WEST OLIVE, Mich. — The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners is facing a vote to become a constitutional county on Tuesday.
County documents show that as a constitutional county, it resolves to protect the individual freedoms of Ottawa County.
The resolution makes specific mentions of the First, Second, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, which refer respectively to the freedom of speech, the right to bare arms, and the right not to be deprived by the State of life, liberty or property without due process of law.
Chairman Joe Moss shared over Facebook the news last week as a way “to protect the individual freedoms of the people of Ottawa County.”
Moss is part of Ottawa Impact, a far-right political organization, as are several other commissioners. The county board was overwhelmingly swept by candidates backed by Ottawa Impact, winning nine of the eleven seats on the board.
That victory is mentioned in the recent resolution. “Ottawa County overwhelmingly spoke with their vote to restore and protect the constitutional rights of the people as a first priority of the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners, as reflected in the county’s new vision statement of ‘Where Freedom Rings.’”
If passed, the resolution signals that the Board supports the Ottawa County sheriff and prosecutor to follow their oaths of office and to not enforce any statute, law or regulation contrary to the federal and state constitution. It will not change any current laws or policies in Ottawa County.
The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday at 6:30 pm inside the county complex in West Olive.
An excerpt from the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners Minutes and Agenda Packet from May 23, 2023, can be found below:
