Asset Forfeiture King Mike ‘Stingray’ Bouchard Runs from Honest Debate
by Shane Trejo, The Detroit Constitutionalist [Original Here]

Throughout the country, Constitutional Sheriffs are popping up everywhere and unleashing a wave of resistance against unconstitutional federal power that hasn’t been seen in generations. Last year, We the People formed an impromptu volunteer militia that successfully warded off federal land barons at the Bundy Ranch. Thomas Jefferson’s rightful remedy, state nullification, is being utilized to stop federal tyranny more than any time in our nation’s history. Guns continue to fly off the shelves at a staggering, astronomical rate. These encouraging developments are a breath of fresh air for freedom-lovers across the country.

However, not every Sheriff is on board with protecting our Constitutional freedoms against unjust federal overreach. Many are lined up at the federal trough, hoping to get their hands on gifts and goodies to bolster their own illicit power. These oathbreakers are ecstatic to do the bidding of the feds and push us ever closer to police state tyranny. One of these shameful folks, I’m sad to say, is Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard.

Sheriff Bouchard has come under fire in recent years because of his disdain for America’s founding documents. Whether it’s through the excessive use of drones, armed SWAT team raids, or the flagrant abuse of civil asset forfeiture, Bouchard’s reign has been a nightmare for folks who care about their God-given rights. But what is most shocking and alarming is Bouchard’s use of Hailstorm. He has partnered with the federal government to bring a weapon of war from the fields of Iraq and Afghanistan right into our backyards – a weapon so powerful and dangerous that it could single-handedly doom our privacy rights forever.

Hailstorm, also known as Stingray, is a device that acts as a dummy cell phone tower to intercept electronic data and communications from nearby cellular devices. The price tag on a single Hailstorm machine is $170,000. This technological marvel was meant to be used to be used on Al Queda or the Taliban, but now it’s being used on you and me. With this device in use, nobody’s data is secure from the clutches of Big Brother. When it was revealed last year that this device was being used in Oakland County, there was a backlash from principled government officials and civil liberties activists. The sheriff’s office responded with arrogance. “Of course, we’re following the law” was their mentality. No proof was offered. Just bellicosity and self-assured chest-thumping from the Sheriff’s office.

The NSA has already demonstrated that our ‘public servants’ will lie, cheat and steal to get their clutches on our information. Thus, it is not unreasonable to demand transparency and accountability from the Sheriff’s Office regarding something as potentially problematic as Hailstorm. When Sheriff Bouchard had the nerve to make a comment on a Tea Party Facebook group about federal incompetence, I felt it was my civic duty to call him out for his immense hypocrisy. After all, these are the same feds who Bouchard happily partners with to destroy our freedoms. The results from the exchange that ensued were interesting, to say the least:

After that final comment, the Sheriff blocked me and I was no longer able to access his post and continue the discussion. Apparently he wasn’t pleased that I refused to buy his propaganda. I guess he thinks that I should lick his boots for keeping us safe from the terrorists. In actuality, terrorism is statistically less likely to kill you than getting struck by lightning or drowning in a bathtub. Police, like those under the thumb of Sheriff Bouchard in Oakland County, are eight times more likely to kill you than a terrorist. Actually looking at the numbers rather than believing the empty rhetoric of power-hungry bureaucrats illustrates the minuscule nature of the terror threat.

Sorry, Sheriff. You want us to be so scared of terrorists that we will surrender all of our rights, but you’re not pulling the wool over my eyes. You’re not duping me into relinquishing my sacred freedoms for the illusion of safety. And the fact that you had to run from our discussion with your tail between your legs proves to me that I am on the right track. It shows that you have to hide from the sunlight. It shows that you are scared of citizens who are informed and have the backbone to speak truth to power.

I believe in following the heroic example of the Founding Fathers. When arrogant members of British royalty tread upon their rights, they fought back. They didn’t take it lying down. Michael Bouchard likes to strut around like he’s royalty and pat himself on the back for putting our rights in jeopardy. That is completely unacceptable, as far as I’m concerned. Bouchard has avoided transparency and accountability like it’s the plague, and that type of behavior cannot be tolerated from our elected officials.

This exchange that I had with Sheriff Bouchard has emboldened me. I am making it a point to educate as many people as possible, through hell or high water, about the way that the Oakland County Sheriff’s office is violating their oath to the Constitution. I will inform the masses that the Sheriff’s office is rolling out the red carpet for weapons of war to enter our streets through the reviled DoD 1033 program. I will be the town crier on these important issues until Sheriff Bouchard is forced to abide by the Constitution that he swore an oath to uphold, or he is voted out for someone who will take that oath seriously.

That is not a threat, it’s a guarantee. Bouchard may do a good job of talking the talk, but he does not walk the walk. Not by a long shot. It’s past time for a true Constitutional Sheriff to take the reigns in Oakland County. I will be working toward that goal until it’s accomplished, and our rights get the protection they deserve. And no matter how many cutesy posts you make on social media, Sheriff Bouchard, I will not be deceived. Until you provide We the People with the transparency and accountability we need, I will look down at you with contempt as an enemy of the Republic. Prove me wrong, Sheriff. Prove me wrong.

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