Tim Barkovic, a well-known defense attorney practicing law in Macomb County, has been accused of stalking his neighbors. According to police, this is only part of an on-going campaign against the couple who live next door, whom Barkovic has allegedly harassed for over a year now.
Apparently it all began because the husband and wife once called the Macomb County Sheriff’s office to make a minor complaint about Barkovic’s dogs last year. In the months since the complaint, the Sheriff’s Department has repeatedly responded to calls made by the neighbors regarding Barkovic’s behavior towards them.
Barkovic has allegedly found numerous opportunities to insult them, calling them crude names, and shouting vulgarities at them. Police have a number of recorded conversations, provided by the neighboring couple, in which Barkovic uses foul language, claims he will never stop doing it, and tells them that there’s nothing they can do about it because it is his constitutionally protected right to say whatever he wants while on his property.
Charges he is facing are all misdemeanors
He was arrested last week on Wednesday, and released the same day on a $500 bond. The charges he is facing are all misdemeanors, namely two counts of stalking, and one count of disturbing the peace. Under Michigan law, stalking is punishable by up to one year in jail, while disturbing the peace can result in up to 90 days in jail.
This is not, however, Barkovic’s first encounter with law enforcement outside of the courtroom. In 2009 he was charged with assault for allegedly shoving a police officer just outside the 41A District Court in Shelby Township. In addition, he has been cited by the Michigan Attorney Discipline Board four times for the verbal abuse of court officers, and others involved in the legal process.
Barkovic, whose approach in the courtroom is widely acknowledged to be aggressive and bombastic, probably isn’t surprised by any of this. He appeared at the Sheriff’s office on the day of his arrest, to discuss why officers hadn’t heard his side of the story before issuing the arrest warrant. When the officer on duty questioned him, and asked if he had created a disturbance, his response was that he creates a disturbance wherever he goes.