My inclination is to say that his being driven out of the job is a shame: His crime, serious as it was, was 30 years ago, and he has apparently had a clean record since his release from prison in 2008. I don't think his long-past behavior should disqualify him from the job.
From MLive (Matthew Miller):
Newly appointed Michigan Supreme Court Justice Kyra Harris Bolden hired a former convict as a law clerk.
Pete Martel robbed a convenience store in Genessee County nearly three decades ago and "had a bit of a shootout with the police," as he put it in a 2017 interview. He spent 14 years in prison.
He also went on to earn a law degree, found a job with the State Appellate Defender Office and enrolled in a doctoral program at the University of Michigan.
But hours after The Detroit News reported on Martel's hiring and quoted Justice Richard Bernstein, a fellow Democratic nominee who campaigned with Bolden, saying he was "completely disgusted" by her decision, Martel resigned.
"I have accepted Pete Martel's resignation," Bolden said in a statement. "He did not want to be a distraction or in any way divert the Court from its important work. I respect his decision and do not intend to comment further."
I saw the 1994 date for the guilty plea at The Center Square (Scott McClallen). MLive has more from a Michigan Department of Corrections interview with Martel, which appears to be the one here:
Thanks to Howard Bashman (How Appealing) for the pointer.
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