Grand Traverse County Commission Chair Christine Maxbauer received two threatening “messages” at her home in the last two weeks, one of which prompted her to call the Traverse City Police Department. Maxbauer and other commissioners contend the incidents are part of a heightened pattern of harassment they’ve experienced that has “crossed the line."

The first incident occurred shortly after midnight on July 18, when a neighbor of Maxbauer’s woke her up to alert her that someone had left a dead fawn in her front yard. According to a police report, Bob Meyers was sitting on his front porch on West Eighth Street when he witnessed a dark truck slowly circling the neighborhood. After stopping in front of Maxbauer’s house, a male driver got out of the truck, retrieved the dead animal from the truck bed and threw it on the lawn. Meyers told police he “believed the suspect intentionally placed the animal in the front yard where Maxbauer would see it.”

Meyers did not recognize the suspect, nor was he able to see the truck’s license plate before it drove away. Maxbauer tells The Ticker she believes the animal had been “recently killed,” as the body was still warm. TCPD Chief of Police Jeff O’Brien says officers “disposed of the carcass,” but could not identify from its condition whether it was roadkill or had been killed by other means.

“I just don’t know what kind of person would do this,” Maxbauer says. “It was really strange and disturbing.” O’Brien says the TCPD has no leads – other than Meyers’ account that the vehicle was a Chevy or GMC pick-up and the suspect was wearing shorts and a t-shirt – and is requesting “assistance from the public” for information. Stalking charges could be pressed if a suspect is identified.

Traverse City Manager Marty Colburn, who says “activities such as (those) reported are inappropriate to direct towards public officials,” spoke to Maxbauer following the incident and asked the TCPD to more closely monitor her neighborhood going forward.

A week following the deer incident, Maxbauer says she found an unstamped envelope in her mailbox. “It was a picture of me in the newspaper, and it had a circle drawn around my head with an ‘x’ through the face,” she says. “It looked like someone had stuck a pencil in the middle of the ‘x’ and made a hole.”

Maxbaeur did not report the letter to police, but instead threw it away. “The letter didn’t disturb me as much as the fawn…but at that point I posted on social media this was happening, because I had had enough,” she says. “I can’t envision a position I’ve taken on the county board that has been so horrendous it deserves this kind of treatment.”

Following Maxbaeur's Facebook post, other county commissioners took to social media to decry the incidents they said were part of a broader pattern of harassment. “We have children, jobs, homes we worked hard for and personal lives,” posted Commissioner Carol Crawford. “I never thought (when running for office) that (my) beliefs would be ridiculed, that I would be called names, followed by ‘reporters’ or accused of a crime.”

Heightened media and public attention have surrounded the county board in recent months following several controversial issues, including the firing of County Administrator Dave Benda, a criminal Open Meetings Act (OMA) investigation and discussion of the county's debt levels. While Commissioner Alisa Kroupa says she understands the need for "scrutiny," she also contends "the treatment (commissioners) have received is not par for the course."

“There has been a level of viciousness to these threats, much more so than one would expect of a job in public service,” says Kroupa, who says she herself has received anonymous threatening letters. “It’s not about politics or having thick skin. These are personal attacks on a whole other level. No job deserves trespassing, harassment and hate-filled messages.”

Kroupa is working to organize a committee of commissioners and county department heads with the goal of putting out weekly press releases and/or holding press conferences to improve communication with the media and public. She believes opening those channels may help reduce vitriol.

“Our message just isn’t getting out there,” Kroupa says. “We’re looking into how the county can communicate better so we can move forward in a more positive way. I’m getting to the point where enough is enough (with the harassment). This is one idea...of how we can possibly respond and address it.”