Todd A. Heywood reports:
A letter from the office of Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox exonerating Lansing City Attorney Brigham Smith of any criminal wrongdoing in the public release of an arrested man’s HIV-positive status has activists and political leaders up in arms.
“This is just scary,†said State Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, a likely candidate for the Democratic nomination for attorney general in 2010. “Attorney general opinions are supposed to give us clarity. This does not do that. This impacts all of our rights.â€
The East Lansing lawmaker said the opinion clearly violates the “legislative intent†of state laws, specifically a stringent state law which makes it a misdemeanor to disclose a person’s HIV status — positive or negative — except under very narrow conditions.
Read more about the case and controversy on Michigan Messenger.