Michigan Court of Appeals

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   An adult testifying in court in a criminal case cannot bring an emotional support animal to the stand.

The Michigan Court of Appeals made that ruling in a decision released Friday.

A woman filed a rape complaint against a male acquaintance who disputed her version of events. When the trial came, a judge allowed a support dog and a handler holding a leash to be with her when she testified. That was over the objection of the defense.

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   A proposal to change the way the state draws its political district lines must go on the November ballot. 

The Michigan Court of Appeals Thursday denied a request to keep a measure by the group Voters Not Politicians off the ballot. The opposition group, Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution, said the redistricting proposal was essentially a redrafting of the state Constitution.

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   Miranda warnings to suspects who are arrested and questioned are not complete unless officers include the detail that attorneys can be in the room before and during interrogations.

That decision came Wednesday from the state Court of Appeals.

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   Inmates sent to prison as children can sue the state over sexual abuse and other alleged misconduct, under a ruling from the Michigan Court of Appeals. 

The lawsuit claims minors aged 13 to 17 who were sent to prison were beaten and sexually abused by adult inmates and prison staff. The state tried to get the lawsuit dismissed under a 1999 amendment to Michigan’s civil rights act that barred legal actions filed by inmates under that law. 

The court struck that down.

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   The Michigan Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit claiming the state wrongfully accused thousands of people of unemployment fraud.  

In 2013, the state started using an automated system to flag fraud cases. But the system wrongly identified tens of thousands of people – and some of them sued to get their money back, plus fees and interest.

But the Court says they waited too long to file the lawsuit.

MARQUETTE, MI--   An Ishpeming man retried for torturing two women at his mixed martial arts studio has been found not guilty on all charges. 

The Michigan Court of Appeals granted Jason Sadowski, 47, a new trial after his co-defendant made comments that implicated him at the first trial, but Sadowski couldn’t challenge the statements because the co-defendant didn’t testify.

Sadowski was exonerated Friday on seven charges, including torture, solicitation of murder, unlawful imprisonment, and assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder.

LANSING, MI (AP)--   The Michigan Supreme Court has ruled that police can pull over motorists whose license plates are obstructed by an object such as a bike rack or trailer hitch. 

The unanimous opinion filed Tuesday concluded that the Michigan Vehicle Code requires motorists to attach their plates in a place where they can be seen without obstruction.

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   A lawsuit claiming juvenile inmates were sexually assaulted and harassed while being housed as adults has been dismissed.  

Plaintiffs claim guards failed to protect their safety in prison.

The Michigan Court of Appeals dismissed the case on technical grounds.

It also said the plaintiffs could not claim protection under Michigan’s civil rights law. That’s because lawmakers exempted prisons from the law in 1999.

LANSING, MI (AP)--   The Michigan appeals court has rejected a challenge to a court that hears lawsuits against the state.

The appeals court says there's nothing unconstitutional about the Court of Claims, which was overhauled by the Legislature last year. The decision was released Wednesday.

Lawsuits against the state had been handled by judges in Ingham County, the home of state government. But the Court of Claims now is run by judges who sit on the appeals court.