House Oversight Committee Vice Chair Matthew Bierlein today said a county court’s decision to charge a friend and former confidant of state Attorney General Dana Nessel raises further questions about why a state investigation into that same individual went nowhere.

“Our House Oversight Committee held hearings on evidence of years of misconduct and financial exploitation on the part of Traci Kornak involving a vulnerable individual, as well as a potential conflict of interest involving the AG as her office investigated Ms. Kornak,” Bierlein said. “These charges and the allegations that preceded them are exactly why we have been looking at these issues. No one should be above the law, no matter who you are politically connected to.”

Kent County Prosecutor Christopher Becker on Wednesday announced criminal charges against Traci Kornak, who is a former treasurer of the Michigan Democratic Party and served on Nessel’s transition team.

Bierlein and other Oversight Committee members heard a presentation on Tuesday that offered significant detail into allegations surrounding Kornak’s past conduct while acting as a conservator for an elderly client. The client in question, Rosalene Burd, reported to Adult Protective Services (APS) that she was being “watched” by Kornak and cameras were placed in two different rooms in her residence to monitor her activity. Nearly $420,000 in transfers, claim payments and withdrawals were flagged as questionable transactions by a prominent accounting firm that had looked into Kornak’s conservatorship role with Burd, and in multiple instances billing was being done for in-home care visits when the visitor log book at Burd’s residence listed nothing for a particular day.

A previous AG investigation into Kornak did not lead to enforcement of any kind and was closed in 2022 despite these additional findings coming to light.

“Obviously that decision raises questions given the AG’s relationship with Traci Kornak, but with the timeline that was presented to us, closing the investigation and not pursuing charges unfortunately led to continued exploitation and misconduct,” Bierlein said. “I thank Prosecutor Becker for continuing to look into this issue and his commitment in pursuing justice years after the AG’s office said there is nothing to see here.”

Freedom of Information Act requests and ensuing reports disclosed Nessel asked staff for “urgency” in wrapping up the investigation as Kornak had a pending judicial appointment, and the Oversight Committee previously heard a presentation on Nessel breaking an “isolation wall” that was put in place to separate her from the case and its progress as the investigation played out.

Bierlein said the House Oversight Committee will continue to provide a needed layer of government transparency and accountability to the people. The committee has also looked into bureaucratic overreach by the state’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, failures by the state’s Department of Health and Human Services to protect children, and more. As a report regarding leadership failures that created a toxic work environment at the Michigan State Police was set to be released by the committee earlier in January, MSP Lt. Col. Aimee Brimacombe announced her pending retirement.

“Trust in government happens when people have faith that government is working for them and not just covering for itself,” Bierlein said. “We will continue to provide critical oversight to ensure state government and its departments are working effectively and efficiently for the people it is serving.”