Nevers ends two decades on Macomb Township board

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — On the evening of Nov. 13, Trustee Nancy Nevers was the belle of the Macomb Township Board of Trustees’ bimonthly ball.

After going through the typical early meeting motions, a special resolution was read to honor her. Each trustee took time in their comments to memorialize her service. When Nevers finished up her own remarks to colleagues new and old, she closed out her final meeting as a trustee with a slam of the gavel.

“Tonight was just overwhelming,” Nevers said after the meeting. “I just thought I would say a few of my feelings and my thoughts of working with this board and then just kind of say goodbye and fade away. It was very humbling.”

The ceremonies and remarks brought an end to Nevers’ 20 years in Macomb Township politics that began with her first race in 2004 and continued through the contentious campaign in 2020, ending with her decision to not run in this year’s Republican primary.

Nevers’ career in Macomb Township politics ties back to the 1990s, when she lived in Detroit with her husband, Larry Nevers. Larry, a Detroit police officer, was arrested and tried alongside fellow officer Walter Budzyn for the death of Malice Green in 1992. Larry and Budzyn were convicted of second-degree murder in 1993, but the conviction was overturned in federal court in 1997 after issues regarding the jury’s impartiality were brought to light. Nevers was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in a second trial in 2000; the charge was overturned by the Michigan Court of Appeals in March 2003 while the Michigan Supreme Court upheld the manslaughter charge in September that year. Though sentenced for up to 15 years, Larry was released from prison in 2001. He died in 2013 at age 72.

During Larry’s trial and imprisonment, Nancy lobbied on his behalf and upholds his innocence to this day. Her mission to prove her husband’s innocence and secure his release from prison sparked a “five-year odyssey,” during which she would receive support from prominent Macomb County Republicans, including future-Macomb Township Treasurer Leon Drolet, and many letters of support from Macomb County residents. Nancy attributes the letters as the deciding factor for she and Larry to move from Detroit to Macomb County, while the move to Macomb Township came down to their eventual home having a guaranteed move-in date.

“When you’re young you go along and think that we live in this wonderful country and everything is fair, and then something personal happens to you and then your eyes are open and you realize there’s no such thing as justice, only a chance at justice,” Nancy said. “That was very much an eye-opener and it’s kind of driven my life since then.”

While the thought of running for office did not initially cross Nancy’s mind, the seed was planted with an early trip to the township clerk’s office.

“We went over to sign to make sure this was our residence, and at that time the clerk, Mike Koehs, said to my husband, ‘I think Nancy should run for office,’” Nevers said. “I just thought, ‘Oh yeah, all right, OK, whatever. That’s certainly not on my radar,’ and then Larry kept saying, ‘Well, why don’t you?’ Because he wanted me to (run).”

With the encouragement of her husband, Nancy campaigned for and won her first four-year term on the Macomb Township Board of Trustees in 2004. During her time in office, Nevers campaigned for the creation of a memorial for veterans in the township, which was fulfilled by the dedication of the Veterans and First Responders Memorial on Veterans Day 2010.

Located across from the front steps of the Macomb Township Hall, getting the monument built is Nevers’ proudest achievement during her time in office.

“We didn’t have a memorial, and a cousin of mine’s husband was a vet and said, ‘Why don’t we have one? What are you going to do about it?’” Nevers said. “The lightbulb went on and I said, ‘Well, we need to have one.’ Mike D’Agostini’s father was a vet, and he wanted to show his dad that he worked hard to bring a memorial in his honor to the township. It was my idea but (D’Agostini) was the moving force, and of course, Jim Van Tiflin (Macomb Township’s land development director) made it all happen in the township.”

In the leadup to the 2020 election, numerous corruption scandals rocked Macomb Township government. Over 20 residents seeking a hand in changing the township would vie for positions on the Board of Trustees while others sought to express their anger toward the sitting incumbents. Nevers, who had not left office since her 2004 election, successfully navigated a packed Republican primary and won what would be her final election to the board with just over 29,400 votes. During that contentious time, Nevers said defending her reputation was key to maintaining her spot on the board.

“Everybody considered the whole board corrupt, and it was clearly not the whole board,” Nevers said. “It was just a couple of people, and we were all painted with that same brush. You just had to fight for your reputation, and it wasn’t pleasant. … When somebody accused me of something, I addressed it immediately from the board table.”

One accusation Nevers recalled is that because former-and-disgraced trustee Dino Bucci would have her sidewalks plowed, she was colluding with him.

Bucci was indicted on conspiracy, bribery, theft, extortion, mail fraud and money laundering charges in 2017 in connection with the corruption case surrounding former Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Anthony Marrocco.

“Right from the board table I said, ‘Wait a second. I never asked for that,’” Nevers said. “He did that, and I thought it was a kindness. I thought it was something that he did for his mother and for his house and he included me in that, so I was pretty naive. But anytime anybody accused me of anything I would say immediately, ‘OK, let’s talk about this,’ and I would allow them to ask questions. I was totally open and honest about anything, and I was never proven to be a liar. I never lied about anything. I think that was something people appreciated, otherwise they wouldn’t have voted me back in, I don’t think.”

Eventually the decision came to leave politics behind. Nevers figured she would not be getting younger and, with health issues beginning to emerge, wanted more time to spend with her family. Nevers was content with the trustee position and did not seek full-time office, and she ended her career as one of the township’s longest-serving trustees.

“I’m going to miss it,” Nevers said. “On every Wednesday I’m sure I’ll remember, ‘This is a board night, and I wonder what’s going on over there.’ I’ll remember it fondly.”