor positions are open and accepting applications.