Civil Rights
A federal judge denied Michigan’s emergency motion for a stay of an injunction preventing the state from keeping an initiative off the ballot that would allow prisoners to earn time off their sentences.
Read moreMichigan
Michigan Judge Temporarily Blocks Pipeline in Great Lakes
Enbridge Energy was ordered to shut down an underwater twin pipeline that carries crude oil and liquid natural gas in northern Michigan, after a state judge found the company did not disclose previous damage to the dual line.
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Disgraced Michigan Lawmaker Argues to Revive Conspiracy Case
A Tea Party Republican who was ousted from the Michigan House of Representatives after he used public funds to cover up an affair with a colleague argued before the Sixth Circuit on Thursday to revive his conspiracy claims against the state government and numerous lawmakers.
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Michigan Court Orders Defiant Barber to Close Shop
The Michigan Court of Appeals on Thursday ordered a mid-state barber to shut down his shop, reversing a county judge who found the business was not a threat to public health despite reopening in defiance of the governor’s lockdown order.
Read moreMichigan Dam Failures Lead to Several Class Action Suits
Victims of Tuesday’s two dam failures in central Michigan have filed a flurry of class-action lawsuits against the companies which owned and managed the dams, claiming that massive floods near the city of Midland were the result of the owners’ failure to maintain the dams.
Read moreState and Local Officials Denied Immunity in Flint Water Suit
A Sixth Circuit panel on Friday upheld a federal judge’s denial of immunity to the city of Flint, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and numerous other local and state officials in a class-action lawsuit brought by residents affected by the Flint water crisis.
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Michigan Flood Inundates Toxic Dow Chemical Sites
It took seven years to settle on a plan for cleaning two rivers and floodplains polluted with dioxins from a Dow Chemical Co. plant in central Michigan. The work itself has lasted nearly twice as long, with plenty still to do.
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Failed Michigan Dam Had Repeated Safety Violations
A hydroelectric dam that failed this week in Michigan was the target of lengthy investigations by federal regulators, who revoked the facility’s license over safety violations two years before the flooding that forced 10,000 people to evacuate their homes.
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Michigan Dams Break: Thousands Evacuated
Rapidly rising water overtook dams and forced the evacuation of about 10,000 people in central Michigan, where the governor said one downtown could be “under approximately 9 feet of water” by Wednesday.
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Michigan Agrees to Settle Detroit Literacy Rights Case
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday announced a settlement to resolve a lawsuit on behalf of children in Detroit that described slum-like conditions in some public school buildings and a general atmosphere that could not competently deliver education to students.
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Nassar-Related Case Dismissed Against Ex-University Chief
A judge dismissed criminal charges Wednesday against former Michigan State University President Lou Anna Simon, who was accused of lying to investigators in 2018 as they tried to learn what she knew years earlier about sexual assault complaints involving Larry Nassar.
Read moreGOP v. Michigan
Both houses of the Michigan Legislature sued Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in the Court of Claims, challenging her stay-at-home orders during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Michigan Congressman Takes Governor to Court Over Stay-at-Home Orders
A Michigan congressman claims in a suit filed Monday that Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s “stay-at-home” orders overstep the boundaries of executive authority and deprive Michigan residents of a republican form of government.
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Michigan Republicans at Virtual War With Governor
The Republican-led Michigan Legislature on Thursday refused to extend the state’s coronavirus emergency declaration and voted to authorize a lawsuit challenging Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s authority and actions to combat the pandemic.
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Access to Literacy Is a Fundamental Right, Sixth Circuit Finds
A Sixth Circuit panel ruled Thursday that a “basic minimum education” is a constitutional right and breathed new life into claims brought by a class of Detroit-area students who say they were denied fundamental access to literacy as a result of the city’s crumbling public school system.
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Sixth Circuit OKs Michigan Limits on Out-of-State Wine Retailers
The “restless specter” of the 21st Amendment allows Michigan to impose separate regulations on out-of-state alcohol retailers, including a ban on direct wine shipments to consumers, the Sixth Circuit ruled Tuesday.
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Candidate Wins Injunction Against Michigan Voter Signature Requirements
Candidates for elected office in Michigan need only file half the required number of voter signatures to get their name placed on the state’s primary ballot due to the Covid-19 stay-at-home order, a federal judge ruled.
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