Wayne County Sheriff's Office personnel are pictured with personal protective equipment donated by two law firms in partnership with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
Photo courtesy of the Wayne County Sheriff's Office
LANSING – The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office is receiving much-needed personal protective equipment (PPE) through a donation from two law firms, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced today.
The PPE will help protect first responders on the front lines in the fight to slow the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Chicago-based Edelson PC and Saxena White PA of Boca Raton, Florida, arranged for the donation of 3,500 face masks, 3,000 plastic face shields and hundreds of individual pocket-sized hand sanitizers after learning of the need for the PPE in southeast Michigan through Nessel.
“With the help from the Attorney General’s office, Homeland Security and other entities donating to the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, we are able to move forward with confidence that both our deputies and inmates are protected in alignment with the procedures and protocols being followed by the CDC,” said P.B. Atterberry, director of communications at the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office.
The PPE was produced by Petra & Holum, a Chicago packaging company that transformed its facility to make PPE through a donation from Edelson PC. The hand sanitizers were sourced through Saxena White’s current vendors who were able to secure the necessary materials. Edelson then purchased the PPE goods directly from the facility to be donated to hospitals and first responders. The two law firms have worked together on a number of important initiatives.
With the help of Nessel, the first shipment of 500 masks were overnighted and arrived on Saturday. The remainder of masks were scheduled to arrive today. The face shields and sanitizers are in production and will begin to ship within a week.
“Wayne County is one of the hardest hit regions in the state when it comes to COVID-19 cases,” Nessel said. “I am incredibly grateful to those first responders who put their lives on the line during this pandemic, and this very generous donation made to Wayne County Sheriff’s Office personnel will go a long way.”
Kathryn Weidner, an attorney with Saxena White, said: “We recognize and appreciate the sacrifice that first responders, like the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, make each and every day and are so glad we are able to help them in this time of need.”
Edelson Partners David Mindell and Ari Scharg worked at the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office and in the metro Detroit area and are proud to be involved.
“Many of our attorneys are from Michigan or went to school there, with family and friends remaining in the area, so we felt compelled to get involved,” said Eve-Lynn Rapp of Edelson PC.
For Edelson PC, this donation comes as part of widespread community outreach efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic, which include partnering with local businesses making hand sanitizer and PPE for first responders, working with local courts to donate computers and Wi-Fi to children for distance learning, and pairing local restaurants with local organizations to feed people in need, among others. For Saxena White, their community support efforts include the provision of food and supplies to essential workers, and in-home meal delivery services to active-duty police officers and their families quarantined after testing positive for COVID-19. The Wayne County Sherriff’s Office is one of the many police and fire departments the firm has coordinated PPE donations with.
Michigan has more than 25,600 positive cases of COVID-19, with more than 11,600 of those being in Wayne County, according to the latest figures. The county also has 760 COVID-19 deaths, which is about 47 percent of the roughly 1,600 total deaths statewide.
