A town hall meeting Wednesday in Howell will solicit feedback about Livingston County’s judicial system and, in particular, embattled 53rd District Court Judge Theresa Brennan. However, whatever testimony is gathered won’t go on the record in an ongoing complaint against Brennan filed by the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission.

State Senator Joe Hune of Fowlerville and State Representatives Lana Theis of Brighton Township and Hank Vaupel of Handy Township have organized a town hall for 4pm on Wednesday in the top floor of the Historic Livingston County Courthouse in downtown Howell. The three Republican legislators say they especially want to hear from those who are willing to share their story about “how Judge Brennan has damaged their lives.” In a release announcing the meeting, Hune said all of the statements and testimonies collected during the town hall event will be submitted to the Judicial Tenure Commission and the State Court Administrative Office for consideration during Brennan’s complaint hearing process.

But Lynn Helland, the JTC’s Executive Director, tells WHMI that his agency was not contacted prior to the meeting being set up, nor will they have a representative in attendance. In addition, he says nothing from the gathering will be directly admissible at Judge Brennan’s hearing, although he did say that, “there’s always the chance that something from the meeting will lead to evidence that would be admissible.” An official with the State Court Administrative Office also indicated that any testimony from Wednesday’s meeting would not be admissible.

The Tenure Commission filed a complaint against Brennan outlining allegations of professional and personal misconduct, mainly surrounding her relationship with a former State Police detective who was the lead witness in a 2013 murder trial. A hearing on the complaint is scheduled in October. Brennan is also the subject of a Michigan State Police criminal investigation. In addition, Representative Theis remains in the process of drafting an impeachment resolution, which she anticipates being finalized in “the next few weeks”. (JK)