TROY – Oakland is the leading county in the state that has
resettled the most refugees, and Oakland County Executive Brooks Patterson
isn’t having it.

Patterson on Tuesday announced that he plans to sue the
government in order to put a halt on the growing number of Syrian refugees who
have settled in cities like Troy and Clinton Township.

“I’ve brought in my legal team from the county, and we’re about
to sue to get an injunction to stop them from relocating more people into this
community until the rules are adhered to,” Patterson said Tuesday morning on
WJR-AM (760).

The county executive added that he isn’t too pleased that
Oakland has been leading refugee resettlements. He’s also ruffled that the state
of Michigan is one of the leading states for resettlements across the nation.

“Oakland County leads Michigan in refugees resettlement and
Michigan leads the nation,” the county executive said. “So we are right in the
middle of this fight.”

Patterson said he gave state officials notice he would file a
lawsuit during a recent meeting with them.

A Spokesperson from the county later clarified that Patterson
wasn’t referring to the state, but to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, a
federal government entity.

More than 13,785 Syrian refugees have come into the U.S. between
May 2011 and Tuesday, according to the U.S. State Department.

More than 1,400 refugees have resettled in Michigan, the federal
agency reports. At one time, Michigan once ranked first among states for taking
in Syrian refugees. But California recently surpassed the

Troy is the No. 1 destination for Syrian refugees in Michigan
where 486 have taken up residence between May 2011 and Tuesday, according to
the state department. Dearborn is second with 313 and Clinton Township has 278.

Many have questioned Patterson’s timing in his remarks and
whether he’s trying to instill fear in residents ahead of his re-election in
November.

Patterson,
who is serving his sixth four-year term, is running for re-election in November
against Democratic challenger Vicki Barnett.