Criminal Law Reform
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Arizona
Oct 2023
Fund for Empowerment v. Phoenix, City of
Fund for Empowerment is a challenge to the City of Phoenix’s practice of conducting sweeps of encampments without notice, issuing citations to unsheltered people for camping and sleeping on public property when they have no place else to go, and confiscating and destroying their property without notice or process.
Status: Ongoing
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U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2023
McElrath v. Georgia
Does the Double Jeopardy Clause bar an appellate court from reviewing and setting aside a jury’s verdicts of acquittal on the ground that the verdict is inconsistent with the jury’s verdict on other charges?
Status: Ongoing
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U.S. Supreme Court
Jun 2023
Pulsifer v. United States
This case involves the interpretation of a federal law that allows defendants to avoid mandatory minimum sentences for certain nonviolent drug crimes, allowing judges to impose sentences tailored to their individual circumstances.
Status: Ongoing
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Texas
Jul 2021
Sanchez et al v. Dallas County Sheriff et al
Decarceration has always been an emergency, a life and death proposition, but COVID-19 makes this effort intensely urgent. The ACLU has been working with our partners to litigate for the rights of those who are incarcerated and cannot protect themselves because of the policies of the institutions in which they are jailed.
Status: Ongoing
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All Cases
130 Criminal Law Reform Cases
Nov 2019
Tucker, et al. vs. State of Idaho, et al.
The ACLU, the ACLU of Idaho, and Hogan Lovells LLP filed a class action lawsuit in 2015 against the State of Idaho over its defective public defense system.
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Criminal Law Reform
Tucker, et al. vs. State of Idaho, et al.
The ACLU, the ACLU of Idaho, and Hogan Lovells LLP filed a class action lawsuit in 2015 against the State of Idaho over its defective public defense system.
Nov 2019
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North Carolina
Criminal Law Reform
Smart Justice
Allison, et al. v. Allen, et al.
Nov 2019
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Northern California
Oct 2019
Cross v. SFPD
Our Constitution promises all people, regardless of their race, equal protection under the laws. Accordingly, courts have long recognized that the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause prohibits selective enforcement of criminal laws based on race. Yet law enforcement officers of the City of San Francisco have repeatedly violated that clause, singling out Black people for enforcement.
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Northern California
Criminal Law Reform
Cross v. SFPD
Our Constitution promises all people, regardless of their race, equal protection under the laws. Accordingly, courts have long recognized that the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause prohibits selective enforcement of criminal laws based on race. Yet law enforcement officers of the City of San Francisco have repeatedly violated that clause, singling out Black people for enforcement.
Oct 2019
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Mississippi
Oct 2019
Brown v. Madison County
The ACLU of Mississippi, the ACLU, and the law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP filed a federal lawsuit against the Madison County Sheriff’s Department to challenge its decades-old policing practices that employ unconstitutional, racially-motivated tactics that target the Black community.
Status: Closed (Settled)
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Mississippi
Criminal Law Reform
Brown v. Madison County
The ACLU of Mississippi, the ACLU, and the law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP filed a federal lawsuit against the Madison County Sheriff’s Department to challenge its decades-old policing practices that employ unconstitutional, racially-motivated tactics that target the Black community.
Oct 2019
Status: Closed (Settled)
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South Carolina
Oct 2019
Bairefoot v. City of Beaufort et al
In South Carolina’s municipal courts today, defendants are prosecuted, convicted, and jailed without ever having a lawyer appointed to their case or even being advised of their right to counsel. Hundreds of these defendants who were deprived of counsel—including Tina Bairefoot, Dae’Quandrea Nelson, and Nathan Fox—have been and are incarcerated in local jails and state prisons every year. Cities and towns can decide whether they have municipal courts—they are optional—but if they decide to have them they must follow the Constitution, which includes the right to counsel.
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South Carolina
Criminal Law Reform
Smart Justice
Bairefoot v. City of Beaufort et al
In South Carolina’s municipal courts today, defendants are prosecuted, convicted, and jailed without ever having a lawyer appointed to their case or even being advised of their right to counsel. Hundreds of these defendants who were deprived of counsel—including Tina Bairefoot, Dae’Quandrea Nelson, and Nathan Fox—have been and are incarcerated in local jails and state prisons every year. Cities and towns can decide whether they have municipal courts—they are optional—but if they decide to have them they must follow the Constitution, which includes the right to counsel.
Oct 2019
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