The Ann Arbor Independent Editorial Team 2253 posts 224 comments

by P.D. Lesko This article was made possible by The Ann Arbor Independent FOIA Fund. At a recent "informational meeting" with officials from western Washtenaw County, the Washtenaw County Sheriff Jerry Clayton, The Sheriff's…

After dedicating a decade to his pet secret-service franchise, the 'Kingsman' helmer enlists an American cast (and one cute kitty) in a convoluted plot that puts a fiction writer at the center of the action. by Peter Debruge What…

It leaps in time but lands on a Scottish archipelago that symbolizes its heroine's inner state. by Owen Glieberman “The Outrun,” the story of a 29-year-old Scottish woman in the throes of, and recovery from (though not necessarily in…

by Ken Coleman A two-year project aimed at providing monthly payments to 100 current and future Ann Arbor entrepreneurs with low and very low incomes kicked off this month. Over 1,000 people applied in Oct. 2023. Powered by Poverty…

by P.D. Lesko On May 11, 2023, the Michigan Court of Appeals published an opinion in which a three-judge panel found Washtenaw County Trial Court Judge Tracy E. Van den Bergh's rulings in a divorce case repeatedly showed bias and abuse…

by P.D. Lesko Rabbi Nadav Caine leads the congregation at Beth Israel synagogue on Washtenaw Ave. On Jan. 15 he sent out an email to the members of the synagogue in which he sharply criticized the members of the Ann Arbor Public Schools…

by P.D. Lesko On Dec. 19, Ann Arbor City Council voted unanimously to approve the City Administrator's recommendation to hire Andre Anderson as the City's next Chief of Police. In recommending Anderson despite his blemished service…

During 2023, The Ann Arbor Independent's readership rose from 80,949 to 90,657, an 11.9 percent increase. The newspaper's readership in 2021 stood at 68,124. According to research by the non-partisan Pew Research Center published in Nov.…

by Jenn McKee Books about the University of Michigan’s football team could easily fill several shelves, but strangely, one thing that’s been missing is a deep-dive chronicle of the 1997 National Championship season. Don’t worry,…

by P.D. Lesko ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​In April 2021, City Council voted to adopt resolution R-21-129​ which directed then City Administrator Tom Crawford to implement an "unarmed crisis response program in the City of Ann Arbor."…