Alleged texts, eye rolls fail to get judge tossed in Declercq case
New witness for Grosse Pointe Farms defendant deemed not credible
Standish, Michigan — Robert Allen “Bob” Declercq, a former wealth manager from Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, watched in silence from prison on Tuesday afternoon as his lawyer lost a bid to get the trial judge tossed from his criminal case.
Declercq, 72, was convicted by an Oscoda County jury in May 2025 on two counts of sexually assaulting his 3-year-old granddaughter. He was sentenced in August to serve 25-60 years and is currently held in the Chippewa Correctional Facility in Kincheloe, Michigan, in the Upper Peninsula.
Chief Judge Richard Vollbach Jr. of the 23rd Circuit Court listened as defense lawyer Michael Dezsi of Royal Oak raised concerns about whether Oscoda County Judge Cassandra Morse-Bills exhibited behavior during the criminal trial worthy of disqualification.
“I don’t believe it’s really even a close call,” Vollbach said after reviewing all court documents and listening for more than an hour to issues raised by the defense lawyer and a witness he invited, alleged whistleblower Heather Blundell.
Even if all the claims made by Dezsi and Blundell were true, they would not meet the statutory requirements to disqualify a judge under Michigan court rules, Vollbach said. “There is a heavy presumption that a judge is unbiased and able to serve.”
The accusations
Blundell, a district clerk in Mio who went on medical leave shortly after the Declercq trial ended, took the stand on Tuesday to say she watched the trial on her workplace computer and saw the trial judge exhibit “out of character” behavior toward trial lawyer Shannon Smith of Bloomfield Hills.
“There was a lot of eye rolling. Her tone towards defense counsel was loud at times, almost like she was yelling, but not in a yelling tone. It was more of a, like, disciplinary action almost,” Blundell said. “She would take her glasses off and visibly look frustrated in front of the jury.”
Also, Blundell alleged that she saw a text on the cell phone of the trial judge — received from an alternate juror after he was discharged — that raised issues about the trial judge’s integrity.
Last month, the trial judge questioned during a hearing whether false claims against her, covered by a state newspaper that hasn’t covered the case before or since the controversial claims, were intended to tarnish her reputation and intimidate her.
Why court employee didn't come forward
Dezsi pointed out that he asked Blundell to attend the hearing to offer clarification about her role in the process and why she waited more than six months after the trial to report her concerns.
“I didn’t come forward at that time with this information because I didn’t — it was a little bit out of fear, I would say, at that moment. I had a job to do. I didn’t want to be fired, you know, things like that,” Blundell said. “It weighed so heavily on me that I felt it necessary to come forward. So I called Shannon Smith. I believe it was the beginning of December, when I called her. “
Smith told Blundell that Dezsi would call back — and Dezsi then requested Blundell file a declaration statement. His questions on Tuesday suggested that he did not play a role in coercing the witness or talking with her prior to her coming forward.
(The trial lawyer, who also represented convicted sex offender Larry Nassar, has alleged repeatedly that Morse-Bills didn’t run a fair courtroom.)
Declercq was treated so fairly that the court permitted him to compete in long-distance sailboat races while awaiting his criminal trial, the assistant attorney general said previously. Declercq was later expelled by the prestigious Bayview Yacht Club and removed from its Hall of Fame.
U.S. Sailing officials reviewed safety protocols as did yacht clubs throughout the region.
On Tuesday, Dezsi asked if Blundell knew anyone involved with the defense team or whether she had been offered anything to provide information, and Blundell said no. Blundell said she wrote her statement and, just recently, had it notarized.
Later in the hearing, Blundell revisited the “kind of odd” text issue, saying she kept it to herself initially because she “just didn’t feel it was necessary to bring it up at the time, honestly.” She said she didn’t know the situation could be seen as significant and realized there could be “retaliation” but she was willing to take a risk because “this was the right thing to do.”
Blundell said she has no reason to lie and didn’t accept anything in exchange for her claims.
