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Health & Fitness

Plymouth Resident Verbally Attacked By Treasurer Edwards When Paying Taxes

A Plymouth Township resident recorded this verbal attack on him by Treasurer Ron Edwards. Some are saying that this attack has gone beyond the line and should be considered criminal.

The necessary disclaimer: This is a blog. This is an opinion piece containing my thoughts alone. The opinions in this blog are my own, and do not in any way reflect the views of Plymouth-Canton Patch.

I am a proud Republican. In my very first chance to vote in a general election, I voted for Ronald Reagan, and to this day, I consider him the best President of my time. I make this statement because I have been accused by Plymouth Township Treasurer, Ron Edwards, of being a liberal nut. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mr. Edwards just doesn't like me because I am very critical of him, and his constant bullying of anybody who disagrees with him.

I am simply a person who will not tolerate a politician bringing shame upon my political party. Mr. Edwards calls himself a Republican (I have my doubts) at election time, and then once elected, turns into something that is unrecognizable to any fair minded Republican.. In short, he is an absolute embarrassment to the Republican party.

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This brings me to the latest, in a long line of YouTube embarrassments for Treasurer Ron Edwards. The portion of this clip is only 30 seconds long, but it gives perfect insight into the mindset of this man. It is another example of the how he will abuse, bully, and attack anybody that he perceives to be an adversary. The latest victim was a gentleman by the name of Duane Zantop.

Duane Zantop is a fellow Republican, a business owner, a senior citizen, and as nice a fellow as you'll ever want to meet. He actually donated to Mr. Edward's campaign in the last election. He indicated to me that he thought he was donating to a man with the same conservative values as himself, and didn't think much of it, until he began noticing some of the reckless spending that Mr. Edwards began proposing right after the election.

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Mr. Zantop communicated his concerns to Mr. Edwards in a number of ways, and after getting no explanations, he publicly communicated his concerns at a Plymouth Township Board of Trustees meeting. This is what put the bulls-eye on Mr. Zantop's back. This is what has drawn the ire of Mr. Edwards.

Quite simply, you do not criticize Treasurer Edwards in a public setting, without making your way on to his enemies list, and yes, he has an enemies list. I know this, because I am on the list as well. When you make Mr. Edward's enemies list, you can expect to be harassed, verbally attacked at public meetings, intimidated by threats of arrest, or in Mr. Zantop's case, a thinly veiled physical threat.

Yes, I believe that Mr. Edwards made a veiled threat of physical violence towards Mr. Zantop. I actually asked my my trusted friend Dave if he had heard this audio recording the same way that I did. I sent it to him, and asked for his opinion. Here is his response, and it is important to note that he lives on the west side of the state, so he is not privy to the everyday happenings in Plymouth Township. His response:

“That sounded like he was making a threat against this gentleman….. I think the cops need (or FBI) to be brought into this!!! Hopefully he loses his pension for this!!”

“What an idiot!!!! You can think it, but don’t say it…. Especially now a day’s…. To easy to be recorded….”

Well I think my friend Dave has it pretty much right. I think that Mr. Edwards, in an effort to intimidate the man, became enraged, and there was an actual physical threat involved. I think Mr. Zantop could have a pretty good case if he chose to prosecute, and maybe even sue the township.

The most important thing to remember is that Mr. Zantop was only at the Plymouth Township Hall to pay his property taxes. The man showed up to pay his tax bill, and Mr. Edwards went on this insane rant. Mr. Zantop was giving the man a check that literally goes towards paying Edward's salary, puts the food on Mr. Edward's table, and for his troubles, Mr. Zantop was humiliated, berated, and threatened.

At one point you can clearly hear Mr. Zantop saying that he was only there to pay his taxes. He actually brought a friend with him, because he doesn't trust Mr. Edwards. This proved to be a wise move, as his mistrust was validated by the actions of Mr. Edwards who clearly did not know that he was being taped.

This is absolutely insane behavior for an elected official to be engaging in. When you tell a man at your office, a man who was only there to pay his taxes, “You started it, I'm going to finish it.” you are making a physical threat. Mr. Edwards sounds more and more like a dangerous man. Remember, Mr. Zantop is a senior citizen. On the other hand, Mr. Edwards has a history of violence.

Mr Edwards was accused of assaulting the previous Plymouth Township Clerk right in the township hall, and Channel 4 was on the scene to report on it. No charges were brought because there wasn't enough evidence to prove the case, but I believe that surveillance cameras were installed after that incident at the request of the clerk. How insane is it that surveillance cameras have to be installed at the township hall to protect the clerk from being attacked by the treasurer?


Mr. Edwards has also verbally attacked a Plymouth Township 911 operator, and threatened police officers. Channel 7 was on hand to report on this incident. The telling statement from the call? “If that road doesn't get emptied right now, I'm coming after these guys!” The “guys” he was referring to, were his own Plymouth Township Police. How was he going to “come after” them? That is a very chilling statement.

Clearly, we have a man who has a history of angry and violent outbursts. His previous attacks have been against elected officials or employees of Plymouth Township, but this is different. In this case, he went after a resident. He went after a senior citizen who was in the building simply to pay his taxes, which is something he is required to do under the law.

So what should be done about this latest incident? Should Mr. Zantop bring in the police to investigate? Should he call a lawyer and pursue this civilly in court? I have spoken with Mr. Zantop, and he is clearly worried about retribution from Mr. Edwards, based on Mr. Edward's history, but on the other hand, he feels that if he doesn't step up to point out this behavior, even more people will fall victim to the man.

In my opinion, Supervisor Richard Reaume should take some sort of action. Mr. Reaume should order an investigation of this matter. I do not think it should be done by Plymouth Township investigators though, as Treasurer Edwards has already shown that he will influence that investigation through intimidation.

I left messages with Mr. Edwards, and Mr Reaume to ask why this happened, and what they were going to do about it, and neither have returned my call.

I think the Michigan State Police should be brought in to investigate this matter. I think that they should make the determination on whether charges should be filed for these threats and intimidation, they should decide whether to forward this to a prosecutor for action.

At the very least, Mr. Edwards should be censured by the Plymouth Township Board of Trustees. Mr. Edwards should also be compelled to successfully complete an anger management program at one of the many mental health facilities in the area.

Clearly his anger issues are beginning to be a threat to anyone who walks into the Plymouth Township Hall, and these kinds of mental health problems simply do not go away on their own. Without psychiatric help, I believe that Mr. Edward's outbursts will only get worse, and may someday lead to someone getting seriously hurt or worse.

Mr. Edwards is not only an embarrassment to Republicans everywhere, but he is now becoming a danger to Plymouth Township residents as well.

Mr. Edwards, please heed my advice, and seek help now...

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