Cases

The ACLU of Michigan files lawsuits that impact people’s rights by setting a legal precedent, or affecting the policies and actions of public officials. Our current Fall 2024 Legal Docket details our legal cases and actions taken in 2023-2024.

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Wooden gavel
Wooden gavel
Jan 25, 2021

Transgender Inmate Held in Solitary Confinement

Claire Mercer is a transgender woman who was sentenced to serve time in the Mason County Jail in March 2019. When jail officials learned she was transgender, they immediately placed her in solitary...

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Wooden gavel
Wooden gavel
Jan 22, 2021

Retaliation for Reporting Abuse and Neglect

Status: Victory!
Sharee Miller, a prisoner at Huron Valley Women’s Prison, was fired from her job at the prison for seeking help for mentally ill women prisoners who were being abused and neglected by the guards.
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Wooden gavel
Wooden gavel
Jan 22, 2021

Traffic Stop Quotas Create Racial Profiling Hazard

Status: Defending liberty

In 2016 the Michigan State Police (MSP...

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Wooden gavel
Wooden gavel
Jan 23, 2020

Knock and Talk

When the police don’t have enough evidence to get a search warrant, they sometimes employ a procedure they have nicknamed “knock and talk” to investigate further. Courts have ruled that a police officer has...

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Wooden gavel
Wooden gavel
Sep 14, 2018

The Right to Bail

Status: Defending liberty

Except in extraordinary circumstances, persons accused of a crime have a right to be released while awaiting trial. 

Jeffrey Stoltz was charged with financial crimes in May 2017 in Kent County. The...

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Wooden gavel
Wooden gavel
Jun 14, 2016

Employment Discrimination at Quicken Loans

Many employers require job applicants to disclose past convictions on their job applications.  Although this information may sometimes be relevant to a job qualification, some employers refuse to even...

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