LANSING, Mich. — Captain Gregoire Michaud, 50, who served as the Michigan State Police Forensic Science Division Director since 2012, retired at the end of May with little fanfare.
As the MSP-FSD Director, Captain Michaud supervised the state police crime labs. When FOX 17 spoke with Michaud Friday, he said in college it was always his “dream to serve as the state police crime lab director.” First a scientist who then became a trooper, Michaud recalled his 26 years serving the state police, 21 of which he spent working with its forensic science division.
Stating he’s “not a big fanfare guy,” Michaud said he and his wife considered retiring and then thought it was best to retire at the start of summer: before the crime labs’ upcoming accreditation process later this year. He also stated he was somewhat frustrated with the budget process, though he mentioned the state labs’ acquired six employees in 2016 due to increased caseloads from the additional sexual assault kit testing.
His retirement May 13 was so quiet that sources in state law enforcement, as well as MSP employees in the lobby of MSP headquarters Friday, told FOX 17 they were unaware that Captain Michaud retired.
State Police Public Affairs Manager Shanon Banner said only the following to FOX 17 in a statement:
“After nearly 30 years serving the Michigan State Police, Capt. Greg Michaud retired from the department at the end of May. His most recent position was serving as the director of the MSP Forensic Science Division. Insp. Scott Marier has been selected to serve as interim division commander.”
Marier was previously the FSD assistant division director, and is still listed as such online. Michaud was still listed under the Administration Office as the division director for the forensic laboratories, according to the state police website as of Friday evening.
Last October, FOX 17 broke statewide allegations that the state police crime labs’ recent policy change was misreporting marijuana as “origin unknown,” leading to felony charges without proof. Michaud said Friday he disagrees and backed that policy: stating forensic scientists need to view the plant matter, such as marijuana leaves, in order to determine if any resin, extract, or oil is in fact marijuana.
Throughout FOX 17’s reporting, the MSP declined all interview requests including with Michaud, the crime labs’ director at the time.
