Home : Police Practices : Police Abuse

ACLU of Nebraska Announces Settlement with Police Over Intrusive Strip-Search of Teen (06/11/2003)
LINCOLN, NE- The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska today announced the settlement of a lawsuit filed against the city of Kearney and its police department over the strip-search of a teen-age girl.

NYCLU Says NYPD's Handling of Protestors Needs Improvement in Time for Republican Convention (04/28/2003)
NEW YORK--Saying that law enforcement crowd control tactics should be improved in time for next year's Republican Convention here, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) today called on city officials to implement quick reforms. The NYCLU's suggested changes were highlighted in a 40-page report, released today on the steps of City Hall.

Citing New Report on Police Misconduct, ACLU of Northern CA Renews Call for Reforms (04/23/2003)
SAN FRANCISCO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California today called for major police reforms following the release of a highly critical new report by a citizen complaint board documenting the San Francisco Police Department's obstruction of investigations into police misconduct.

Rhode Island Supreme Court Orders City to Pay Costs in Police Misconduct Open Records Case (04/21/2003)
PROVIDENCE, RI -- In the near-final chapter of a long-running "open records" lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union against the police department here, the State Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that city cannot charge a community group for the costs of providing copies of internal police misconduct reports.

ACLU and Denver Officials Agree to Resolve Lawsuit over Notorious Police "Spy Files" (04/17/2003)
DENVER -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado today announced the settlement of its landmark lawsuit challenging the Denver Police Department's practice of monitoring and recording the peaceful protest activities of local residents and keeping criminal intelligence files on the free-speech activities of law-abiding advocacy groups, some of who were falsely labeled as "criminal extremist."

In Response to NYCLU Demand, Police Stop Interrogating Protesters About Political Activity (04/10/2003)
NEW YORK -- In response to a demand made by the New York Civil Liberties Union earlier this week, police officials have agreed to halt a recently implemented secret program of interrogating protesters about their political affiliations and prior demonstration activities, the NYCLU announced today.

ACLU of Northern California Seeks Answers to Police Attack on Non-Violent Protesters (04/09/2003)
OAKLAND, CA-The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and representatives from civil rights groups today sent a letter to the chief of police here expressing "extreme concern" over yesterday's attack by law enforcement officers on non-violent anti-war protesters at the Port of Oakland.

ACLU of Nebraska Announces Settlement with County Sheriff's Department in Misconduct Case (04/04/2003)
LINCOLN, NE--The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska today announced the settlement of a lawsuit filed on behalf of a Hispanic man investigating citizen complaints who himself became a victim of police misconduct at the hands of a county sheriff's department.

ACLU Files Class-Action Lawsuit Challenging Unconstitutional Mass Arrest of Antiwar Demonstrators in Washington (03/27/2003)
WASHINGTON- In a lawsuit filed in federal court today, the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area charged police officials with deliberately violating the constitutional rights of more than 400 peaceful antiwar demonstrators and bystanders by directing them into a police trap and then arresting them although they had not violated the law.

ACLU of IL Files Lawsuit Charging Illegal Police Detention and Search of U.S. Olympic Athlete (03/24/2003)
CHICAGO--A member of the 2002 United States Winter Olympic Team was illegally stopped, detained and searched by police officers here, according to a federal lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois.

In Wake of Scandal, New ACLU Report Calls for Major Reforms in San Francisco Police Department (03/12/2003)
SAN FRANCISCO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California issued a report today calling for major reforms in the San Francisco Police Department in the wake of the recent indictments of high-ranking officers. The report, titled "Roadmap to Reform -- Strengthening the Accountability Mechanisms of the San Francisco Police Department," outlines steps that should be taken to strengthen accountability in the Department.

ACLU Charges Racial Discrimination in Second Texas Drug Bust Scandal (11/01/2002)
AUSTIN, TX--The American Civil Liberties Union today filed a class action lawsuit charging racial discrimination in an undercover drug bust that led to the arrest of 15 percent of African-American men between the ages of 18 and 34 in Hearne, a rural community of 5,000 in eastern Texas.

Court Finds RI Police in Contempt for Failing to Comply With State's "Driving While Black" Law (10/24/2002)
PROVIDENCE, RI -The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today hailed a decision by Superior Court Judge Stephen Fortunato, Jr. to hold the police department in contempt of court for failing to comply with the state's "Driving While Black" law.

¿Como se dice Rodney King en Espanol? Posters Promote Reform, Commemorate Texas Victim of Police Brutality (10/15/2002)
HOUSTON-Saying that major reforms are needed to curb the increased incidences of police misconduct and brutality, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas and other advocacy organizations today unveiled a new poster advertisement meant to commemorate the life of Louis Torres, a Mexican national whose death at the hands of police in the city of Baytown was caught on a police camera.

Court Auditor Slams Pittsburgh Police for Whitewashing Misconduct Complaints (08/01/2002)
PITTSBURGH- The court-appointed auditor overseeing the police bureau's progress under the first-in-the-nation consent decree with the Department of Justice filed a highly critical report yesterday, suggesting that the City may have deliberately delayed investigating some very serious misconduct complaints, including the strip-search of an infant. 

ACLU Urges Congress to Ensure Full Enforcement of Civil Rights Laws (05/21/2002)
WASHINGTON - Concerned with reports that the Department of Justice may be failing to fully enforce U.S. civil rights laws, the American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to use its oversight function to ensure that the Department fully comply with its responsibility to protect Americans from discrimination. 

ACLU, NAACP Join in Opposing End to Justice Department Oversight of Pittsburgh Police (01/09/2002)
PITTSBURGH--The NAACP today joined the American Civil Liberties Union in saying that they oppose ending federal government supervision of the Pittsburgh Police Bureau because the agency has failed to fix serious problems in the internal affairs division that investigates civilian complaints about police misconduct. 

Nebraska Police Officers Posing as INS Agents Severely Beat Immigrant, ACLU Charges (06/25/2001)
LINCOLN, NE--A Scottsbluff police officer claiming to be an Immigration and Naturalization Service agent entered a man's house without a warrant and severely beat him in front of his family, the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska charged in a civil rights lawsuit filed this afternoon. 

ACLU Praises Federal Convictions of Police Officers in Beating Death of New Jersey Man (12/20/2000)
NEWARK, NJ--The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey today praised the verdict in a federal lawsuit against five Orange City police officers convicted of conspiring to deprive Earl Faison of his civil rights when he was killed in police custody on April 19, 1999.

Providence Police Department Releases Policies on Use of Pepper Spray (12/07/2000)
PROVIDENCE, RI--Two days after the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island filed an lawsuit against the police department for refusing to publicly release complete copies of its policies and procedures governing the use of pepper spray, the city has reversed its decision and handed over the policies.