The Civil Rights Litigation Initiative legal team is pictured with their clients, Je Donna and India Dinges, in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan after settling the Dinges’s lawsuit. Pictured left to right are Nate Sumimoto, ’26, Avery Combe, ’26, Je Donna Dinges, rising 3L Edward Madrigal, India Dinges, CRLI director Michael J. Steinberg, and Alexandra Jackman, ’26.
By Amy Spooner
Michigan Law
A Black mother and daughter, Je Donna and India Dinges, have settled their federal lawsuit against their former neighbor with help from the Law School’s Civil Rights Litigation Initiative.
In February 2021, the white neighbor hung a Ku Klux Klan flag in the window of his Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan, home. The flag directly faced the Dinges family’s dining room, less than 10 feet away.
?
“We felt terrorized. We feared for our lives,” said Je Donna Dinges of her neighbor’s actions.
Her daughter, India, added, “During Covid, when the public was advised to stay inside, I could not find comfort in my own home.”
The Civil Rights Litigation Initiative (CRLI) at the Law School represented the family, after the case was referred by the Fair Housing Center of Metropolitan Detroit. In 2023, CRLI filed a lawsuit in US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan that alleged violations of a Reconstruction-era civil rights law designed to protect Black Americans from racially motivated threats from groups like the KKK.
The lawsuit alleged the neighbor engaged in a pattern of racial intimidation both before and after he hung the flag in the window.
After years of litigation, the parties agreed to settle for an undisclosed amount.
“In the face of hatred and bigotry, we should all stand up, speak up, and fight back. This case was our way of doing that,” said Je Donna Dinges.
—————
Going beyond the lawsuit to champion new legislation
Beyond advocating for her family, Je Donna Dinges also advocated for systemic change. She co-founded the Ethnic Intimidation Law Amendment Work Group to revise what was then known as the Michigan Ethnic Intimidation Law—a law that Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy called “woefully inadequate.”
State lawmakers embraced the group’s work, which resulted in the 2025 Michigan Hate Crime Act. The new law expands protections to include crimes based on age, physical/mental disabilities, gender, gender expression, and sexual orientation.
Rising 3L Ku’Juana Quinn is one of the CRLI student-attorneys who represented the family. She is a litigation intern at the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund in Washington, DC, this summer.
“Je Donna and India Dinges are true heroes,” Quinn said. “They bravely stepped forward and fought for justice not just for themselves but for everyone in Michigan.”
—————
Lasting impact
Edward Madrigal, a rising 3L, served as a student-attorney and advanced student-attorney in CRLI for a year and was part of the Dinges family’s legal team.
This summer, Madrigal is a summer associate at Neufeld Scheck Brustin Hoffmann & Freudenberger LLP, a New York firm that handles wrongful conviction litigation and represents clients who have experienced racial discrimination and serious injury at the hands of police and corrections officers.
“Seeing how hard the Dingeses fought in this case through the last few years is truly inspirational,” Madrigal said. “Working with them, and my fellow student-attorneys, has been the highlight of my time in law school.”
In addition to Quinn and Madrigal, the Dinges family was represented by student-attorneys Avery Coombe, ’26, Nate Sumimoto, ’26, and Alexandra Jackman, ’26, during the 2025–2026 academic year.
In total, 15 Michigan Law student-attorneys worked on the case under the supervision of Professor Michael J. Steinberg, the director of CRLI.
“This case was emotionally charged and challenging in several respects,” Steinberg said. “I am super proud of the professional way our students handled themselves and the results they were able to achieve for our clients. They were able to negotiate a settlement, and the federal judge issued a powerful opinion that we hope will be used as persuasive authority in future racial justice cases.
“I’m sure that the students will never forget this case, and I hope they will use the lessons learned throughout their legal career.”
Je Donna Dinges said her experience with the clinic had benefits beyond the settlement.
“We are extremely grateful to all of the students who worked on our case, as well as to Professor Steinberg. When something this traumatic happens to you, it shakes your confidence in the legal system, as well as in humanity. The members of the CRLI team not only restored our faith in our legal system, they restored our faith in humanity by making us feel seen, heard, and valued and by fighting for us.
