January 2, 2025
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is dealing with requires a gathering over the destruction of significant prosecutorial information.
Detroit residents are calling for a gathering with Mayor Mike Duggan following revelations that important prosecutorial information spanning a long time have been destroyed.
Residents are outraged, as Mayor Duggan’s workplace denies any wrongdoing. Nonetheless, the Detroit Metro Occasions stories that rising proof suggests a deliberate effort to deflect blame and downplay the fallout from allegations that his workplace oversaw the destruction of important prosecutorial information throughout his time as Wayne County prosecutor.
Frustration has mounted over accusations that Duggan, who served as prosecutor from 2001 to 2004, oversaw the destruction of information now thought of important by households of incarcerated people searching for to show their innocence. These households are actually demanding a gathering with Duggan to deal with the controversy, as many can not entry essential documentation for his or her instances.
Mark Craighead, who was exonerated after spending years in jail for a criminal offense he didn’t commit, is amongst these calling for a gathering. As probably the most vocal advocates for transparency, he’s outraged by Duggan’s current denials.
“For the mayor to behave like this didn’t occur beneath his watch just isn’t solely disappointing however disrespectful to the individuals nonetheless combating for justice,” he mentioned. “I’m calling on Duggan to satisfy with us, the households, and the individuals impacted. We deserve solutions.”
Outrage heightened after Duggan’s spokesman, John Roach, made deceptive statements to The Detroit Information by asserting that the state’s present information retention regulation didn’t exist on the time of the purge. Nonetheless, it was discovered that whereas that is technically true, it’s deceptive since two different state legal guidelines required the retention of information.
Roach additionally acknowledged that some information had been destroyed, crediting the destructed information to extreme roof injury at a county-managed warehouse housing the information, which allegedly prompted a swift resolution.
“A workforce of profession prosecutors who had been most acquainted with the information and with Michigan’s Data Retention Act developed a triage course of, retaining these information that had been wanted or had been legally required to be saved and disposing of the others,” Roach mentioned. “They did this because the County concurrently tried to arrange different warehouse house earlier than a catastrophic lack of information occurred.”
Nonetheless, critics cite the response as inadequate and the choice as illegal.
“The regulation is evident on information retention,” a former Wayne County prosecutor says. “Even within the occasion of water injury or a transfer, there are protocols to guard these information. What occurred right here was not lawful, and it’s appalling to see officers try and rewrite historical past.”
Legal professional Basic Dana Nessel is dealing with scrutiny for her refusal to analyze. Regardless of proof that the destruction of information violated state regulation, Nessel, a Democrat, has taken no motion, leaving households and advocates unsure.
“This lack of accountability from prime to backside is unacceptable,” Craighead mentioned. “If the legal professional common received’t act, the place does that go away us? These are extra than simply information. They symbolize lives, households, and futures. Duggan should come clean with what occurred and work with us to repair it.”
Duggan continues his run for governor as an unbiased regardless of the scandal. The document purge may change into a major legal responsibility for his marketing campaign.
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