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Wayne County register of deeds urges tougher enforcement as deed-fraud cases mount
Summary
Wayne County’s register of deeds told the Ways and Means committee that deed fraud continues to erode generational wealth, highlighted a backlog of cases and urged stronger sentencing; the county and prosecutor’s office agreed to compile prosecution and sentencing data and report back to the committee.
The Wayne County Register of Deeds warned the county commission’s Ways and Means committee that deed-fraud activity remains widespread and that recent prosecutions have not produced strong sentences, reducing deterrence for offenders.
"It is continuing and much to the chagrin of the great mayor Coleman Young to see the historic generational wealth of the city of Detroit being depleted," the register said, adding later that "it's not much of a deterrent right now that I see" when courts commonly issue probation for convicted individuals.
The register described a previously centralized fraud unit that cost roughly $1 million a year and was later disbanded for budgetary reasons; he said investigations continue but that the prosecutor’s office is overwhelmed and prosecutions have been slow. He also raised concerns about weaknesses in notary protections and the simplicity of quitclaim-deed transactions, suggesting the need for new safeguards and education for notaries.
Commissioners pressed for specific data about outstanding cases and sentencing. A prosecutor's office representative (referred to in the meeting as Tony) said the county’s deed-fraud unit still exists under Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Latoya Willis and agreed to gather prosecution statistics and sentencing histories and return them to the committee and related oversight groups.
The register also cited a state law that took effect in March 2025 (identified in the briefing as a recent change) that designates county registers of deeds as co-victims; he said Wayne County has identified 63 properties that fall under that provision but that the law has not yet been invoked in prosecutions locally. Commissioners called for better public reporting of judicial outcomes, consideration of increased prosecutorial staffing and continued interagency coordination.
The committee requested a follow-up report from the prosecutor’s office with case counts, sentencing patterns and recommended attorney-staffing levels to handle the current caseload.
