Michigan

Lawyer jailed for 5 days over comment made at restaurant lunch wins appeal of contempt case

A Michigan lawyer who served five days in jail for comments he made during lunch at a Flint diner has won an appeal of his contempt conviction. A judge’s law clerk contended that longtime attorney F. Anthony Lubkin directed a comment including the word “guilty” at a jury in a…

Feb 10, 2014 4:20 PM CST

Wintry weather led to arrest of woman for 1977 prison escape

A 60-year-old prison escapee was arrested Monday in California because of wintry weather in Michigan. Lt. Charles Levens of the Michigan Department of Corrections normally is out looking for parole violators, but stayed in the office when roads got icy recently. He took a look at some old files there…

Feb 5, 2014 11:30 PM CST

Detroit runs up $13.7M bill in first 75 days of bankruptcy case

Downtown Detroit. Image from Shutterstock. The $13.7 million bill for legal fees, other professional fees and expenses that the city of Detroit ran up during the first 75 days of its record-breaking municipal bankruptcy case was “substantial,” a court-appointed examiner said in a quarterly report. However, the expense was also…

Feb 5, 2014 5:00 PM CST

Feds oppose former state supreme court judge’s effort to win early release from ‘Camp Cupcake’

The feds are opposing a retired Michigan Supreme Court justice’s bid for early release from her one-year sentence for bank fraud. Prosecutors say Diane Hathaway hasn’t met legal requirements for re-sentencing, which call for a showing of clear error or illegality, the Detroit News reports. However, Hathaway, 59, points to…

Feb 4, 2014 9:45 PM CST

Judge lifts stay in mother’s suit against Detroit PD over murder of her police-officer daughter

A mother grieving over the shooting death of her daughter can proceed with her lawsuit against Detroit, a bankruptcy judge has decided. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes lifted a stay for the case filed against the Detroit Police Department by Deborah Ryan. Hers was among some 500 lawsuits frozen by…

Jan 30, 2014 9:05 PM CST

Bankruptcy law firm files for bankruptcy

A bankruptcy law firm in Michigan has filed for Chapter 11 protection. Frego & Associates, one of the state’s largest bankruptcy firms, filed a Chapter 11 petition last month, according to the Wall Street Journal blog Bankruptcy Beat. The firm hopes to use the bankruptcy to lower its advertising costs…

Jan 23, 2014 2:00 PM CST

Woman gets 5 years for making false rape report

A 38-year-old Michigan woman was sentenced Friday to five years in prison after being convicted last month of making up a story that two men had entered her home about 80 miles from Detroit and raped her. The two men, who attended the same church as Sara Ylen’s ex-husband, likely…

Jan 17, 2014 6:30 PM CST

Furniture company founder files federal chair-collapse suit against rival manufacturer

Add another case to the annals of chair-collapse litigation: The founder of a Michigan furniture manufacturer has filed suit against a California chair maker contending that its defective product collapsed at a staff meeting in 2012 when he bent over to pick up a pencil. A leg collapsed, tumbling David…

Jan 15, 2014 4:45 PM CST

Rap group Insane Clown Posse sues feds over claim that fans are gang members

Insane Clown Posse. Featureflash Shutterstock.com With the help of a civil rights organization, a Michigan-based rap group has sued the feds over a government claim that its fans are gang members. The Insane Clown Posse filed suit Wednesday in federal court in Detroit, citing an “unwarranted and unlawful decision” by…

Jan 8, 2014 6:50 PM CST

Convicted rapist sentenced to 75-100 years threatens judge, prosecutor in courtroom

Convicted rapist Bryan Preston Farmer had a few choice words for the judge and the prosecutor at his sentencing Wednesday. Farmer, 50, called the judge a “biased bitch,” and said he would “send someone to see” her and the prosecutor, the Lansing State Journal reports. He was sentenced to 75…

Dec 19, 2013 9:22 PM CST

Prosecutor says judge secretly dismissed cases, seeks court OK for 10-year review

A prosecutor has asked for court permission to review a Michigan judge’s caseload for the past 10 years, contending that he secretly dismissed misdemeanor cases without an OK from her office. In a 238-page complaint filed last week, Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper says 52nd District Judge Brian W. MacKenzie…

Dec 4, 2013 6:54 PM CST

Federal judge OKs Detroit bankruptcy, says city can cut pensions for retirees

Ruling from the bench on Tuesday, a federal judge said the city of Detroit met eligibility requirements to proceed with its Chapter 9 bankruptcy. The decision by U.S. District Judge Steven Rhodes, which will be followed by a written opinion, sets the stage for the largest-ever municipal bankruptcy in this…

Dec 3, 2013 6:25 PM CST

Judge accused of signing blank child-removal orders isn’t immune from suit, federal court rules

Because pre-signing blank court orders for others to fill out after hours is an administrative rather than a judicial function requiring discretion, a Michigan judge who allegedly followed this practice is not immune from liability in a lawsuit filed by parents who briefly lost custody of their child, a federal…

Nov 27, 2013 7:50 PM CST

Customer zapped with $3.5K charge for critique of Web retailer; its terms of use ban ‘disparagement’

Updated: A Web retailer has ignited an Internet firestorm by adding an anti-disparagement provision to its terms of use—and enforcing it. Customer Jen Palmer says she was caught between a rock and a hard place when Kleargear.com threatened to impose a $3,500 fine if she didn’t take down the criticism…

Nov 20, 2013 5:15 PM CST

Homeowner is accused of shooting teen Renisha McBride through screen door

A Detroit-area homeowner has been charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter in the Nov. 2 shooting death of 19-year-old Renisha McBride, who was killed while standing on the man’s porch after crashing her car. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy announced the charges this morning against Theodore Wafer, 54, of Dearborn…

Nov 15, 2013 5:47 PM CST