Melissa Palepu, an assistant attorney general who specializes in human trafficking and child abuse cases, asked questions by Zoom while Declercq and trial lawyer Smith appeared on video and listened. (Palepu had a medical situation that sent her to the ER prior to the hearing and prevented her from being in Standish, which is two hours from Detroit.)
Palepu asked how Blundell could watch the judge’s actions on her computer monitor if she’s working. Blundell said she watched or listened while working, then confirmed that much of her work was away from the computer screen.
At times, Vollbach pressed Blundell to answer questions “yes” or “no” rather than interpret questions asked.
Vollbach asked the alleged whistleblower if she shared her concerns with the trial judge, the trial court administrator, the state court administrator’s office or the chief judge. She replied that she was concerned about the integrity in the courthouse where she worked. Vollbach, the chief judge, noted that he worked in a different city.
“You didn't report it to me, did you? Or did you?” he asked Blundell.
“No, I didn’t,” she said.
Vollbach asked again why Blundell just reached out to the defense attorney, after being gone for months on medical leave, without also reaching out to the prosecutor or anyone else at any level of the court system.
“I didn’t believe anything I said to anyone at that courthouse would believe me or take anything that I said into consideration,” Blundell said.
“Do I work at that courthouse?” Vollbach asked.
“I don’t believe so,” Blundell said. “… I wasn’t wasn’t confident in the court system.”
Witness explains conflict with judge
Vollbach asked why a district court employee was monitoring the circuit court trial when the video is intended to be monitored by court staff who listen for what the judge is ordering and print documents for the judge to sign.
“Out of interest,” Blundell said.
“You might be interested in a lot of things but you don't necessarily do those things during work hours, do you?” Vollbach said, comparing the idea to his watching the Olympics during work hours, when it has nothing to do with his job.
Later, in response to questions, Blundell explained an incident she had with the trial judge prior to the Declercq trial that involved a write-up in response to an alleged personal time-off violation. Blundell said she considered filing a complaint “with the state” about how the situation was handled. Blundell said she didn’t feel she was allowed to defend herself, though Morse-Bills later apologized and closed the matter.
When Vollbach asked where she might file those complaints, Blundell said she didn’t really know because she was new to Michigan.
Blundell said after the Declercq trial, her court TV was taken away while two colleagues retained access. Palepu asked why would the court TV privileges were removed if she never told anyone about the issues of concern. Blundell had no answer.
After a series of exchanges, Blundell stepped down from the witness chair. Lawyer Shannon Smith then signed off Zoom as the hearing continued.
‘Red herring’ issue
Dezsi told Vollbach that he was concerned Morse-Bills had accused Blundell of lying and questioned the credibility of the defense team. Dezsi said he filed a supplemental exhibit citing a YouTube video because it raised factual issues of concern about the trial judge involving the juror.
The trial judge did confirm she was a second cousin of the alternate juror, Dezsi said, and Morse-Bills should have disclosed that, along with the fact that they had texted prior to the criminal trial about a vehicle for sale.
Vollbach said the issue was a “red herring” because the judge could have disclosed but was not required to do so. The alternate juror was not specifically asked during jury selection about his relationship to the judge, Vollbach said. He emphasized that judges in small towns commonly know residents throughout the county including jurors and the system would be crippled in small counties in rural Michigan if personal ties prohibited jury service.
Case law simply does not support the grounds on which Declercq was trying to get the judge disqualified, Vollbach said.
“You really have to come forward with overwhelming evidence,” he said. “Respectfully, facial expressions ain’t gonna do it.”
At issue, he said, is whether a judge has a predisposition or bias against a defendant not whether the judge is frustrated or upset with actions in the courtroom, he said.
Being annoyed, knowing jurors
Vollbach also noted that the trial judge voluntarily provided her text messages to prove the situation doesn’t match Blundell’s version of events. And if Dezsi wants to require certain disclosures, in this case during jury selection, what would be the time frame, relationships included and measurement for judicial compliance, Vollbach asked.
