This statement covers all of the Michigan Citizen websites (”Citizen Sites”) and any associated content including email and RSS feeds. Please read this statement carefully before proceeding to access any of the Citizen Sites. Your use of the Citizen Sites indicates your agreement to abide by the Terms in effect.TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED, THE MICHIGAN CITIZEN DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES INCLUDING WARRANTIES FOR MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. By accessing the Websites or the RSS feeds, you indicate that you understand and agree to these terms and conditions.

Comments Terms of Use

The comments sections on Michigan Citizen Sites are accessible to all users. Some comments on LastChocolateCity.com are moderated for content before being posted.

In order to make our comments useful and interesting, the following guidelines have been established for comment users:

• Do not post threatening, harassing, defamatory, or libelous material.
• Do not intentionally make false or misleading statements.
• Do not offer to sell or buy any product or service.
• Do not post material that infringes copyright.
• Do not post information that you know to be confidential or sensitive or otherwise in breach of the law.
• Keep all comments relevant to the particular Michigan Citizen Site where the comment is being posted.
• The Michigan Citizen will not accept responsibility for information posted in the Comments.

If the Michigan Citizen receives notice that a comment post is not in keeping with these terms and conditions or the intended use of the comments, we reserve the right to remove that comment posting. The removal of any comment shall be solely at the discretion of the Michigan Citizen, Inc.

Image Terms of Use

Michigan Citizen websites typically display images as part of our news articles and blog posts written by our contributors. The types of images contributors are authorized to use on Michigan Citizen sites include:

• Images licensed from photographic archive vendors
• Images supplied to our contributors or released into the public domain by public relations and marketing companies for press purposes
• Reader-submitted images, with the implied representation that the person submitting the image owns the copyright in the image and the right to give it to us for use on our site(s)
• Images published on Flickr or other public photo sites, with an implied license for use under the Creative Commons license associated with such sites
• Images commissioned by The Michigan Citizen
• Thumbnail images of 150×150 pixels or less
• Images used to illustrate a newsworthy story under the Fair Use doctrine
• Images where the use is transformative, such as for satire
• Images so widely distributed on the internet that they are deemed to have become part of the public domain

If you think we have published an image or text that infringes your copyright, we will address your concerns; however, if the image falls into one of the categories listed above, we believe that our use of the image is legitimate and we will not remove it from the site.

Please note that we will respond only to notices of alleged infringement that comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The text of the Act can be found at the U.S. Copyright Office Web Site, http://lcWeb.loc.gov/copyright/

To file a notice of infringement with us, you must provide a written communication (by email with an attached and signed PDF or by fax) that sets forth the items specified below. Please do not send us regular mail, as we may not receive it in a timely fashion. In all cases, if you do not hear a response from us within 10 days of submitting a complaint, please telephone us at (313) 963-8282 to confirm that we received your original complaint. Spam blockers sometimes devour important emails from strangers!

To enable us to address your concerns, please provide the following information:

1. For each allegedly infringing image or piece of text that you wish to have removed from one of our sites, provide the exact permanent URL for the page containing the material.
2. Provide information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact you: an email address is preferred, as well as a telephone contact number.
3. Provide the following information detailing your claim to ownership of the copyright in the allegedly infringing material:

• Proof of copyright in the image or text concerned, namely proof of registration of the Image under the DMCA,

OR, absent such registration,

• a detailed description of where the photograph was taken, by whom, who or what the subject of the image is, AND
• Evidence to support your claim that you own the copyright in the image.

We will not comply with requests to remove an image where the complainant cannot prove that they own the copyright in the image in question.

4. Include the following statement: “I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate and that I am the copyright owner or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.”
5. Sign the document and fax it to:
   (313) 963-8285, Attn: Michigan Citizen Legal / DMCA ComplaintsOR email it to:

   frontdesk AT MichiganCitizen DOT com

Please note that you will be liable for damages (including costs and attorneys’ fees) if you materially misrepresent that any material on our sites is infringing your copyrights.

We also reserve the right to publish your letter on the site(s).

External Links Disclaimer

Citizen Sites routinely contain links to external, third party websites. By providing links to other sites, The Michigan Citizen does not guarantee, approve or endorse the information or products available at these sites, nor does a link indicate any association with or endorsement by the linked site to the Citizen Site in question.

The Michigan Citizen does not operate or control and has no responsibility for the information, products and/or services found on any external sites. Nor do such links represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any information, products and/or services provided on or through any external sites, including, without limitation, warranties of any kind, either express or implied, warranties of title or non-infringement or implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Visitors to Citizen Sites assume complete responsibility and risk in their use of any external sites. Visitors should direct any concerns regarding any external link to its site administrator or webmaster.

Notification of Changes

Whenever Michigan Citizen changes its Terms of Use, it will post those changes to this Statement, and other places we deem appropriate to make users aware of such changes.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or notices of violations to these terms and conditions, please contact the editor of the Citizen Site in question, or send an email to webmaster AT MichiganCitizen.com, or by mail to Michigan Citizen, 2669 Bagley, Detroit, MI 48216.