CNN iReport

Battle Creek, Michigan is the most famous town of its size in the country. In addition to having a long and rich history, and the highest per capita of non-profit agencies around, it is the home of corporate giant Kellogg's.

It is also the home of a lot of corruption.  Corruption between slumlords and the very city departments which exist to protect renters and buyers from substandard housing.  There are plenty of regulations regarding property, but they are rarely applied when it comes to the slumlords.

One of the worst of the slumlords has quite a reputation in town. I've heard all sorts of stories about him, alleging rape, abuse, criminal activity and drug use. Unfortunately, that's all he has because although it is easy to get people to talk about him, nobody wants to go on the record with their story.

Allegedly, he has Mafia connections, and that's enough to keep people afraid of having their story made known publicly.

Until Gail came along.  She was living in a lean-to on a property she bought in a rural area, because she could not get her well/septic system dug so that she could get the modular house she bought set on the property and have a decent home.  She reached out to a local elected official who put her in contact with her white knight who was going to rescue her from her situation.

One problem she has is that she doesn't understand legalese, and as a result she had no idea what has happening when her hero convinced her to give up the property she was buying and the house she had bought in order to move into town and purchase one of his properties for $40,000.

The house has no front door, no working furnace, and no water due to burst pipes.  There is a hole in the foundation, and most of the windows were reportedly shot out by a neighbor who has a grudge against her hero. The city had classified the property as "abandoned/vacant", and refused to issue a certificate of occupancy.

But promises were made to her, that all would be repaired and she'd get the certificate of occupancy.

None of that happened and now the city plans to have her ousted from her home in two weeks. The shelters are full, she has no where else to go.

So, she spoke out to the media, telling her story to a newspaper reporter and to my camera, she's being harassed continually. As am I.  She fears for her life and for mine.  I'm just annoyed by having my time wasted.

Here is Gail's Story, in her own words.

Laura Adams