Judge Oakley adjourns White’s felony cases

Disbarred attorney Thomas White of Van Buren Township was due to have preliminary exams on 20 felony charges before 34th District Court Judge Tina Brooks Green on Wednesday, Feb. 26, but the day before he was due to appear he got another delay.
On Tuesday morning, Feb. 25, White and his attorney Michael Vincent appeared before 34th District Court Judge Brian A. Oakley and got another adjournment of White’s case, this time until 10 a.m., March 12.
Attorney Vincent had hoped to have a decision on a motion he had filed to get a waiver for some $4,000 worth of copying fees of boxes of evidence for 15 of the felony charges, since White cannot afford the fees. A prosecutor was not available and so Judge Oakley adjourned the court session on the motion.
The first five felony charges were filed Sept. 4 and White has yet to have preliminary exams on them since the court agreed to postpone those exams until the other pending charges were filed. The 15 other charges were filed in December and White has had adjournments on all 20 charges since then.
Charges include conducting a criminal enterprise, identity theft, writing bad checks and embezzling a minimum of $1 million from his clients.
White was an attorney with offices at 35 Main Street, Belleville, for 20 years until he was disbarred for stealing from his clients.
Rosemary K. Otzman, Editor
Diane Madigan, Court Reporter