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Safety
As Staff Repeatedly Refuse Shelter to Victims of Domestic/Sexual Violence, SafeHouse Center Holds Fundraiser
by P.D. Lesko
There are public calls for the Board members to step down. The Executive Director is on administrative leave. The non-profit facility, in photos and videos taken by residents, staff and interns, has been shown to be unsafe…
Judge Cedric Simpson Refuses to Rescind $3M Bond For Alleged Kidnapper and Rapist Jeffrey Dwayne Smith
by P.D. Lesko
On Sept. 19, Jeffrey Dwayne Smith, 47, of Flatrock, Michigan, was arraigned in 14A-1 District Court before Magistrate Elisha A. Fink. Smith was charged with one count of sexual assault, as well as two counts of domestic…
Alleged Assailant of Survivor Evicted by SafeHouse Jailed on $3M Cash Surety Bond
by P.D. Lesko
Jeffrey Dwayne Smith. Photo | The Ann Arbor Independent
On Sept. 19, Jeffrey Dwayne Smith, 47, of Flatrock, Michigan, was arraigned in 14A-1 District Court before Magistrate Elisha A. Fink. Smith was charged with one…
Domestic violence 911 Calls Increased During Lockdown, but Official Police Reports and Arrests Declined
by Jillian Carr
COVID-19 stay-at-home orders surely saved many lives, but a growing number of studies document that lockdowns led to more reports of domestic violence.
Even as 911 calls for police help increased, official…
What It Would Mean to End Qualified Immunity for Police and Other Public Employees
by Jared Wadley
An interview with Michael J. Steinberg, UM professor from practice and director of the Civil Rights Litigation Initiative at the University of Michigan Law School.
Police reform efforts nationwide have sparked debate…
Domestic Violence Calls Have Exploded During the Pandemic
by Tara Richards and Justin Nix
Domestic violence rose globally in 2020 – so much so that doctors have called it “a pandemic within a pandemic.”
The National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice, a team of national…
City Asks $929.84 to Release Body/Dash Cam Video of AAPD 911 Call to Home of Mitchell Irwin and Ann Arbor Council member Jen Eyer Irwin
by P.D. Lesko
The Ann Arbor Independent submitted a March 21, 2021 Freedom of Information Act request to the Ann Arbor Police Department for the body and dash cam footage from the January 13, 2021 911 call at the home of Ann Arbor…
Ann Arbor Council Member Allegedly Told Employees Complaining About Sexual Harassment to “Be Thankful for the Attention”
{Editor's note: Chris Savage has written for A2Politico.]
Updated: On March 24, Council member Jen Eyer (D-Ward 4) announced on Facebook and Twitter that she had resigned from Vanguard Public Affairs and was striking out "on her own."…
Mitchell Irwin Sentenced on Domestic Violence Charge
On March 23, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. Ann Arbor 15th District Court Judge Miriam A. Perry sentenced former Michigan state senator Mitchell L. Irwin on a single charge of domestic violence, a misdemeanor. Irwin is the father of Michigan state…
15th District Court Begins Reopening Process
The 15th District Court has begun the gradual process of resuming public operations, as of Monday, July 6, 2020. In accordance with guidelines published by the Michigan Supreme Court, Ann Arbor’s District Court is entering into Phase…