Ypsilanti Council Member Survives Recall Election
by P.D. Lesko
Democrat Desirae Simmons, the embattled Ward 3 Ypsilanti City Council member, won her May 7, 2024 recall election against challenger Democrat Rod Johnson. Simmons captured 52.06 percent of the vote. Turnout for the special…
Letter to the Editor: To the Protesters At My Daughter’s U-M Graduation…
by Kellie Zell
To the protesters at my daughter’s University of Michigan graduation on May 4th:
I write this because I think it’s important for everyone to understand the impact of their actions. So I suppose you should look at this…
County DEI Director Fabricated Work, Education and Business Experience; She Got Hired and Makes $147K
Download and view Alize Asberry Payne's Dec. 2018 job application, cover letter and resume:
Letter-Resume-Application-Alize-Payne_RedactedDownload
by P.D. Lesko
Records, including public records, show the County's Racial…
Ann Arbor Civic Theatre Presents “Marvin’s Room”
by Hugh Gallagher, Pulp
Scott McPherson’s "Marvin’s Room" will be presented at 8 pm on Friday and Saturday, May 10-11 and 17-18, and at 2 pm on Sunday, May 12 and 19 at the A2CT Studio Theater, 322 West Ann Street, Ann Arbor. For…
Flight Delayed or Canceled? Feds Now Require Airlines to Issue Refunds, in Some Cases, Immediately
by Nathaniel Cline
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced new rules that will put refunds quickly back into air travelers’ pockets for canceled or delayed flights.
The agency estimated that the new regulations will save…
School Board Member and Wife Took County Grant Money For Which They Were Ineligible
by P.D. Lesko
County records show Ann Arbor School Board Trustee Ernesto Querijero, through his wife Lisa Querijero, applied for funding from the Washtenaw County Community Priority Fund in 2022. The money, according to the application…
Sheriff Deputy’s Sex Crimes Trial: Politics, Postponements and Missing Evidence
By P.D. Lesko
Washtenaw County Sheriff's Deputy D'Angelo McWilliams.
If Washtenaw County Sheriff's Deputy and alleged rapist D'Angelo McWilliams were a vegetable, he'd be a potato--a very, very hot potato. McWilliams's hiring and…
A2Politico: County Pols Plan to “Protect” the Mental Health Millage. They’re Five Years Late & $35M Short
by P.D. Lesko
The 2016 Mental Health and Public Safety Millage was the brainchild of County Commissioner Andy LaBarre (District 7). It was the perfect way to get voters to pony up tens of additional millions for two of the poorest run…
Alleged Rapist Hired as Deputy; Sheriff Denies Release of Background Check as “Not in the Public’s Interest”
by P.D. Lesko
On March 25, 2024, The Ann Arbor Independent submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the County Sheriff's Dept. to obtain a copy of the background check done on Sheriff's Deputy D'Angelo Ladonn McWilliams prior…
U-M Tickets Student Protesters and Bans Them From Campus Buildings: ACLU Says, “Not So Fast”
by Ann Mullen
According to an article in The Michigan Daily on Mar. 29, Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) reported that three students were served citations by police in Ann Arbor “for trespassing at the 101st Honor…