(No caption)
The ordeal in criminal court is over for demolition consultant Barry Ellentuck, who was charged with attempting to overbill the Detroit Land Bank Authority of about $6,300.
Joe Guillen of the Detroit Free Press reports that an Oakland County Circuit Court jury on Monday found Ellentuck, who runs ADR Consultants, of West Bloomfield, not guilty of the charge.
Guillen reports:
An angry Barry Ellentuck said after the verdict was read that he still hasn't been vindicated because the corruption he reported in Detroit's demolition program is still being investigated.
"I've been exonerated but I haven't been vindicated," he said outside of Oakland County Circuit Court. "We've reported $37 million in public corruption and collusion and it's not over yet. So I'm angry as hell."
Ellentuck's attorney, Joe Lavigne, said they will now weigh their options, which include a lawsuit against the state for malicious prosecution. During the five-day trial, Lavigne portrayed the attorney general’s investigation into Ellentuck as hasty and superficial.
