The death of our prosecutor, Brian Donnelly

How did the Kalkaska community respond to the news of Brian Donnelly's death?

No mention of the recall effort facing Brian was made by The Leader in print, while we broke the news of his death and in articles thereafter, but it is (or was) certainly on the minds of community members.

Brian was Kalkaska's prosecuting attorney, until the day he died. As I wrote in my last column, Brian was a man wearing a target on his back. Still, he persisted with his daily responsibilities. Whenever I "grilled" him, asking tough questions posed by the recall's proponents, Brian never faltered. It's true he seemed a bit impatient and a tad frustrated, but I couldn't see any significant effects on him, resulting from the recall process.

As an occupational hazard, Brian upset people. He prosecuted people involved in criminal activity; he made enemies. But, from my standpoint, he did his job as prosecutor.

Now that an interim successor has been named, Assistant Prosecutor Kirk Metzger, it will be interesting to see how the judicial system in Kalkaska will be influenced. Though, Metzger is only temporary - the court's decided the people are the one's entitled to select their county's prosecutor.

Regardless of how anybody felt of Brian Donnelly, his sudden death stunned many throughout the community, and, those who knew Brian well, paid their respects during his funeral service. As so many people have suggested, Brian Donnelly will be missed.