U.P. community loses appeal over prison closing

MARENISCO TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - The Michigan appeals court has turned aside a challenge to the closing of a prison in the Upper Peninsula.

The appeals court on Tuesday affirmed a decision by a judge who had dismissed a lawsuit by Marenisco Township. The community was the home of the Ojibway prison in Gogebic County.

The township claimed the Corrections Department didn't follow state law and fully measure the economic impact on the community.

The Snyder administration had acknowledged that the impact would be significant. The prison employed 230 people.

The appeals court said there's no evidence that state officials would have closed a different prison if they had put even more weight on the economic impact.

Published: Fri, Feb 07, 2020