American Civil Liberties Union

Abuse by police continues to be a major civil liberties problem in the U.S., particularly for the poor and for people of color.  Everyone needs and deserves effective and humane law enforcement in communities and courtrooms.


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Police Practices : General : Press Releases view all

ACLU of Washington Supports Professor Detained for Taking Photos on Public Property (11/15/2007)
SEATTLE – The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington today filed a lawsuit on behalf of Shirley Scheier, a University of Washington professor who was detained by city of Snohomish police for taking photographs of power lines as part of an art project. Filed in Snohomish County Superior Court, the lawsuit seeks compensation for her wrongful detention.

ACLU of Washington Wins Compensation For Wrongfully Arrested Photographer (11/08/2007)
SEATTLE – The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington today announced that a Seattle man has obtained a settlement of $8,000 from the city of Seattle after he was arrested simply for taking photographs of police making an arrest. The ACLU represented the photographer in his wrongful arrest case.

ACLU Applauds Supreme Court Ruling Protecting Fourth Amendment Rights of Car Passengers (06/18/2007)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union applauded today’s decision by the United States Supreme Court in Brendlin v. California, recognizing that passengers in a car that is stopped by the police are seized as well as the driver, and therefore have the same right under the Fourth Amendment to protest an unconstitutional stop that is based on the police officer’s whim rather than evidence of wrongdoing.

HipHop Against Policy Brutality, ACLU of Texas and Abilene NAACP to Co-Host Youth Summit (06/15/2007)
ABILENE, TX – Three civil rights organizations are joining forces to host the first annual Abilene HipHop Summit. The HipHop Summit will be held Saturday, June 16, 2007 at the Abilene Civic Center, 1100 North 6th St. Abilene, Texas from 10 am to 2pm. Registration will begin at 9:30am. The HipHop Summit theme urges young people to “Express, Empower, and Educate” themselves to become positive agents for change in their schools and community.

ACLU Sues City of New Orleans and Chief Riley on Behalf of Business Manager Brutalized by Out of Control NOPD Officers (06/13/2007)
NEW ORLEANS - The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit today on behalf of a Central City businessman Steven Elloie, who was brutally beaten up, tasered twice with up to 50,000 volts of electricity while handcuffed and lying on the ground, falsely arrested on trumped up charges and eventually cleared of the accusation. A complaint with the Public Integrity Bureau (PIB) or internal affairs was given short shrift and appeared to be a part of a conspiracy at the highest levels to protect the offending officers.

Police Practices : General : Publications

Criminalizing the Classroom: The Over-Policing of New York City Schools (03/18/2007)
This report documents the excesses of the New York City school policing program and offers recommendations for reform.

Fighting Police Abuse: A Community Action Manual (12/01/1997)

Police Practices : General : Legal Documents view all

2006 letter to Rhode Island police chiefs (08/21/2006)
2006 letter to Rhode Island police chiefs

2004 letter to Rhode Island police chiefs (08/21/2006)
2004 letter to Rhode Island police chiefs

ACLU Complaint in The Center v. Linda Lingle (09/08/2004)

Opinion in Spencer v. Bay City (11/25/2003)

ACLU Amicus Brief in Crawford v. Washington (08/29/2003)

Police Practices : General : Legislative Documents view all

ACLU Letter to the House Judiciary Committee Urging Support and Sponsorship of H.R. 435, the Equal Access to Justice Reform Act (05/22/2006)

ACLU of Louisiana Request for DOJ investigation of the "Gretna Bridge Incident" (02/17/2006)

Attorney General John Ashcroft's Assault on Civil Liberties (Updated September 2003) (10/30/2002)

Testimony of Legislative Counsel Tim Edgar on S. 1749, The Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act Before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration (04/12/2002)

Letter to Senators Schumer and Clinton on the "Federal-Local Information Sharing Act of 2001" (12/10/2001)

Police Practices : General : Resources view all

Know Your Rights: What to Do If You're Stopped by the Police (07/30/2004)
To fight police abuse effectively you need to know your rights. There are some things you should do, some things you must do and some things you cannot do. If you are in the middle of a police encounter, you need a handy and quick reference to remind you what your rights and obligations are.

11/27/95 Eric Sterling, President National Drug Strategy Network (03/04/2002)
PhilCLU: Good evening everyone. I'm Phil Gutis, the genial host of the ACLU online series, and the ACLU's media relations director. We return tonight to one of our favorite topics -- drug policy -- and our guest is Eric Sterling, the President of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation. Let me take a few moments to more fully introduce Eric and then we'll get to your questions.

New! Profiles in Injustice: National Book Tour and Discussion Panel (03/04/2002)
The ACLU's Campaign Against Racial Profiling, along with New Press, are sponsoring a book tour featuring Profiles in Injustice: Why Racial Profiling Cannot Work, by David Harris, Prof. of Law at the University of Toledo and author of the ACLU's 1999 "Driving While Black" report.

Gun Control (03/04/2002)
The ACLU has often been criticized for "ignoring the Second Amendment" and refusing to fight for the individual's right to own a gun or other weapons. This issue, however, has not been ignored by the ACLU. The national board has in fact debated and discussed the civil liberties aspects of the Second Amendment many times.

Know Your Rights During Police Encounters (03/04/2002)
Police abuse is a serious national problem -- and one that especially affects young people and people of color. While many police officers do strive to be courteous, and while we all understand the stress and danger involved in policing, each of us has the right to be treated with respect -- and without abuse -- by the police.

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