Ann Arbor officials appeared in Detroit federal court today in response to a subpoena for city records related to the November 2008 presidential election.

Senior Assistant City Attorney Robert West and City Clerk Jacqueline Beaudry appeared in the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Stephen Murphy.

West said the city was asked to produce records surrounding about 60 provisional ballots cast by Ann Arbor residents who - for one reason or another - weren't listed as registered voters on Election Day last fall.

West said the judge today appeared frustrated with the plaintiffs for dragging on the case, which originally was filed in September 2008 and claimed the state was illegally purging people from the voter rolls. So far, no individuals purged from voter rolls have been identified to participate in the suit, officials said.

City officials said the lawsuit isn't against the city of Ann Arbor, which makes the subpoena somewhat irregular.

The suit is being brought against the state of Michigan by the United States Student Association Foundation, a student-led group based in Washington, D.C. The ACLU of Michigan and the NAACP Michigan State Conference also are involved as plaintiffs.

Bradley Heard, lead counsel for the plaintiffs, could not be reached by AnnArbor.com today. Heard is part of a team of civil rights lawyers known as the Advancement Project in Washington, D.C.

West said Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land and Christopher Thomas, the state's director of elections, are named as defendants in the lawsuit.

West said he suspects Ann Arbor is being pulled into the case because the plaintiffs are still looking for an individual disenfranchised during the 2008 election, and there's a large student population here due to the University of Michigan. He said the city of Ypsilanti - home to Eastern Michigan University - also was part of the case earlier but that's now on hold.

Ann Arbor City Attorney Stephen Postema said it has been a "weird situation" for the city because, though it is not a party to the lawsuit, the city clerk received a subpoena to produce records and appear in court.

What makes it even weirder, Postema said, is his office talked with the state attorney general's office, which is defending the state, and was told the discovery period in the case had been closed.

At this late date in the case, West said, the plaintiffs still have not identified an individual who was harmed and is willing to sue. He said the judge agreed today to grant the plaintiffs 60 more days for discovery, or - in other words - 60 more days to find an individual to represent.

"They have a lawsuit with no one who fits their allegations, as I understand it," Postema said.

Ryan J. Stanton covers government for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529.