ANN ARBOR—Jeffrey G. Collins, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, will host a question and answer session on “Maintaining and Enforcing Civil Rights in the New Age: Balancing Civil Liberties and National Security” for the University of Michigan Law School‘s Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration Jan. 21. The presentation, which is free and open to the public, will be held in room 250 Hutchins Hall, at the corner of Monroe and State streets, 4-5:30 p.m. A reception will be held immediately following the presentation.

Collins, who holds a B.A. degree from Northwestern University and a J.D. from Howard University School of Law, was appointed to the post by President George W. Bush and confirmed by a unanimous vote of the U.S. Senate. He is the chief federal law enforcement officer for the Eastern District of Michigan and offers an informed perspective on the balance of civil liberties and national security. Collins has held positions in the Detroit Recorder’s Court, the Michigan Court of Appeals, and in November 1998 he was named by the Michigan Supreme Court to be the presiding judge of the Criminal Division of Wayne County Circuit Court. He is a past president of the Association of Black Judges of Michigan and served as an instructor of criminal law and trial advocacy at Wayne State Law School.

Many organizations and groups associated with the U-M Law School are co-sponsoring the event, including the ACLU-Student Group, Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, Black Law Students’ Association, Environmental Law Society, Federalist Society, Latino Law Students’ Association, Law Students for Reproductive Rights, Michigan Journal of Race and Law, National Lawyer’s Guild, Outlaws, Native American Law Students Association, Public Interest Group, and the Office of Academic Services.

For more information, contact Assistant Dean of Students Charlotte Johnson at (734) 615-0019.

Jeffrey G. CollinsU.S. SenateACLU