Now People with HIV are Potential Terrorists ... At Least in Michigan

We thought we'd heard it all when it comes to fear of and contempt for people with HIV. But now comes word of a Michigan prosecutor who has charged an HIV-positive man under anti-terrorism laws -- because he allegedly bit someone!

Yes, we can all agree that biting other people in a fit of anger is juvenile, idiotic and icky. And if the charges are to be believed (allegedly the HIV-positive guy bit his neighbor's lip clean through because he was infuriated when a kid's football landed in his yard) this particular incident is about as absurd and inexplicable as an assault can get. Originally the alleged biting fiend was charged with aggravated assault and assault with attempt to maim. However, after the guy admitted on a local Fox news interview that he is HIV-positive (why did the interviewer ask? because the guy looks kinda maybe a little gay?), the prosecutor tacked on a new charge, "possession or use of a harmful device." The prosecutor was relying upon a 2004 Michigan law designed to fight terrorism; the law defines a "harmful device" as either biological, chemical, electronic or radioactive.

And yes, the prosecutor maintained a straight face while defending his belief that HIV is a harmful device "designed or intended to release a harmful biological substance." (Who knew that HIV was "designed?"). Worse still, Judge Linda Davis agreed. “[He] knew he was HIV positive, and he bit the guy,” Davis said. “That on its own shows intent.” Well, it shows intent to bite, anyway.

And since when does a bite present anything more than a vanishingly tiny, theoretical risk of HIV transmission? The CDC puts the risk at 0.000000001 percent. In fact, nearly 30 years after HIV was discovered, the CDC has identified exactly one case in which biting may have been the source of infection: a South Carolina man alleged that his only risk of infection came when an angry sex worker bit him after he refused to pay her. (So...he hired a sex worker, and he can't think of any other risk factor for his HIV infection?).

Already Michigan lawmakers, including the head of the House Judiciary Committee, have spoken out against this prosecutorial folly.

You can read a well-researched article about this mess in the Michigan Messenger here.