Three days after Michael Etienne successfully finagled his way to an unchallenged campaign by making sure his opponent Janet Reed didn’t qualify, he sent another one of his famous rah-rah emails to Police Chief Leonard Burgess to thank him for all his “help.”

Because that’s what bootlickers sycophants flunkies best friends do!

Despite the fact that he quoted a witness as saying “Michael Etienne clearly was in the wrong because he made the atmosphere appear hostile,” he qualified her “interpretation” by writing (and I quote), “The lady making this statement is no friend of mine and depict [sic] an inaccurate description of was transpired online; however, the excerpt above from her comment online is fairly accurate- except the part that I was in the wrong of course.”

But, of course!

The ever arrogant, “elected, not appointed” City Clerk of North Miami is always right.

Just ask Chief Lenny!

The witness Michael quoted also gave Chief Lenny yet another opportunity to discredit Assistant Chief Gary Eugene, whom he was forced to promote last year after Kevin Burns’ loss put the kibosh on Franzia Brea-Burden’s promotion.  She was Kevin’s handpicked puppet candidate for the position.

After all, Gary Eugene is way more qualified to be Chief of Police than Leonard Burgess.  The only way Lenny can justify keeping his own position is to make sure that no qualified contender is breathing down his neck.  Like Michael Etienne, if Lenny can find a way to defame – or disqualify – the competition, they consider it job security.

The witness Michael quoted also claimed, “The Assistant to the Chief of Police showed up with two other officers, looked at Janets paperwork and left because Janet had every right to have her paperwork filed.”

That was the opening Michael used in his Ode to Lenny Burgess in order to thank him “for sending Major Robert Bage to the clerk’s office on April 7, 2015 to help defuse the situation that transpired at said office.”

He went on to describe “the situation,” claiming that Ms. Reed and “those people” were “disrupting the work flow of the staff.”

Michael breathlessly described how Major Bage swooped in and “diffused a situation,” and gushed even further by claiming that he “was almost forced to physically remove those people from the office myself and that is when Major Bage walked in and literally saved the day.”

With an orgasmic flourish, Etienne ended his email with “Hail Major Bage!!!”

Hallelujah!  Praise the Lord!

Except there’s only one problem.

None of it is remotely true.

For one thing, as a candidate running for office in North Miami, Michael A. Etienne, Esq. had no business occupying the Clerk’s Office in his official capacity as City Clerk on the very day that candidates were qualifying to run for office.

Not only was he illegally present in the Clerk’s Office in his official capacity as City Clerk, he also interfered with the process when his challenger Janet Reed was attempting to file her documents.

Michael wrote, “Both Stephanie [Thomas] and I asked the initial officers to remove the people out of the internal working area of the clerk’s office because they were disrupting the work flow of the staff but our request fell on death [sic] ears. In fact, at one point the officers walked out of the clerk’s office while those people were still camping out in front of Stephanie’s office.”

Ms. Reed and her Treasurer, who was also a witness, told me this was patently untrue.

Ms. Reed was being assisted by Deputy Clerk Stephanie Thomas when Michael Etienne walked in the room to direct Ms. Thomas to assist Jean Marcellus with his application.  Michael then escorted Ms. Reed and her appointed Treasurer into his private office and told them to wait there.  He walked out and shut the door.

By the time he returned, he advised Ms. Reed that she was too late to qualify because it was after the twelve noon deadline.

After being treated in such a matter, Ms. Reed was understandably upset and demanded to talk to someone in charge about how Michael Etienne orchestrated her disqualification.  Someone in the office called the police and Assistant Chief Gary Eugene showed up with another two officers.

Ms. Reed told me that Assistant Chief Eugene advised her that this was not a police matter and to contact the appropriate agency or agencies if she had any complaints.

Furthermore, according to Ms. Reed, at no time did Stephanie Thomas ask Assistant Chief Eugene to remove “those people.”  In fact, Ms. Reed told me that Ms. Thomas was too intimated to do or say anything because Michael Etienne kept barking orders at her and telling her what to do, and that she appeared quite flustered.

As I already mentioned, Michael Etienne was a candidate at the time and had no business being in the City Clerk’s Office in his official capacity.  Because he was present, he was abusing his position by interfering in the qualification process.

And yes, in case you’re wondering, Ms. Reed has already contacted the appropriate agencies and filed the necessary complaints.

By the time Major Bage arrived, the only one causing a scene was Michael himself, who I was told had been pacing around furiously.  Ms. Reed said that Major Bage was very courteous to her and saw no reason to detain or restrain her.  If anyone needed calming down, it was Michael.

In fact, in his own words to Chief Lenny, Michael wrote, “Bage told me to calm down and that he would be handling the situation, and so I begin [sic] to walk away and into my office.”

His “office” being the room he was not supposed to be occupying in an official capacity as City Clerk on the day candidates were qualifying to run for office.

Then again, Michael Etienne has abused, and continues to abuse, his position from the time he was first elected as City Clerk up until yesterday, when he let loose with a barrage of inappropriate emails to Councilwoman Carol Keys because she dared to question the city’s policy regarding public records requests.

Fortunately (for me), I was included as a recipient of those emails.

Unfortunately (for Michael), I was the target of some of his misplaced vitriol.

Because, in his infinite arrogance, Michael does not like to be questioned.

He’s also not used to being challenged.

Unlike Michael, I love a good challenge.

Yeah, just watch what happens next.

The mutually beneficial relationship that Michael Etienne and Leonard Burgess have forged should be obvious by now.  This is a most odd coupling, indeed.

When Chief Lenny was under fire for North Miami’s horrific crime rate, Michael stepped in to whip up some fudge and spin the stats.

Michael is now using his own unethical (and possibly illegal) behavior on qualifying day as a blatant attempt to help Chief Lenny throw Assistant Chief Gary Eugene under the bus.  By implying that Mr. Eugene was ineffective, and that Major Bage had to “save the day,” Michael is trying to fuel Chief Lenny’s vendetta against the Assistant Chief he didn’t want to promote in the first place.

Michael is also using Major Robert Bage as a hapless pawn to justify a preventable situation that he himself orchestrated.  Michael’s email insinuated that Major Bage owes his entire career to good old Chief Lenny.  How insulting to a veteran law enforcement officer!

On the day in question, Major Robert Bage performed his duties in the courteous and professional manner he has always employed, which has absolutely nothing to do with the police department’s current substandard leadership.  Major Bage has been a law enforcement officer with the North Miami Police Department long before Leonard Burgess was Chief, and I imagine he’ll be around long after Lenny is gone.

We’ve already seen how Michael Etienne is more than willing to come to his BFF Chief Lenny’s rescue.

Now let’s sit back and see if Chief Lenny returns the favor when it all starts hitting the fan.

Just saying.

Stephanie Kienzle
“Spreading the Wealth”