Maria Barton 

Beth Anne Piehl, Special Sections Writer

When Maria Barton first started in her position prosecuting drug cases in Northern Michigan, the docket was filled mainly with marijuana and a few cocaine trials.

Over the last 16 years, those cases are increasingly involving crack, larger quantities of cocaine, heroin, Ecstasy and prescription drug abuse, particularly the highly-addictive oxycodone.

“We don’t have a huge problem right now, but a couple of years ago there was a cocaine problem here,” said Barton, who, in her role as special prosecutor for SANE (Straits Area Narcotics Enforcement team), keeps a finger on the pulse of the region’s drug activity.

She credits the work of SANE, the multi-jurisdictional law enforcement group, in reducing the number of high-level dealers that were having success selling in the North region. “I think the SANE team does a great job identifying the people that traffic drugs in our communities,” Barton said.

Along with her SANE prosecutorial duties, Barton is an assistant prosecutor in each of the six local counties of Chippewa, Mackinac, Cheboygan, Otsego, Emmet and Charlevoix. Her physical office is in Cheboygan, though her days are spent traveling to county buildings for hearings and meetings. In 1992, she was asked to join the SANE team as its prosecutor, and has been on the case since.

Any drug case that is presented in any of the six counties goes through Barton for determination of prosecution, from deliveries to use to manufacturing. Officers often call Barton in the middle of the night during busts to seek her approval for warrants, making the job an on-call position nearly every day.

One of the most significant points she’s learned over the last 15-plus years in handling drug cases is that there is no age or socio-economic class in particular impacted by substances; abuse spans the generations. Also, the larger issue today in the realm of drugs is found mostly in the abuse of medications. “Over half of the cases are prescription drug cases,” Barton said.

Methadone and oxycodone are presenting the most significant numbers, with some defendant outcomes ranging from 20-year prison terms to longer for those guilty of delivering causing death, which has occurred in Northern Michigan, she added.

The fallout from drug-related crimes, from prescriptions to narcotics, often ripple through a community much like a pebble in a pond. Once a dealer enters an area and finds buyers, crime increases by those looking for money to support their habit; many times, buyers begin selling to raise money. Drug use in a community affects everything from housing values to business viability and demands more taxpayer resources for the courts and police, including probate and family courts when addiction begins to ruin families.

She recalled one case in the Soo that reflected another trend of recent years — downstate dealers trekking up north to sell, because “they can make more money selling up here than in the city of Detroit,” Barton said.

The racketeering case she referenced ended up putting a large drug-dealing operation out of business, one which started with a downstate uncle and nephew selling in Cheboygan and spreading northward with up to 2 ounces of cocaine per trip delivered more than 50 times a year. As the SANE team kept getting tips to their whereabouts, they would move, making it a cat-and-mouse chase that produced more than 40 breaking-and-enterings tied to the ring. Ultimately, the uncle received 40 years in prison and 10 other convictions were handed down as well.

“It was one of the most severe cases in Northern Michigan,” Barton said. “It took a toll on our court system up there. That case alone had a huge impact on the system.”

It also takes a community to put a stop to drug abuse, she added. In a recent Petoskey case, a hotel owner became suspicious of in-and-out traffic at the hotel and called the SANE tip line (800) 621-8651 to report it. The tip led to the arrest of a dealer.

“It was something as simple as that,” Barton said.

Next on the docket

While she’s spent years on the gallery side of the judge’s bench, arguing cases such as the recent examples, Barton may soon be facing a new direction in the courtroom.

She is currently running for office against Daniel Martin for the position of 89th District Court judge covering Cheboygan and Presque Isle counties (election is Nov. 4). As part of her campaign hopes, Barton said she would like to begin, if elected, a “drug court” in the 89th that works to help addicts beat drug and substance abuse issues. Regular daily testing, support groups and rigorous phases of the program have proven successful in other jurisdictions, including Emmet and Charlevoix’s Sobriety Court, Barton noted.

If elected, Barton would step down from her role as SANE prosecutor, though she looks at the role as fulfilling in her law career thus far.

“Being a prosecutor is a noble profession” she said, “to protect the community.”

The Barton case

Who: Maria Barton, 44
Family: Married to David since 1989, and mom of daughter Cassie, 5; Indian River residents
Her job: Assistant prosecutor in Chippewa, Mackinac, Cheboygan, Otsego, Emmet and Charlevoix counties. Special prosecutor for SANE, the Straits Area Narcotics Enforcement team that works to combat drug activity in the region.
Help her out: Anonymous drug tip line, (800) 621-8651
Your honor: Barton is also currently running for office against Daniel Martin for the position of 89th District Court judge covering Cheboygan and Presque Isle counties (election is Nov. 4)
Background: Raised in Ohio, law school at the Toledo College of Law.
Beyond the public eye: Barton hooks rugs for a hobby and business endeavor; she’s hooked rugs for about 13 years and has her own online business, www.starrugcompany.com. She also enjoys playing ice hockey and is an avid golfer and gardener.