Northport officials suspect a newly sworn-in village council trustee doesn’t actually live in the village, rendering him not legally qualified to serve.

This means the village council could vote to disqualify him (among several other potential actions) and take steps to find a replacement. Police may also investigate if alleged falsification of his election paperwork amounts to a crime, village officials say.

Edwin Blaise Dean ran as a write-in candidate for one of three open trustee seats in the November election. The only candidate actually on the ballot (Susan Ager) won a seat, and the other two spots came down to Dean and two other write ins. Dean’s 10 votes were behind Joe Ruble’s 17 votes but ahead of Alexis Wittman’s six votes, making him the winner of the third seat.

Now that Dean won, scrutiny that began before the election regarding his residency has intensified and will likely come to a head at the village council meeting next week. The address listed on his declaration of intent (election application) is 105 N. Rose Street, which is sometimes used for the marina but is not an extant address under county records.

Village Manager Jim Dyer tells The Ticker that Dean told village officials he lived on a “boat in the bay,” hence the address. The document also lists a mailing address in Traverse City, where Dyer and others in the village suspect Dean actually lives.

“I have reliable information from a good source that knows him and actually employed him for a period of time that says he lives in Traverse City,” Dyer says.

If that’s indeed the case, Dean can’t serve on the Northport Village Council.

“He’s been elected and he’s been sworn in, but (state law) regarding most offices, including village trustee, says that you have to be both elected and qualified, and one of the qualifications is that you have to be a resident,” Dyer says. “There is what I would characterize as a legitimate question as to what his residence actually is.”

Dean declined comment when contacted by The Ticker.

“I can’t really talk about this, because they want to go to legal proceedings, so unfortunately I can’t speak about it now,” he says. “If that ever is complete, I’d love to give you the full scope of how everything went down, but until then that’s all I can say.”

Dyer says he contacted Michigan State Police and the county prosecutor’s office regarding the issue. 

“All I did was indicate that we had some credible information that a person elected to one of our offices was not a resident at the time he filed his declaration of intent,” Dyer says. “And right above the signature on that, it says ‘By signing this affidavit, I swear the statements made above are true.’”

A state police spokesperson could not immediately confirm an investigation when reached by The Ticker on Thursday, as the trooper Dyer spoke with was unavailable.

As for the next steps, Dyer says the process is very much “evolving.” The council meets next Thursday (Dec. 12). Dyer, himself an attorney, is of the opinion that the village council could refuse to seat Dean or conduct its own investigation. It’s also possible that Dean voluntarily steps down before then, he says, especially if contacted by state police. Dyer plans to consult with the village’s attorney prior to the Thursday meeting to have a game plan in place.

“There’s any number of ways that this could play out depending on what (Dean) does,” he says.

Dean was already sworn in, and if he steps down or is removed, his position would not automatically go to Wittman (the losing write-in candidate), Dyer says. The council would have to take steps to appoint someone.

Dyer says Dean has suggested that some in the village are out to get him, a notion Dyer rejects.

“This is not a personal vendetta against Mr. Dean – period,” Dyer says. “But we have to assure the integrity of our electoral process, and it's essential that the village do that. We’ll carry out whatever that process is to the legal conclusion.”

Village President Chris McCann echoes those sentiments.

“I’ve had no conversations with Mr. Dean, and I can’t say that I’ve actually ever met him in Northport, so I couldn’t speak to him or his character or anything like that,” he tells The Ticker. “This is about making sure that the people that represent the village in Northport on our council are in fact village residents.” 

Dyer is also somewhat rankled by the fact that only one person filed to get on the ballot for village trustee, leaving two seats to be filled by write-ins.

“This really (underscores) how important it is for people that want to see good government in the village to come out and do something about it,” he says. “The thing that astounds me is I'm getting a bunch of people calling up asking what's going on and how this guy could possibly be a village council member, and I want to say ‘Why didn't you run?’”