- Mail diversion: Complaints sent to the JTC’s official address are being rerouted to an alternate postal address — without lawful authority, according to the complaint.
- Return Receipt refusal: A JTC staff member admitted on recorded audio that the office never complies with USPS Return Receipt requests — eliminating the paper trail of complaint receipt.
- Potential federal violation: The complaint cites 18 U.S.C. § 1702 — federal mail obstruction — as potentially implicated by the diversion practice.
- Prior audit findings: A 2024 National Center for State Courts audit found significant racial disparities in how the JTC handles disciplinary matters.
- Non-answer from leadership: JTC Executive Director Lynn Helland declined to comment, citing confidentiality rules.
- Clutch Justice is working to secure the audio recordings and will publish them when available.
What the JTC Is — and What It Is Supposed to Do
The Documented Allegations
Paralegal Belinda Rossetti submitted a detailed letter to the Detroit News in November 2024 describing a pattern of conduct that, if accurate, represents a systematic obstruction of the JTC’s own complaint process.
Complaints mailed to the JTC’s official address — 3034 West Grand Boulevard, Suite 8-350, Detroit, Michigan 48202 — are being rerouted by the US Postal Service to an alternate post office address. Rossetti alleges this is not a logistical accommodation but a deliberate practice to avoid accepting official complaints.
A JTC staff member admitted on recorded audio that the office never returns USPS Return Receipts. This eliminates the official record of complaint receipt that certified mail is designed to create — making it impossible to prove a complaint was received.
Rossetti describes a systemic failure in how the JTC processes grievances it receives, suggesting potentially thousands of complaints have been left unanswered and unprocessed — not rejected, but simply never entered into any investigative process.
The complaint is accompanied by audio recordings of phone conversations with JTC staff, taken in compliance with New York eavesdropping statute and federal law. Clutch Justice is working to secure and publish those recordings.
Federal law prohibits taking mail from authorized depositories or obstructing the passage of mail. Diverting official complaints to an alternate address without lawful authority — particularly when the purpose is to avoid acknowledging receipt — may implicate this statute. The Rossetti complaint explicitly raises this federal law angle. This is not a technical procedural question. If accurate, it describes a public institution actively circumventing a federal mail accountability mechanism to prevent oversight of its own conduct.
The JTC’s Prior Record: Racial Disparities in Disciplinary Handling
The Response From JTC Leadership
The confidentiality rules cited govern the contents of active complaints — not whether the JTC’s own internal mail and processing practices can be discussed. A question about whether the office diverts mail and refuses Return Receipts is not a question about a complaint before the Commission. It is a question about how the Commission operates. The non-answer is itself notable.
Primary Source: The Rossetti Letter to the Detroit News
I am writing to express a disturbing concern regarding the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission (JTC) and its failure to fulfill its mandate of holding Michigan’s judiciary accountable. The JTC is systematically refusing to process or investigate legitimate citizen complaints of judicial misconduct. This inaction undermines public trust and enables judicial wrongdoing.
Specifically, complaints sent via mail to their designated mail address — confirmed by representatives of the JTC — are diverted to alternate addresses, ignored, and left unprocessed. Shockingly, a JTC representative admitted to me that their office refuses to comply with U.S. Postal Service Return Receipt requests, disregarding an essential layer of accountability and transparency. This negligence deprives Michigan citizens of their right to a fair and just legal system.
The JTC is the agency responsible for investigating allegations of judicial misconduct and recommending disciplinary action. It primarily reports to the Michigan Supreme Court, which has the authority to impose disciplinary measures based on the JTC’s findings and recommendations. The JTC serves as a watchdog for the judicial system in Michigan, and in this role, they are expected to ensure accountability and integrity within the judiciary.
Now, what happens when they fail or refuse to do their duty? We, as citizens, have the right to submit legitimate and official complaints to the Commission — but also to have them processed. By refusing to process them and refusing to comply with Certified Mail or Return Receipts, the Commission is willfully avoiding any accountability, and aiding in judicial misconduct by intentionally refusing to even process the complaints.
The JTC representative’s admission that they never return USPS Return Receipts is evidentiary of their efforts to avoid being held accountable for processing complaints. The specific correspondence was mailed to the address reflected on their official Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission Request for Investigation Form — 3034 West Grand Boulevard, Suite 8-350, Detroit, Michigan 48202 — but per the US Postal Service, that office has a specific policy to reroute mail to the Post Office.
It is a federal crime under 18 U.S.C. § 1702 for the USPS mail carrier to deliver mail to an address other than what is clearly reflected on the mail article. Diverting mail to another address without proper procedures could constitute mail tampering or misdelivery, both of which are prohibited. In this case, the reason for the diverted mail is not a lawful reason — it is to avoid accepting official mail. This is unlawful.
The JTC’s conduct must be scrutinized and reformed to ensure it serves its critical role in upholding judicial integrity. I urge The Detroit News to investigate this matter and bring it to public attention.
Belinda J. Rossetti, Paralegal
November 2024
Attached Documents
- USPS Tracking Receipt — PDF
- USPS Tracking Details — November 13, 2024
- Audio Recording — Phone conversation with JTC staff, November 4, 2024 (pending publication)
- Audio Recording — Phone conversation with JTC staff, November 4, 2024 (pending publication)
Clutch Justice is working to secure the audio recordings and will publish them as soon as they are available. If you have experienced similar conduct from the JTC — mail unacknowledged, complaints unprocessed, Return Receipts unreturned — contact Clutch Justice ?
