Vets selling smokes at the vets home - the real story.

Selling smokes at Grand Rapids Home for Veterans - the real story.

Ok this is what we know happened at the home.

VA employee whose name I think is Tom Harrisson, went to NY to get non taxes smokes, and brought them back to Michigan. Some were given to contacts at other locations, some to Contact at GRHFV, Ken.

Ken ran the “store” from the smoking location outside of Kozy Corners. As expected, Ken being in a powered wheel chair, had to “run up” to his unit from time to time to get med’s and use the restroom.

Jeff, was a veteran who spent a lot of time sitting out in the smoking area. Ken got Jeff to “watch the store” while Ken was off running to use the can or get his meds. After a while Ken showed Jeff how to do things and paid him a small fee to sell smokes if someone wanted a pack or so, while Ken was out doing his thing.

John was also brought into it to further sell smokes.

Tony, whose medication put him on 12 hours different schedule, slept during the day and was up most of the night. In the morning hours he would sit out in the smoking area, and eventually ken got him to watch the store in the morning when ken had to make a meds run or bathroom run.

I do not believe Jeff or Tony were actively selling smokes outside the designated smoking area. John I am told, was selling to guys on his unit, who could not get down to that smoking area, due to its location at the far end of the complex.

After a while, something happened and Ken told everyone he had to keep things close, and not do it so openly. Apparently this is when Ken got written warning to stop selling smokes from the administration.

He did not tell the others that he got that warning. Nor has anyone shown me that they got the paperwork telling them to stop. So when the home reports that “they were told to stop”, I question, WHO was told to stop? Ken, or all 4 of them or who exactly. I think this is a misrepresentation by the home when they claim that all of them were informed.

Now I see this as 2 groups of people involved. The Administrators, and the workers. Tom and Ken were the administrators, who violated the law. The 3 helpers were just that. Helpers. They got brought into it.

In Michigan, it's illegal to sell a tobacco product to another person for resale without being licensed. And many of us did not know this until that was posed as part of a WZZM-13 news article on 19 Dec 2017.

Now understand most people do not know or believe that it is unlawful to sell a pack of smokes. To them it is no different than selling an apple, a pencil, a bottle of soda pop, or anything that is personal property; and they see the pack of smokes as personal property as they paid for them. 

We had guys “rolling” their own smokes, and then selling packs of 20 of them in little plastic baggies. Is that unlawful to do too? If so the AG could potentially have over 30 more cases just like this one.

Also, if the assistant AG Joel Froeleich knew everything that was going on at the home as he many times claimed, why didn’t he speak up and put a stop to this years ago? Understand this went on for about many years.

Now Ken was keeping books and records of who bought what, and how much they owed him, to keep track of the money. Proceeds went to paying for wireless internet because the home after all these years had little or no internet access for residents.

Also, Ken allowed guys to get smokes on credit, and they would pay him each month when they got their disability checks. A significant number of these veterans died owing Ken, and he wrote their bills off as a loss. He still made money just not very much of it.

Now the homes administration knew this was going on for months and did nothing. Then all of a sudden they decided to do something? Why? Policy change?

This whole thing is about a guy bringing in cheap smokes to a bunch of broken veterans, who had little or no money who wanted to have a smoke. Yes Harrison violated the law, and yes Ken may have knowingly violated the law, but those two are a separate issue. They knew what they were doing.  

The other 3 helpers, John, Jeff, Tony, were not involved in that decision and were brought into it later to help Ken. They have been punished by being discharged from the home, out to the street, (except for John who is still there) and advocates for the veterans had to help them find permanent safe housing. We just got the last one into proper housing on 15 Dec 2017.

So why this now? The veterans were under the understanding that their fate was left to the homes administration, who then proceeded to discharge them. They were also told if they ever did that again they would be prosecuted.

Now without warning, they are being prosecuted. Many believe this is because the Attorney General Bill Shuette has had several cases thrown out of court. His record at the Vets home is dismal. So far only 1 successful prosecution and that was because a news reporter found a video of a nurses aid shoving a veteran into a desk. If not for the news reporter, that conviction would have never happened.

Score ½ for the AG.

Several other cases covering improper reporting of bed checks at the home were thrown out of court by judges. 8 cases, 6 thrown out, 2 about to be thrown out.

So far, the AG’s office has failed to prosecute or even bring charges against any of the senior or top administrators of the Sara Dunne administration for the abuses can crimes they committed upon veterans at the home.

Some people think the AG is doing this to save face and for political reasons because he is running for the office of governor in the 2018 election and to get this victory at the start of the year would give his campaign a much needed push and feel publicity.