Western Washtenaw municipalities may lose some police coverage by deputies

This story has been updated with comment from the sheriff's office spokesman.

The Village of Manchester may lose some coverage by Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office deputies after Bridgewater Township pulled out of an agreement helping to pay for law enforcement, according to a report in the Manchester Enterprise.

According to the report, Bridgewater Township is pulling out of an agreement it had made with Lodi Township and Manchester to pay for five deputies to patrol the area. Under the agreement, Manchester paid for three deputies and Lodi and Bridgewater both paid for one.

However, Bridgewater Township residents elected a town constable, eliminating their need for a deputy, according to the report.

Michael Meeks, former member of the Hutaree militia, was elected constable Nov. 6.

Meetings are in the works between officials from Manchester, Lodi Township and the county sheriff’s office to determine what the next steps will be, the report states.

Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office spokesman Derrick Jackson said the constable will have limited authority in Bridgewater and is not able to respond to calls for service. He said the township is pulling out of the agreement because of a failed millage. Without the millage, there isn't enough money to pay for a deputy and it will be up to township officials to figure out their next step, he said.

"A constable has limited to no enforcement authority and can definitely not respond to calls in progress," Jackson said, "and they pulled out due to the millage not passing."

To read the full report in the Manchester Enterprise, click here.

Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.