County Government

by P.D. Lesko Miller Johnson attorney James A. Buster faced three incredulous Michigan Appeals Court judges. The first question asked of Mr. Buster was telling: "Why isn't this moot?" Buster offered no arguments why his appeal on…

by P.D. Lesko On June 3, 2024, the Ann Arbor Independent filed a FOIA lawsuit in the Washtenaw County Trial Court against Washtenaw County. The suit was filed to compel the County to release the background check done on Sheriff’s…

by P.D. Lesko In the space of just a few weeks, the Washtenaw County Trial Court has been asked repeatedly by attorneys to sanction The Ann Arbor Independent for the publication of two investigative articles. In the latest instance,…

NOTE: This reporting was made possible by the Ann Arbor Independent's FOIA Fund. Donate today! by P.D. Lesko In March 2024, the Ann Arbor Independent made a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to Washtenaw County for the…

by P.D. Lesko On Sept. 18, 2024 Washtenaw County Trial Court Judge Julia B. Owdziej ruled against a Motion for Summary Disposition filed by the law firm of Miller Johnson, retained by Washtenaw County to defend against the A2Indy's…

by The Ann Arbor Independent Editorial Team Long-time Washtenaw County Conservation District Manager Dennis Rice is retiring and as a result the District is looking for a new District Manager. In addition, The Washtenaw County…

Part 1: Data Trends Black men and women in Ypsilanti accounted for 63% (1,179 of 1,869) of all Washtenaw County arrests in 2014 on “failure to appear” bench warrants, even though they make up less than 2% of the county’s total…

by Nancy Derringer Hundreds of thousands of state residents would likely be affected by a repeal of the Affordable Care Act, including those in counties that went hard for the law’s critic-in-chief, President-Elect Donald Trump,…

The online site where residents can report service requests from potholes that need filling to graffiti, fields a growing number of requests each week. Over the course of the month of May, dozens of residents reopened tickets which had been…

by Ryan Hunter “THOSE WHO KNOW me know I will have my say, when I need to have my say,” said an emotional Judge Simpson during a support rally held in his honor last February. After a week long hearing in March, Simpson finally had his…