A Michigan Court of Claims judge ruled that state policing regulators can keep secret the names and employment histories of current and former officers throughout the state, but Metro Times and the Invisible Institute plan to appeal the decision.
Judge Christopher P. Yates decided Friday that Michigan State Police can withhold the records under exemptions in the state’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), dealing a setback to a national effort to track so-called wandering officers who move from department to department after engaging in misconduct.
The University of Michigan’s Civil Rights Litigation Initiative filed the lawsuit in November 2023 on behalf of Metro Times and Invisible Institute, a nonprofit based in Chicago. The news organizations argued the records are essential to identifying wandering cops. {read}