Ku Klux Klan National Imperial Wizard Jeff Berry and his wife are suing the city of Ann Arbor for $8 million, accusing the city of civil rights violations during last year's nationally publicized June 22 Klan rally.
Attorney Robert Wiggins, who filed the lawsuit at the U.S. District Court in Detroit on Monday, claimed the city did not adequately protect the KKK from a crowd of protesters during the rally, where Berry's wife, Edna, suffered a head injury and lacerations to the forehead. Wiggins said he will call in experts during a hearing to prove that proper protection was not provided.
Abigail Elias, Ann Arbor city attorney, said she has not yet seen the lawsuit papers.
"I haven't seen it yet," Elias said. "But as far as I know, there's no merit (to the accusations)."
Ann Arbor Mayor Ingrid Sheldon, who is named in the suit, said she will not comment until she sees the lawsuit.
Ann Arbor City Councilmember Jean Carlberg (D-3rd Ward) said the city provided the ralliers with adequate police protection.
"It seems to me that we went out of our way to protect them with officers on hand," Carlberg said.
Other councilmembers also commented that Ann Arbor spent lots of money and time to assure protection.
"The city went to enormous effort and expense," said Tobi Hanna-Davies (D-1st Ward).
Wiggins said Berry's legal counsel is also looking into the possibility of a conspiracy to violate civil rights under a federal code, an allegation included in the civil suit.
Wiggins said the Klan notified the city in advance that it would be holding a rally on the second floor rooftop of city hall, and then "three buses all full of black folks" showed up at the rally.
"I think someone intentionally tried to screw up the rally," Wiggins said. "I think that was preplanned."
Wiggins said he plans to prove these allegations during the civil case.
The lawsuit also alleges the city used "ethnic intimidation" toward the Klan and acted unfairly by billing the Ku Klux Klan more than $36,000 in police protection costs.
Jeff Berry was contacted last night but refused to comment.
Wiggins said he is not a member of the Klan.
"My views don't necessarily coincide with theirs," Wiggins said, "but I'm a lawyer and I'm defending their constitutional rights."
There are some Ann Arbor residents who said the allegations against the city are frivolous.
"This suit is absurd," said Barbara Pliskow, a member of Ann Arbor Organizing Against the Klan, a group that protested the rally. "The city has been attacked by most of its citizens for the money it spent on the Klan. The protesters did not physically attack the Klan."
Pliskow said the police force went beyond its duty in protecting the Klan.
"I don't know what types of protection the Klan would want, besides the police shooting all the radicals, blacks and Jews for them," Pliskow said.
The rally received national attention last June when there were allegations that protesters chased down people attending and observing the rally.