Ann Arbor Bill of Rights
Defense Committee

Taking the Next Step—A Civil Liberties Ordinance

In January 2002, the Ann Arbor City Council rejected the phony tradeoff between security and freedom and adopted a short resolution "In Support of Due Process." It was a commendable--first in the nation--response to the USA PATRIOT Act and other federal infringements upon liberty. On July 7, 2003, Council members acted again by adopting another resolution. However, as Ann Arbor Police Chief Daniel Oates pointed out in the Ann Arbor News the next day, "the resolution is technically not legally binding" (see AABORDC's analysis of the 2003 resolution).

Now, the Ann Arbor Bill of Rights Defense Committee (AABORDC) is encouraging Ann Arbor to take the next step by adopting a legally binding civil liberties ordinance. The goal of our campaign is for the people of Ann Arbor, through their elected representatives on the City Council or through a ballot initiative, to adopt an ordinance. Under current city law and policy Ann Arbor police officers may:

• Arrest and/or assist federal agents in arresting immigrants like Rabih Haddad who, although never charged with any crime, was jailed for 19 months and then deported.
• Cooperate with federal agents in searching your car, home, or business without your knowledge.
• Assist the FBI in spying on law-abiding religious and political activists without evidence of wrongdoing.
• Participate in other activities under the USA Patriot Act and unconstitutional federal laws and orders without prior, if any, notice or permission from the City Council.

The ordinance we propose will make these and similar activities illegal for the Ann Arbor police and other city employees. It will uphold the United States and Michigan Constitutions and the values of our community. The risk of the Ann Arbor police carrying out one or more of the activities noted above is real. In July 2003, AAPD Det. Lt. Chris Heatley told an AABORDC member that the Ann Arbor police were part of the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) that arrested Rabih Haddad. The ACLU has documented that, as recently as 2002, the JTTF in Denver spied on groups such as the Colorado Campaign for Middle East Peace, American Friends Service Committee, Denver Justice and Peace Committee, Rocky Mountain Independent Media Center, and the Human Bean Company.

The USA PATRIOT Act, together with the Homeland Security Act, recent executive branch decisions, and the often overlooked Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, have unduly expanded federal power and undermined essential American freedoms under the 1st, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th Amendments to the Constitution. As civil libertarians wage battle against these repressive measures at the federal level, we believe it is also important to act at the local level. Fortunately, the US Constitution guarantees the right of state-local governments to control their own law enforcement officers.

We believe that Ann Arbor should enact an ordinance--a law--that will strengthen our civil liberties resolutions and legally prohibit our police officers from cooperating in the unwise, unjust, and unconstitutional activities of federal agents. In January 2002, Ann Arbor led the way; since then, state and local governments have adopted over 389 civil liberties resolutions or ordinances covering nearly 62 million people. Now, Council should make Ann Arbor the first city in Michigan with over 100,000 residents to adopt a civil liberties ordinance.