University of Michigan cancels undercover private security contracts after report of students being threatened

University of Michigan interim President Domenico Grasso has canceled all contracts for private, undercover security on campus after a published report said the Ann Arbor school was using plainclothes investigators to surveil pro-Palestinian campus groups.

Grasso made the announcement Sunday, two days after the Guardian reported that undercover investigators hired by UM have cursed at students, threatened them and, in one case, drove a car at a student who had to jump out of the way.

Students told the Guardian they have identified undercover investigators and confronted them. In two interactions captured by a student on video, a man who had been trailing the student faked disabilities and falsely accused a student of attempting to rob him, according to the British newspaper's report.

In a statement posted online, Grasso said UM hired an outside firm to use plainclothes security personnel for large, high-traffic areas starting in July 2024. Campus police cleared a pro-Palestinian encampment, which had a month-long presence, over safety concerns on May 21, 2024.

"These individuals were intended to help us keep watch over our campus and enable us to respond quickly to emergencies. However, we are clear: No individual or group should ever be targeted for their beliefs or affiliations," Grasso said in the statement.

"We recently learned that an employee of one of our security contractors has acted in ways that go against our values and directives. What happened was disturbing, unacceptable, and unethical, and we will not tolerate it," Grasso said. "Going forward, we are terminating all contracts with external vendors to provide plainclothes security on campus."

Grasso asked anyone who sees or experiences inappropriate behavior by an employee or contractor to contact campus police or the university's Equity, Civil Rights and Title IX offices.

UM's public affairs office issued a Friday statement and updated it Sunday that denied there was any surveillance of individuals or student groups or requests or authorization for the surveillance of any students on or off campus.

"Unfortunately, recent media reports have mischaracterized the role of contract security personnel who were engaged solely to support campus safety efforts," the statement read. "The university expanded its use of contracted plainclothes security personnel in 2024. Plainclothes security was expanded to provide discreet awareness of potential illegal activities without escalating tensions; and it is an industry-standard approach used widely across college campuses, sporting venues and medical facilities."

Contractors were limited to observing and reporting criminal or suspicious activity on university property to the division of public safety and security, not surveillance, UM's statement says.

"The DPSS has never followed a student off campus, nor targeted individuals or groups because of their beliefs or affiliations," the university said.

"We recently learned that an employee of one of our vendors acted outside of the university’s contracted services. Their behavior was unacceptable, and we will not tolerate it. In discussions with the vendor, we have been informed that this individual is no longer employed with their company," the statement said.

Michelle M. Bassett, a spokeswoman for the Detroit-based City Shield Security Services, issued a statement in response to the Guardian story and allegations.

"We are aware of recent reporting and are investigating the matter. We take all complaints seriously and investigate them rigorously, ensuring appropriate actions and professional standards," Bassett said in a statement. "We respect the need for client and protection services confidentiality and as a standard industry practice do not discuss the details of those services or contract, which would obviously undermine the protection provided."

UM Regent Jordan Acker said on Monday that the contractors' alleged behaviors are unethical.

"We should get to the bottom of how this happened, how they were able to do what they were doing, and on whose advice," Acker said. "It doesn't appear that the regents (or) the president knew about this. But it's completely unacceptable. And we have to make sure that we have legal and frankly, ethical means of keeping our campuses safe during events ... during protests, without infringing on people's rights."

In December, vandals targeted the Huntington Woods home of Acker, who is Jewish. Acker's Southfield law office was previously targeted with graffiti last June. Vandals spray-painted "Free Palestine" and "Divest Now" on the building and sidewalk entrance to the Goodman Acker Law Firm on 10 Mile Road.

Tensions over UM's endowment investing in Israeli companies have been brewing on the Ann Arbor campus for the past year and a half amid Israel's ongoing war against the militant group in the Palestinian territory of Gaza.

In May, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel dropped charges against a group accused of trespassing and resisting police in 2024 when police removed a pro-Palestinian student encampment at UM.

Nessel said, despite months of hearings, a district court judge hadn't ruled whether authorities had probable cause that the 11 defendants committed the crimes with which they were charged by her office and had not ordered them to stand trial.

Hours before Nessel issued the statement, a group of religious leaders called on her to drop the charges against pro-Palestinian activists accused of vandalizing the homes of Jewish and non-Jewish officials. They also called on the state's top law enforcement official to recuse herself from the case.

Nessel has defended her handling of charges against 11 pro-Palestine protesters at the university, and said much of the case involved "antisemitism at levels and in areas" she had never seen before.

Eight former UM employees are suing the university's board of regents, president and several others, alleging they were fired and banned from working at the institution because they vocally supported Palestinians' human rights and called on UM to divest from Israel.

The plaintiffs, who filed their lawsuit in May in U.S. District Court, allege the UM Regents violated their constitutional right to free speech and wrongfully concluded that they had violated UM's Violence in the University Community Policy, "putting an indelible stain on their employment record."

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