A federal judge on Wednesday tossed out the city of Detroit s legal claims against Detroit Will Breathe protesters, concluding it failed to prove that demonstrators conspired with one another to cause civil unrest and harm police officers over the summer.
That s what the city argued after getting hit with a lawsuit last fall that sought to ban Detroit police from using batons, riot gear, tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters marching against police brutality.
Detroit Will Breathe filed the lawsuit and secured a temporary restraining order against the use of those tactics. But then the group got hit with a counterclaim by the city, alleging that protesters were part of a civil conspiracy to destroy property, hurt police officers and incite rioting.
Image credit: Russ McNamara
Group plans to continue with its civil rights lawsuit, says one of the leaders of the activist organization.
A lawsuit filed by the City of Detroit against anti-police brutality protesters has been thrown out by a federal court judge.
The group Detroit Will Breathe filed suit against the City after several protesters were injured by police during a peaceful demonstration in late August. The City of Detroit countersued, claiming the group constituted a “civil conspiracy.”
Judge Laurie J. Michelson says the city failed to “state a claim for civil conspiracy,” according to the motion.
“There just wasn’t any evidence that we committed any crimes or that we did anything other than challenge the policies and practices of the Detroit Police Department.” Nakia Wallace, Detroit Will Breathe
Detroit chose demolition firms with history of disciplinary violations, report shows detroitnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from detroitnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Detroit The city’s first wave of more than 1,300 residential demolitions expected to begin this spring has spurred concerns over transparency and a dispute between Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration and Detroit City Council s top-ranking member.
Council President Brenda Jones in a social media post and during Tuesday s formal session accused the city s procurement office of leveling an assault on transparency by failing to disclose figures on the hiring and recruitment of Detroit residents for some demolition contracts after the council put off a vote on the contracts due to concerns over hiring numbers.
The city s new Demolition Department is seeking approval from the City Council to hire seven Detroit-based companies five of which are Black-owned to conduct 1,380 demolitions paid for through the $250 million blight bond initiative, Proposal N. The companies were selected from 180 competitive bids for $30 million in contracts for residential properties being t
Moratorium Now Coalition: Statement of Disgust Regarding City s Counterclaim Against Detroit Will Breathe wibailoutpeople.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wibailoutpeople.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.