Barry County is reeling.
This year, court documents cited the County’s inability to address appeals in a its timely manner, requesting extensions to meet deadlines. Why? It’s been a record number year for murder cases. This means crime is getting worse under the already heavily policed presence of Barry County and Hastings.
The Board of Commissioners’ response has not been to invest in education, jobs, or mental health care. This stance only widens the cracks in public safety, rather than shoring them up.
And Judge Michael Schipper, even with diversion tools at hand, continues to push his penchant for mass incarceration down, with prison sentences three to five times harsher than what state guidelines allow, rendering the Pre-Sentencing Report process useless.
All of it amounting to a trend that Barry County is doing more harm than good and wasting taxpayer dollars.
Why This Isn’t Working
Piling on Prison, Ignoring People: In a community grappling with poverty, the strategy to fend off crime has been clear: invest heavily in policing, but leave mental health by the wayside. Instead of focusing on preventing violent breakdowns, the county criminalizes them—locking people away without addressing the root causes.
Punishment Over Prevention: Longer sentences may feel like justice—but they don’t stop violence from emerging. Without accessible mental health services, individuals in crisis grow more isolated and volatile. The lack of treatment is fueling more despair, more desperation—more crime.
Bierlein’s Call for Better Care: State Representative Matthew Bierlein has been sounding the alarm statewide:
“Michigan is facing a growing behavioral health crisis—one that is impacting our families, hospitals, and law enforcement. Far too many individuals continue to be left without treatment they desperately need.”
Bierlein’s words hit home in Barry County, where the absence of care is feeding chaos, and locking people up just amplifies the cycle.
What the County Should Do Instead
Redirect Resources Toward Mental Health: Expand access to counseling, crisis intervention, and community services. Early support can save lives and avert crime.
Use Sentencing Reform to Promote Rehabilitation: Judges should listen to the Court of Appeals and follow sentencing guidelines, not artificially inflate them, with a focus on treatment programs, not just incarceration.
Invest in Community Supports, Not Just Enforcement: Programs that help families, ease poverty, and bolster social services can be the real crime fighters.
“Crime Isn’t a law enforcement failure alone—it’s a social failure.”
Barry County’s record murder cases aren’t emerging from a vacuum.
They’re a symptom of severe neglect that should be considered downright criminal: neglect of mental health, of community support, of preventive care.
And escalating prison sentences aren’t the cure. They’re the placebo.
For real safety, we need courage to invest in healing and not just their broken thinking of buying more handcuffs.
And until they can get it together? Speak their language; vote with your dollars. Don’t go or spend money there if you can help it.
Can’t treat people with dignity? Sorry, you don’t deserve a single dime.
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