Ex-Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield, wife charged with embezzlement, conspiracy [View all]
Last edited Tue Apr 16, 2024, 05:37 PM - Edit history (1)
Paul Egan
Clara Hendrickson
Arpan Lobo
Detroit Free Press
April 16, 2024
LANSING Former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield embezzled public and private funds to support a lavish lifestyle of fine dining, ritzy hotels and trips to exotic locations, Attorney General Dana Nessel said Tuesday in announcing felony charges against the former GOP leader and his wife, Stephanie.
Chatfield, 35, who held a powerful post as the majority party leader at the state Capitol throughout 2019 and 2020, is charged in East Lansing district court with 13 embezzlement, conspiracy and larceny counts, Nessel said at a news conference.
The most serious charge, conducting a criminal enterprise, is a 20-year felony. Only Lee Chatfield is charged with that crime.
Chatfield's wife, who allegedly assisted with improperly charging personal family expenses to a nonprofit organization called the Peninsula Fund, also faces one count each of embezzlement and conspiracy, Nessel said. Each charge is a 10-year felony.
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[link:https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2024/04/16/michigan-house-speaker-lee-chatfield-charged-embezzlement-nessel/72097431007/|Full article