Macomb County woman shares story of dealing with adult bullying

Family threatened by bullies online, in person

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. – A Metro Detroit woman said her life and her family have been threatened by bullies who started attacking online and continued in person.

The alleged cyberbullying has led to multiple police reports and investigations in Macomb County, but after all that, there have been no criminal charges.

The ongoing feud involved a reality T.V. star and some prominent Macomb County residents. Prosecutors said there are no laws to put an end to the feud.

Local 4 Defender Kevin Dietz took a look at how one side is pushing for politicians to put some teeth into cyberbullying.

Concerns about bullying

Parents worry about children being bullied, but what happens when adults are bullied? One family that took its concerns to local police found out there's not much help to get from law enforcement.

Khalood Bojanowski is no stranger to drama. Over the years, the Macomb County wife and mother has been on numerous reality television shows, almost always as a negative character who is obnoxiously outspoken.

The Bojanowskis said it's a character she plays, not who she really is.

As a result of her 15 minutes of fame, the Bojanowskis said they have been under attack from unknown, unidentified cyberbullies.

"This is all hiding behind the computer, and they know me, but I don't know them," Bojanowski said.

Her husband, Jerry, tried to step in and put a stop to it.

"Please, just stop this," he said. "Shut it down, OK?"

Bojanowski family targeted by bullying

Then someone approached Khalood Bojanowski while she was at the park with her granddaughter.

"When I was with my granddaughter at Stony Creek Park, and there was nobody around except family, and a jogger approached me and my 2-year-old granddaughter saying, 'Are you Khalood?' I said, 'Who are you?' He said, 'Well, you need to watch your back,'" she said.

They called the Macomb County Sheriff's Office, but the bullying only got worse.

"My wife called the Sheriff's Department," Jerry Bojanowski said. "They came to the house. Two deputies took a police report. The day after that report was made, even more violent threats against us. OK, so it seems like every single time we get law enforcement involved or law enforcement gets called, these people feel emboldened."

Recently, a post was made asking if anyone knew the Bojanowskis' home address.

Police response

The Sheriff's Department said they investigated the incidents and presented the case to the prosecutor, but there wasn't sufficient evidence that a crime was committed.

It turns out several people in Macomb County have filed police reports against Bojanowski for cyberbullying herself, even going so far as to have cease and desist orders issued against her.

Bojanowski has not been charged criminally. Her husband said when both sides feel bullied and the law says its hands are tied, it's time to write new laws.

"I'm afraid, and I'm tired of people approaching me or anything," Khalood Bojanowski said.

"Our eyes are open to the effects of cyberbullying," Jerry Bojanowski said. "We are in the process of setting up a national organization to criminalize cyberbullying across the board."

The family has recently had encouraging meetings with elected officials to see if tougher bullying laws can be implemented, but so far, nobody has stepped up to introduce new legislation.

You can watch Kevin Dietz's full story in the video posted above.


About the Authors:

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.