By Nick Smith
Gongwer News Service
Seven pro-Palestine protestors facing felony charges stemming from the clearing of an encampment last year saw their charges dropped Monday by the Department of Attorney General.
In May 2024, the seven were arrested during the clearing of an encampment on the University of Michigan campus by law enforcement following protests over the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
The seven were later charged with misdemeanor trespassing charges as well as felony charges of resisting and/or obstructing a police officer based on alleged actions during the clearing of the site.
Monday’s decision came after defense attorneys had requested Ann Arbor District Judge Cedric Simpson have Attorney General Dana Nessel recused from the case.
Defense attorneys had stated that Nessel had become too personally tied to the case, assertions which she has rejected.
Simpson accepted the department’s request Monday morning to drop the charges. According to the Detroit Free Press, he had been expected to make a ruling on whether the case should proceed to trial.
In a Monday statement, Nessel said she stood by the charging decisions, adding that the court process had taken months. She also pushed back on the recusal motion from defense attorneys in the case.
“During this time, the case has become a lightning rod of contention,” Nessel said. “Baseless and absurd allegations of bias have only furthered this divide. The motion for recusal has been a diversionary tactic which has only served to further delay the proceedings.”
Nessel also referenced a letter sent last Friday by the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor to Simpson siding with Nessel in response to the motion by defense attorneys in the case. The attorney general called “the impropriety of this action” by the group as a key factor in moving to drop the charges.
“While I stand by my charging decisions, and believe, based on the evidence, a reasonable jury would find the defendants guilty of the crimes alleged, I no longer believe these cases to be a prudent use of my department’s resources, and, as such, I have decided to dismiss the cases,” Nessel said.
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) praised the decision to drop the charges in a post to X, formerly Twitter.
“Good news for our university student communities!” Tlaib wrote. “Our First Amendment rights should never be criminalized. Speaking up against genocide should be lifted up, not slammed with felony charges. Palestinians deserve safety + dignity.”
Dawud Walid, executive director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement they were thankful the charges were dropped but that they should never have been filed in the first place. He said all charges stemming from the university protests should be dismissed.
“These prosecutions appear to have been driven not by law but by a desire to silence students and community members calling for the recognition of Palestinian human rights and accountability from the University of Michigan for its investments in Israeli weapons manufacturers,” Walid said. “The continued prosecution of these individuals is a stain on our state’s commitment to civil liberties and equal justice.”
Gongwer News Service
Seven pro-Palestine protestors facing felony charges stemming from the clearing of an encampment last year saw their charges dropped Monday by the Department of Attorney General.
In May 2024, the seven were arrested during the clearing of an encampment on the University of Michigan campus by law enforcement following protests over the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
The seven were later charged with misdemeanor trespassing charges as well as felony charges of resisting and/or obstructing a police officer based on alleged actions during the clearing of the site.
Monday’s decision came after defense attorneys had requested Ann Arbor District Judge Cedric Simpson have Attorney General Dana Nessel recused from the case.
Defense attorneys had stated that Nessel had become too personally tied to the case, assertions which she has rejected.
Simpson accepted the department’s request Monday morning to drop the charges. According to the Detroit Free Press, he had been expected to make a ruling on whether the case should proceed to trial.
In a Monday statement, Nessel said she stood by the charging decisions, adding that the court process had taken months. She also pushed back on the recusal motion from defense attorneys in the case.
“During this time, the case has become a lightning rod of contention,” Nessel said. “Baseless and absurd allegations of bias have only furthered this divide. The motion for recusal has been a diversionary tactic which has only served to further delay the proceedings.”
Nessel also referenced a letter sent last Friday by the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor to Simpson siding with Nessel in response to the motion by defense attorneys in the case. The attorney general called “the impropriety of this action” by the group as a key factor in moving to drop the charges.
“While I stand by my charging decisions, and believe, based on the evidence, a reasonable jury would find the defendants guilty of the crimes alleged, I no longer believe these cases to be a prudent use of my department’s resources, and, as such, I have decided to dismiss the cases,” Nessel said.
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) praised the decision to drop the charges in a post to X, formerly Twitter.
“Good news for our university student communities!” Tlaib wrote. “Our First Amendment rights should never be criminalized. Speaking up against genocide should be lifted up, not slammed with felony charges. Palestinians deserve safety + dignity.”
Dawud Walid, executive director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement they were thankful the charges were dropped but that they should never have been filed in the first place. He said all charges stemming from the university protests should be dismissed.
“These prosecutions appear to have been driven not by law but by a desire to silence students and community members calling for the recognition of Palestinian human rights and accountability from the University of Michigan for its investments in Israeli weapons manufacturers,” Walid said. “The continued prosecution of these individuals is a stain on our state’s commitment to civil liberties and equal justice.”
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