metro

A iG
***

**

SAV E
THE
D ATE

sr

Headed For Prison

•■ •

■••"

Founded in 1897

ZIONIST ORGANIZATION OF AMERICA

Two sex offenders are sentenced.

MICHIGAN REGION

Ronelle Grier

Contributing Writer

79th Annual
I Balfour Celebration

T

wo members of the Jewish com-
munity have recently been sen-
tenced to prison for sex crimes
committed in Oakland and Wayne
counties.
Novi pediatrician Jeffrey Lee Dembs,
62, was deemed "the worst of the worst"
by Oakland County
Circuit Court Judge
Shalina Kumar as
she sentenced him to
prison for 76 months
to 10 years on Oct.
1, adding that he
deserved a "far worse
7' a.
sentenc'
Jeffrey Dembs
Dembs, who was
originally charged with three counts of
criminal sexual conduct for molesting
an 11-year-old boy, pleaded no contest
to three felony counts of assault with
intent to commit sexual penetration, the
result of an agreement with the Oakland
County Prosecutor's office.
The plea agreement also required that
Dembs surrender his medical license
and remain on a lifetime tether after he
is released from prison.
A passionate statement was made by
the mother of the boy, now 15, whose
reports of more than 70 incidents of sex-
ual abuse during 2009-10 led to Dembs'
arrest. After the death of his father, the
boy had begun spending a great deal of
time at the West Bloomfield home of
Dembs, who was the boy's pediatrician
as well as a close family friend.
The mother, who asked for anonym-
ity, told those in the courtroom how
Dembs had stepped in as a father figure
and then exploited the relationship to
sexually abuse her son "for his own self-
ish pleasure' She said he stole her son's
innocence and manipulated her family.
"This is a life sentence for my son:'

I Sunday, November 10, 2013 I 7:00 P.M.
Congregation Shaarey Zedek

Honoring

Janice and Martin
Stoneman

with the Justice Louis Brandeis Award

and

Honoring the Memory of

Donald E. Van Curler

with the Friend of Israel Leadership Award

WITH A SPECIAL PRESENTATION
BY AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR
AND DOCUMENTARY MAKER

Steven Emerson

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF
THE INVESTIGATIVE PROJECT ON TERRORISM

TO JOIN THE TRIBUTE COMMITTEE
OR FOR MORE INFORMATION,
CONTACT:

(248) 661-6000

Jesse Hermann
Jesse Hermann, formerly of Walled Lake,
was sentenced to two concurrent six- to
20-year prison terms after pleading
guilty to two charges of sexually abu-
sive activity with a child and using the
Internet for the pur-
pose of committing a
crime.
Canton police
began investigating
after a local woman
reported several
Facebook chats where
Hermann made
Jesse
sexually inappropriate
Hermann
remarks about her
3-year-old daughter.
Hermann was arrested after leaving
a local hotel where a police-supervised
meeting had been arranged. He did not
actually enter the building.
Hermann was sentenced on Sept. 4
by Wayne County Circuit Court Judge
Lawrence Talon.
Hermann was a part-time art instruc-
tor and Tamarack Family Camp coun-
selor since 2009. Tamarack officials said
previously that Hermann's arrest was not
connected with any camp program or
participants, adding that a background
check was done when Hermann was
hired and that there were no complaints
of similar conduct during his tenure.

Ex-Birmingham Mayor Faces Drug Charges

Former Birmingham mayor Seth Chafetz, 53, has been charged with possession
of methamphetamines, a felony that could carry a maximum prison sentence of
10 years. According to police and court records, Chafetz was arrested by mem-
bers of the Oakland County Narcotics Enforcement Team, who conducted an
undercover sting operation at Chafetz's Bloomfield Township home on Aug. 16
and confiscated 3.5 grams of meth, a gram of marijuana, numerous syringes and
some cash. It had not yet been determined where the meth was "cooked."
Chafetz was arraigned Aug. 28 by 48th District Court Judge Kimberly Small
and released on $10,000 bond. A preliminary examination will determine
whether the case will be sent to Oakland County Circuit Court.
Chafetz, mayor of Birmingham in 2003, was the city's first mayor who was
Jewish and openly gay. He was formerly employed by the Detroit Skating Club as
a youth figure skating coach.

kobi@mizoa.org

VISIT OUR NEW WEBSITE:

www.mizoa.org

ZOA is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization.
Contributions are tax deductible as permitted by law.

1868890

16 October 10 • 2013

said the mother.
Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica
Cooper said she was greatly relieved that
Dembs would be prevented from practic-
ing medicine and having further access
to young children. She said her office
was prepared to present motions to the
court showing that Dembs' behavior had
been going on for decades.
Since his arrest in November 2012,
Dembs had been on voluntary leave
from his pediatric practice at My Kid's
Doc in Novi.

❑

