Written By Jameca Patrick-Singleton
Former Genesee County Clerk John Gleason has been sentenced in the case that involved him performing an illegal marriage in December 2019.
Gleason, who had served as Genesee County Clerk since 2012, stepped down from his office of county clerk earlier this year as a part of a plea agreement. He was sentenced on this week by Judge Daniel Bain to one-year non-reporting probation and a $100 fine. Gleason is also banned from running for public office in Genesee County and having contact with several county employees, including Genesee County Commissioners Domonique Clemons (D-Flint Township) and Debra Newman (D-Swartz Creek).
During the sentencing hearing, a victim impact statement was read by Doreen Fulcher, a former election supervisor for Genesee County. In that statement, she said “I was proud of the staff and of the public services we provided. The defendant, however, considered his office to be feared, one to be used for his own goals. If he decided to go after someone, for any reason, he would do and say anything and in this situation, the staff and I were his targets,” said Fulcher.
She also stated that she left her position and took a pay cut to accept another job in part because of the toxic environment that she claimed was created by Gleason.
“If I articulated all the inappropriate and intimidating incidences, we would be here for days,” she stated. “John Gleason is nothing more than a schoolyard bully who used his position to attack and intimidate his own staff relentlessly.”
Some community members strongly feel Gleason took the plea deal to avoid attorney fees, which would have been $100,000.