“Most people don’t understand how the legal system works until something bad happens to them. After one of the worst days of our lives, we had a team of knowledgeable, professional, compassionate, and caring student-attorneys by our side who made us feel like winners from day one.”
Michigan Law
A Black mother and daughter, Je Donna and India Dinges, have settled their federal lawsuit against their former neighbor with help from the Law School’s Civil Rights Litigation Initiative.
In February 2021, the white neighbor hung a Ku Klux Klan flag in the window of his Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan, home. The flag directly faced the Dinges family’s dining room, less than 10 feet away.
?
“We felt terrorized. We feared for our lives,” said Je Donna Dinges of her neighbor’s actions.
Her daughter, India, added, “During Covid, when the public was advised to stay inside, I could not find comfort in my own home.”
The Civil Rights Litigation Initiative (CRLI) at the Law School represented the family, after the case was referred by the Fair Housing Center of Metropolitan Detroit. In 2023, CRLI filed a lawsuit in US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan that alleged violations of a Reconstruction-era civil rights law designed to protect Black Americans from racially motivated threats from groups like the KKK.
The lawsuit alleged the neighbor engaged in a pattern of racial intimidation both before and after he hung the flag in the window.
After years of litigation, the parties agreed to settle for an undisclosed amount.
“In the face of hatred and bigotry, we should all stand up, speak up, and fight back. This case was our way of doing that,” said Je Donna Dinges.
—————
Going beyond the lawsuit to champion new legislation
Beyond advocating for her family, Je Donna Dinges also advocated for systemic change. She co-founded the Ethnic Intimidation Law Amendment Work Group to revise what was then known as the Michigan Ethnic Intimidation Law—a law that Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy called “woefully inadequate.”
State lawmakers embraced the group’s work, which resulted in the 2025 Michigan Hate Crime Act. The new law expands protections to include crimes based on age, physical/mental disabilities, gender, gender expression, and sexual orientation.
Rising 3L Ku’Juana Quinn is one of the CRLI student-attorneys who represented the family. She is a litigation intern at the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund in Washington, DC, this summer.
“Je Donna and India Dinges are true heroes,” Quinn said. “They bravely stepped forward and fought for justice not just for themselves but for everyone in Michigan.”
—————
Lasting impact
Edward Madrigal, a rising 3L, served as a student-attorney and advanced student-attorney in CRLI for a year and was part of the Dinges family’s legal team.
This summer, Madrigal is a summer associate at Neufeld Scheck Brustin Hoffmann & Freudenberger LLP, a New York firm that handles wrongful conviction litigation and represents clients who have experienced racial discrimination and serious injury at the hands of police and corrections officers.
“Seeing how hard the Dingeses fought in this case through the last few years is truly inspirational,” Madrigal said. “Working with them, and my fellow student-attorneys, has been the highlight of my time in law school.”
In addition to Quinn and Madrigal, the Dinges family was represented by student-attorneys Avery Coombe, ’26, Nate Sumimoto, ’26, and Alexandra Jackman, ’26, during the 2025–2026 academic year.
In total, 15 Michigan Law student-attorneys worked on the case under the supervision of Professor Michael J. Steinberg, the director of CRLI.
“This case was emotionally charged and challenging in several respects,” Steinberg said. “I am super proud of the professional way our students handled themselves and the results they were able to achieve for our clients. They were able to negotiate a settlement, and the federal judge issued a powerful opinion that we hope will be used as persuasive authority in future racial justice cases.
“I’m sure that the students will never forget this case, and I hope they will use the lessons learned throughout their legal career.”
Je Donna Dinges said her experience with the clinic had benefits beyond the settlement.
“We are extremely grateful to all of the students who worked on our case, as well as to Professor Steinberg. When something this traumatic happens to you, it shakes your confidence in the legal system, as well as in humanity. The members of the CRLI team not only restored our faith in our legal system, they restored our faith in humanity by making us feel seen, heard, and valued and by fighting for us.
“Most people don’t understand how the legal system works until something bad happens to them. After one of the worst days of our lives, we had a team of knowledgeable, professional, compassionate, and caring student-attorneys by our side who made us feel like winners from day one.”
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