An alleged dummy Project Green Light camera at the McDonald's on 8 Mile near Woodward.
(Photo: Violet Ikonomova)
Many business owners cough up thousands to enroll in Detroit's Project Green Light police surveillance program, in part because they say it helps bring in customers who might otherwise fear visiting.
But the owner of four McDonald's locations is alleged to have taken a different tack: holding onto his money and using the cameras and signage to merely present the illusion of safety.
The city is now suing, the Detroit Free Pres reports:
Attorneys for the City of Detroit filed a complaint in federal court Wednesday alleging that ECS Partnership LLC — the owner of several McDonald's franchises in the city — had placed signs on four of its properties indicating Project Green Light participation when the restaurants were not a part of the program.
"Defendant's use of Plaintiff's 'Project Green Light Detroit' mark is likely to cause confusion, deception and mistake by creating the false and misleading impression that Defendant's businesses are partnered with 'Project Green Light Detroit,' " says the complaint, which asks the court to block use of the signs and for statutory damages, costs and attorneys' fees.
According to the complaint, the four McDonalds in question — 9815 Grand River, 1321 W. 8 Mile Rd., 14271 Gratiot and 10400 Gratiot — were all part of Project Green Light at one point in time. In the spring of 2018, however, they were kicked out of the program because the Detroit Police Department was unable to access their live stream video feeds — a requirement of Project Green Light participation
Of course, some believe Project Green Light on its own only provides the illusion of safety. The Free Press points out that some academics question the program's efficacy because no study has properly measured its impact on crime. The city has previously reported year-over crime reductions at Green Light locations, but the reductions came as crime in the city fell overall, and the trends were never measured against non-Green Light locations.
