After serving more than two decades working to put some of the most violent criminals in our area behind bars, Berrien County Prosecutor Steven Pierangeli is changing roles. He’s stepping down from his elected position next month and, in fact, is leaving the criminal law sector altogether to practice in a different area. Pierangeli said he’s staying in Berrien County, but he won’t be practicing in a governmental capacity.
We recently had the opportunity to talk with Pierangeli about the move, his time at the prosecutor’s office, what’s next, and why now is the time for a change.
Asked about the announcement itself, Pierangeli said it had been in the works for some time. He said he missed working in the courts, working on individual cases, and, perhaps most of all, helping people directly. As the leader of the prosecutor’s office, Pierangeli said he took on a lot of administrative duties. While he fully acknowledges that work is important, Pierangeli said he wanted more.
“After doing this job for the last almost four years, I’m not as much an administrator as I am (someone) who wants to be in the courtroom. I want to work directly with people. I like serving people individually and working with them. Administration is not my favorite thing. I know it’s an important job — I really do — and it’s important to make sure the office is running well and taking on a lot of outside issues so the (Assistant Prosecuting Attorneys) can do their job in court.”
While some use the role of prosecutor as a steppingstone to higher office or a judgeship, Pierangeli said that was never his motivation for service.
“I’m not much for politics, to be honest. I have never seen this as a tremendously political position and a partisan position. I want to get back to working with individuals again and serving people on a one-on-one basis. So that’s the decision. And speaking with my wife a lot, and some friends, good counselors to me, that’s kind of what prompted it. And that’s why I made the decision now. I was not going to run for re-election, so I thought it was time to retire.”
Pierangeli was raised in a large family in Southfield, Michigan, but for the last two decades has made Berrien County his home. In an interview with the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, Pierangeli said one of the reasons he became a prosecutor was because he saw how his brother, also a prosecutor, could directly impact the surrounding community. Pierangeli said that’s how he has viewed his role as prosecutor – a way to give back to a community and make it a great place for the people who live there.
“I don’t think my perception of the office has changed at all, no. It’s just the job I was doing changed over the last four years. And I knew that going into it, and I just decided it’s not something I wanted to continue to keep doing. I wanted to get back to working individually with people.”
When he ran for the office in 2020, one of the things Pierangeli talked about was that he wanted to be an advocate for the people of Berrien County. He said he did that in his time as an APA, advocating for people individually through cases and then doing things to improve the prosecutor’s office after his election.
Pierangeli pointed to working with the Family Division, Juvenile Court to develop a program to keep the juveniles out of the court system (minor offenses) but getting them services they need. He also pointed to starting a local Sexual Assault Response Team that is essentially an on-call system available 24-7 to adult victims of sexual assault.
In addition, Pierangeli worked to secure pay raises for the APAs, saying Berrien County is playing catchup in the salary arena – historically paying less than surrounding counties that adjudicate far fewer cases.
Asked about whether the role of a prosecutor has changed over the past two decades, Pierangeli said the mission remains the same, but the way the prosecutor can serve has evolved.
“We’re here to serve and make sure that justice is done. That is the core of our job. My philosophy has always been, and I tell everybody, we’re not a policy-driven office. We have certain philosophies, but we don’t have policy. My philosophy is, do the right thing, I’ll figure out how to explain it. But I think as we get more information on people, why people are doing certain things and how they’re acting, how we serve justice can evolve some.”
Pierangeli pointed to helping drug addicts get mental health treatment for their addiction. Working with Judge Angela Pasula, the sheriff’s office, and the jail psychologist, Pierangeli described it as a way to reduce recidivism while also returning productive people to the community.
“Ninety percent of the cases we deal with—people make mistakes, we just don’t want to see them back. It’s that 10% that are very serious, that (are) a real danger to the community that I always kind of have our eye on and want to make sure that we can protect the community from them. But it’s that other 90% we’ve kind of changed a few things. Drug treatment court (and) the mental health court, which I think are critical and important to serve certain populations and be able to meet them better where they’re at and get them better services.”
Pierangeli admitted some cases were frustrating – including an attempted murder case where the jury returned a not-guilty verdict. Talking with a juror afterwards, Pierangeli said the juror agreed the suspect had committed the crime but the fact that the victim didn’t testify hurt the ability for the jury to return a guilty verdict.
Other cases that stick with Pierangeli include one that started as a Criminal Sex Conduct case and has turned out to be a life purpose for the victim.
“It’s from October of 2017, and she was assaulted by a family member and then she was able to come forward (to testify). We prosecuted the case, and now he’s a registered convicted sex offender. She ended up graduating high school, and then was the first in her family to go to college. She graduated college and applied to law school. (She) asked if I could give her a reference letter. I said, ‘Absolutely, I’d be so honored to do that.’ She just finished her first year of law school. We still maintain contact and I asked why she’s doing it. ‘Because I’m going to be a lawyer. I want to help people like you helped me.’ So that had a really big impact on me, and still does. I’m just very excited for her, and take joy in the fact that she’s overcome so many different difficult obstacles in her resilience. So that case sticks out quite a bit for me.”
Pierangeli’s next role is very different from what he’s doing today. He has accepted a role as an associate attorney in business law, estate planning, wills and trusts at Passaro, Kahne, Taylor, DeFrancesco & Thompson Law Offices in Benton Harbor. He admits it’s going to be a lot of work to transition to the new area, but he’s eager to undertake the new challenge.
“I love finance. I love planning. I love helping people plan for the future. I talk with APAs all the time. We’re always talking finance. I just enjoy that. It was an opportunity for me to get back into working with people one-on-one and helping set them up for the future for what they want and again, it’s how I think I can serve people individually.
Pierangeli will formally step down from his role at the Berrien County Courthouse on June 3. Pierangeli has endorsed Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Amy Byrd to replace him as prosecutor. Byrd, a Republican, will face Trevor Maveal, a Democrat, in the November General Election. In the meantime, the Michigan Constitution requires that county circuit court judges fill the vacancy with an interim prosecutor until the election. Applications for the role will be accepted until the close of business on May 17.
Why he’s stepping down nearly seven months before his elected term expires, Pierangeli said he had already made the decision to retire from the post, so it makes sense that there be a clean break.
“I’m always here for questions if (APAs) have them and happy to help in any way. I’ve been here a long time. I’ve done a lot. I’m proud of it. And I hope Berrien (County) is better off (because) I was here. I guess that’s how I feel. I’ll have a tough time leaving, but it’ll be for the best.”
