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Mike Cox (born 1961) is the 52 Michigan Attorney General, having served since January 1, 2003. He is the first Republican in 48 years to serve as Attorney General of Michigan. He won re-election in 2006, defeating Democratic candidate Amos Williams, an attorney from Detroit. Current Michigan Governor, Jennifer M. Granholm preceded him as the state's 51st Attorney General.

Early life

Cox is a graduate of Detroit Catholic Central High School and spent time in the United States Marine Corps before entering college. He graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1989 and went to work in the Wayne County Prosecutor's office. In 2000, Cox was appointed Director of the Homicide Unit, which prosecuted approximately two-thirds of all homicides in Michigan. Cox's older brother, Sean Cox, is a federal judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Mike and his wife Laura, current Wayne County Commissioner, have four children.

Attorney General of Michigan

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Cox was elected Attorney General in 2002 and sworn into office on January 1, 2003. Within days of taking office, Cox created the Child Support Division to collect child support. By combining public awareness with targeted prosecutions, the division collected more than $35.3 million on behalf of more than 3,500 Michigan children in its first four years. In 2004, Cox received the Golden Hearts Award from the Association for Children for Enforcement of Support, the nation's largest child support organization.

He reorganized the Child and Public Protection Unit to tackle Internet predators. Since taking office, Cox's unit continues to arrest more Internet predators than any state other than Texas.

In 2003, Cox formed the Office of Special Investigations (OSI) to uncover public corruption and solve cold case homicides.

Cox spearheaded the drafting and passage of legislation requiring mandatory criminal background checks of employees in residential care facilities, including nursing homes.

Cox challenged the United States Environmental Protection Agency on the regulation of ballast water discharges.

Cox has called attention to the issue of unpaid child support through billboards and other forms of media.

Cox famously shut down an investigation by the State of Michigan into allegations of a "wild party" at Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's residence known as the Manoogian Mansion. The party was rumored to have resulted in assault and battery and a massive cover-up of crime. Covering up the party and assault and battery have also been suggested as a motivation for the subsequent murder of a stripper who alleged she had been assaulted by the Mayor's wife at that party. Speculation suggests that Mike Cox shut down the investigation to keep his own extra-marital affair (or affairs) out of public discussion. Cox received nationwide negative press in 2007 when the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that adultery could, at least in theory, be prosecuted as first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a resulting life in prison sentence. This unanimous decision was reached as a result of an appeal sought by Cox's office on a drug case that touched in part on this strange loophole in the law. In November 2005, Cox himself admitted to committing adultery while accusing Oakland County lawyer Geoffrey Fieger of blackmail, claiming that he threatened to reveal the affair if Cox did not drop an investigation into Fieger's alleged campaign finance violations. Cox said his personal conduct was "inexcusable" and had reconciled with his wife. Cox did not publicly reveal the fact that pursuant to MCL 750.30, one of the laws he swore to uphold, adultery is held to constitute a felony. Pursuant to MCL 750.31, however, only Cox himself, his wife, or parties to the marriage (if any) of the co-adulterer or adulterers with whom he committed felonies may pursue a complaint for prosecution of felony adultery. Cox did not recuse himself from the decision to file a complaint for prosecution of his adultery notwithstanding the apparent conflict of interest.

2006 election

Cox had raised over $1.9 million to contest the 2006 election and on November 7, 2006, was re-elected to a second term as Michigan's Attorney General defeating Democratic candidate Amos Williams. Cox is serving his last term as Attorney General, since Michigan statewide officeholders are limited to 2 terms in office.

Cox is a rumored candidate to run for Governor of Michigan in 2010 after the term of current governor Jennifer Granholm expires.

References

1. "Mike Cox Biography". Mike Cox 2006. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
2. Sacks, Glenn (2004-03-07). "Michigan Fathers Under Siege". hisside.com. Retrieved 2007-05-31.
3. Jarvie, Jennie. "Life sentence for adultery? Could be", SFGate.com, 2007-01-24. Retrieved on 2007-04-08. ^ "Judge's Footnote On Adultery Stirs a Tempest In Michigan", Washington Post, 2007-01-19. Retrieved on 2007-07-26.
4. http://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/120205/loc_2005120201.shtml
5. http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=12651

External links

• Mike Cox biography
• Michigan Attorney General (official site)
• Michigan Republican Party (official site)
• Opposition site (Michigan Democratic Party)

See also

• Michigan Republican Party
• Kwame Kilpatrick

• 1961 births
• Living people
• Michigan Attorneys General
• Michigan politicians
• Michigan Republicans