“Cite me some authority that supports your argument,” he said. “A case or statute or a court rule that presupposes that a judge, prior to — or during — jury selection has to disclose any and all conversations they might have had with any of the prospective jurors …”
Dezsi said, “There are no fact-specific cases to match.”
But the appearance of impropriety can be anything when it comes to the judicial code of conduct, Dezsi said.
“It’s not unusual for judges to get motions to disqualify because ‘the judge doesn’t like me’ or because ‘you’ve said this or said that.’ The problem with those motions is that they are not supported by the overwhelming appellate law in this state. There is a very strong and compelling presumption that there isn’t bias and, moreover, a judge is allowed — it’s not out of the question for a judge to be upset with an attorney, a party or a witness. They shouldn’t come into a case with a predisposition against an individual.”
Judges may be critical, disapproving and even hostile — nor do expressions of impatience or anger indicate impropriety, according to Michigan law, Vollbach said.
The defense has not suggested any communication with any juror during the trial, and communication after a trial is permissible, Vollbach said. “As a defense attorney and as a prosecutor, I always looked forward to the opportunity, if I had one, to try and catch a juror or two who were dismissed to garner some insight. That doesn’t influence the jury or the deliberations.”
Witness credibility
Blundell, who initially submitted a signed declaration about the alleged text exchange that was the focus of questions last month, since has supplemented her statement with an affidavit, Dezsi said.
Still, Vollbach said of Blundell at the end of the hearing: “I don’t find her at all to be a credible witness … I do sense a secondary motive here. I don’t know necessarily what it is but I don’t know why, if she would disclose this concern, her concern which was so significant … I can’t imagine a reasonable court staff, if they thought something went wrong, couldn’t first of all address it with the judge directly or at least some other authority …”
He said he could not reconcile how any seasoned court official concerned about a trial judge’s conduct would reach out to a defense attorney only — rather than both the defense and prosecution, the state court administrator or the chief judge of the court. He could not understand why Blundell, an alleged whistleblower who described having more than 20 years of court experience and 2.5 years in Mio, would wait so long and then not notify judicial oversight authorities.
“Just contacting one of the attorneys in the case seems not only wrong but, indeed, outrageous to me,” Vollbach said.
He also questioned how a district court clerk can do her demanding job while watching a trial judge’s facial expressions in a circuit court case on the court TV monitor.
“Quite frankly, it makes no sense to me,” Vollbach said. “… I give her testimony very little weight, if any at all.”
After the hearing, Dezsi declined to comment to Shifting Gears on the outcome. He said he’d consult with Declercq on next steps and whether to appeal the decision. Dezsi is awaiting a hearing date with Morse-Bills on his motion for a new trial.
Who is Judge Richard Vollbach?
Vollbach, who was re-appointed chief judge by the Michigan Supreme Court in November 2025, oversees Alcona, Arenac, Iosco and Oscoda counties. The two-year term began in January 2026.
Initially appointed to the court in 2009 by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, he was elected by voters in 2010 and re-elected. Vollbach is a former chief assistant prosecutor for Aranac County and a partner with the firm Broughton & Vollbach. He earned degrees from Western Michigan University and University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
Dezsi, who earned degrees from Wayne State University and U of D, is an adjunct law professor at U of D. Shannon Smith earned her law degree from Michigan State University. The two defense lawyers have worked together representing Jennifer Crumbley, convicted mother of the convicted Oxford High School shooter.
Previous Declercq coverage: Shifting Gears has been the only media outlet providing comprehensive coverage of the Declercq case as part of its overall commitment to covering issues related to the sailing community. Read about his conviction here. The crime victim here. Child witnesses in sex assault cases here. The sentencing here. Postponement of a second sex assault trial here. Claims of alleged text between judge, juror stall appeal here. Judge denies text allegations here.
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Accomplished sailor expelled by Bayview Yacht Club after sexual assault conviction
Mother of 3-year-old sexual assault victim speaks on conviction
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This case will probably end up on some crime show due to all of the twists, turns and tactical ploys.
What a waste of time.