New York federal judge Ann Marie Donnelly was born in Royal Oak, MI and attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She went to law school at Ohio State.

Over the weekend, her previously low-key tenure on the bench of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York blew-up. That is because of a two page order granting an emergency injunction, brought by the ACLU, blocking deportations of refugees and visa holders pursuant to an executive order signed by President Trump late Friday afternoon.

In issuing her order, Judge Donnelly found, after conducting a hearing in Brooklyn, that the emergency petitioners, and other similarly situated individuals, would likely prevail on the Due Process based challenge to the deportations. Further, the judge found that the petitioners would suffer irreparable harm without the stay, while the respondent -the United States government- was not likely to suffer any harm during the period of stay. Shortly after her ruling, another federal judge, in Alexandria, Virginia, also issued a stay.

Now, the matter will come back before Judge Donnelly for a full hearing on the merits of the petition [although the court order does not provide for this] and President Trump's executive order eventually will be subjected to judicial review. No doubt, whatever ruling Judge Donnelly makes on the merits will be appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Of the approximately 175 people who were in-transit and thus affected by President Trump's Friday afternoon order, over 80 persons received waivers based on their green card status following case-by-case reviews.

After serving as a state court prosecutor for 25-years and as a state court judge in New York, President Obama appointed her to the federal bench in late 2014.

Post #578

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By:  Timothy P. Flynn

This week, the SCOTUS will hear oral arguments from the Michigan Solicitor General, John J. Bursch, and Detroit lawyer George Washington in the affirmative action case of Schuette -v- Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action.  This case tests whether Michigan's public universities can ban race considerations altogether in the college admissions process.

This case represents the "flip-side" of the college admissions cases that have made it up to the High Court over the past two decades.  Instead of deciding whether a state actor [i.e. a public college or university admissions board] can take race into account relative to dispensing a public service, this case considers whether the state can, through a voter initiated law, outright ban race as a consideration in the dispensing of the public service.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette seeks to uphold Proposition 2, a voter initiative that passed by 58% in the 2006 general election, which outright bans any public use of preferential treatment based on race, color, national origin or ethnicity.  Just last spring, SCOTUS decided the Fischer case from Texas which held that race could be given some deference in the admission process of a public university, but the school's criterion was to be subjected to "strict scrutiny" if challenged in a court.

Now our High Court is moving on to the pointed and specific question of whether a state can ban race altogether as a college selection criteria.  The Supreme Court's repeated consideration of cases involving race-based public university admission has a long history with several stops here in Michigan.

 In 2003, SCOTUS released two decisions stemming from admissions policies of the University of Michigan: one involving the law school, the other concerned UM's undergraduate admission policy.  In the law school admissions case, the Court ruled that a publicly funded law school could make a limited use of race in their  admissions decisions.  In the undergraduate case, however, SCOTUS struck down an admissions policy that relied too heavily on race factors.

In addition to the contradictory rulings arising out of Michigan's public universities, the federal appellate circuits, the 9th Circuit in particular [San Fransisco, CA], are conflict-laden on the affirmative action question.  As is so often the case, SCOTUS will attempt to set the matter straight once and for all by resolving the conflict within the federal appellate circuits.

For SCOTUS to do so, the spotlight will once again focus on Justice Anthony Kennedy; the so-called swing vote.  Only 8 justices will partake in this case as Justice Elena Kagan has recused herself, presumably due to her involvement in the case when she was the United States Solicitor General.

If Proposal 2 is held to be constitutional as the Michigan Attorney General argues [Schuette says there's nothing more equal than equality], then affirmative action is effectively dead in the water here in Michigan and, eventually, in other states.  On the other hand, if Proposal 2 is struck as unconstitutional then the admissions policies of our public colleges and universities will continue to receive "strict scrutiny" from the courts, but race would continue to be a factor in the admissions equation.

Weighty stuff, to be sure...

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Long-term marriage has been an endangered species for some time in our society.  Couples in the United States divorce at the rate of approximately one million times each year.

Divorce is Hell for both men and women.  Even in our post-modern society, however, women still seem to get the brunt of the pain.

According to a recent study published by the University of Michigan, approximately 115,000 women nationwide lose their health insurance coverage as a direct result of the divorce process.  Of these, some 65,000 never re-gain coverage.

The study was conducted by Bridget Lavelle, a UM sociology doctoral candidate.  Ms. Lavelle examined literature and data from survey respondents who divorced between the years 1996 and 2007.  The December issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior will feature the study.

Lavelle postulates that women's loss of health insurance benefits is not just a temporary disruption resulting from the divorce process.  Rather, she concludes that the loss of health insurance coverage for women is a long-term problem that compounds the economic losses of divorced women.

What's worse is that mid-income women have the greatest risk of loss of coverage because they do not qualify for Medicaid or other safety-net coverage options available to lower income divorcees.

We here at the Law Blogger wonder what effect Obamacare and the Affordable Care Act will have on this equation next year when everyone must carry insurance by mandate of federal law.

When facing a divorce, if you are at risk of losing your health insurance coverage, consider demanding some form of short-term alimony payments sufficient to cover the 3-year period of COBRA available from your spouse's employer.  Or, in the alternative, shop for comparable affordable health insurance.

The short-term alimony approach will at least cover women during the initial transition from marriage when, as posited by Ms. Lavelle, they are most at risk to lose health insurance coverage, and suffer even greater economic hardships as a result.

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For all their hype, the men behind the Fab Five continue to disappoint fans, supporters and alumni of the University of Michigan.

First it was Chris Webber's phantom time-out vs North Carolina in the 1993 Final Four game.  Then the premature abandonment of the University of Michigan Basketball Program by the headliners of the group, Webber and Jalen Rose.  Next, the final four banners were removed from Chrysler Arena due to the Ed Martin booster scandal.

This month, it's two criminal convictions right here in Oakland County; one for Jalen Rose, who's doing 20-days in the Oakland County Jail on a sentence from 48th District Judge Kim Small; the other is for charges of felony child support against Jimmy King.  According to the Michigan Attorney General, King owes nearly $18,000 in child support arrears.  He was arrested in Detroit.

Both men are currently detained in the OCJ.

Attorney General Bill Schuette was quoted in the Detroit Free Press as saying, "when it comes to child support, no matter who you are, you have to play by the rules."

It's a shame that these men have never played by the rules; it's a shame that they continue to cast a pall over the University of Michigan.

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