Crime & Safety

Ticket Resellers Claim Cops Unlawfully Cite Them at Lions Games

A class-action lawsuit by Detroit Lions ticket holders says police go after fans who don't know the law.

A class-action lawsuit filed Monday by a group of Detroit Lions ticket holders challenges Detroit police’s system of targeting the legal practice of reselling tickets at—or even less than—face value on the street, according to a Detroit Free Press report.

The five plaintiffs in the suit, which could represent as many as 150 people, claim police go after sellers ignorant of the legality of their actions, the report stated. Sometimes, according to the suit, they even circumvent the law by charging individuals for not having a vendors license, the report stated.

Scalping—selling tickets for more than their worth—is illegal in Michigan, but a 2006 federal court decision stated reselling without marking up the price was allowed and ticketing people doing so was unconstitutional, the report added.

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