All articles tagged with #aclu
New Jersey nurse Dr. Norma Bowe filed a $500,000 federal tort claim with the ACLU alleging ICE agents knocked her to the ground and injured her while she was tending to someone near Delaney Hall, an ICE detention facility; the incident, captured on video, has spurred a broader ACLU effort filing 54 similar claims, while DHS defended the officers’ actions.
The ACLU and partners filed a motion for a preliminary injunction after body-camera footage and text messages reportedly show federal immigration agents in Los Angeles detaining immigrants—often Latinos—while using crude language and racial slurs, arguing these stops are unconstitutional and discriminatory. The videos, dating to mid-2025, are part of court-ordered discovery in a lawsuit against DHS components; a temporary restraining order had previously barred indiscriminate stops but was paused by the Supreme Court as litigation continued, with a hearing set for Sept. 24.
The Harris County District Attorney said substances found in Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s van after a fatal ICE shooting in Houston tested negative for narcotics or illicit drugs. The FBI obtained a search warrant because small bags in the van appeared to contain meth, though the ACLU suggested they could be electrolyte mixes. Salgado Araujo’s family has been notified and the investigation remains pending, with Rep. Sylvia Garcia noting Salgado Araujo was not the intended target and urging independent, transparent inquiry.
Bruce Springsteen accepted the ACLU’s Defenders of Civil Rights award, joking that he’s a “concerned citizen” rather than an activist, and performed “Streets of Minneapolis” to honor citizens defending democracy. He and Colin Kaepernick were among five honorees at the ACLU’s Biennial Leadership Conference, with speeches emphasizing citizen engagement and civil rights, in a ceremony hosted for a large student audience.
Brooklyn-born Folarin Balogun has emerged as a key US striker at the 2026 World Cup, illustrating the country’s birthright citizenship debate as President Trump’s executive order faces ACLU-led challenges in the Supreme Court. The live updates also touch on MLS commissioner Don Garber’s Vancouver stadium concerns, Seattle’s port displaying pro-Australia messages amid trade ties, and Australian media’s MAGA-counter messaging ahead of their match.
A federal judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of Idaho's HB 752, delaying a law that would bar transgender people from using sex-designated public restrooms; the injunction preserves restroom access while the lawsuit brought by the ACLU and allies continues, and HB 752 was set to take effect July 1.
The ACLU filed suit against two Florida police departments after a Fort Myers man was wrongfully arrested in a Jacksonville Beach child‑abduction case based on a 93% facial‑recognition match from the FACES database, a match investigators treated as near proof of identity despite evidence he was hundreds of miles away and had no contact with the scene; the complaint alleges missed steps, omitted data from warrants, and a long‑running, minimally overseen system, underscoring calls for safeguards and accountability.
A Florida man sues multiple police agencies alleging that a 93% facial-recognition match from the FACES database led to his arrest for alleged child-luring, despite him being nowhere near the scene. The suit accuses officers of relying on an error-prone AI result, withholding exculpatory evidence, and failing to pursue other investigative leads, with charges later dropped. The plaintiff seeks damages and reforms to how facial recognition is used by law enforcement.
A Florida man, Robert Dillon, is suing Jacksonville Beach police, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and Pinellas County Sheriff over a wrongful arrest tied to a faulty AI facial-recognition match at a McDonald’s; Dillon, who lives in Fort Myers, was charged and prosecuted before the case was dropped, and the ACLU says this is at least the 15th such incident, highlighting ongoing concerns about the reliability of facial-recognition tech and calls for safeguards.
A coalition of civil rights groups filed a federal lawsuit against ICE over alleged unconstitutional punishment and medical neglect at Camp East Montana, El Paso—the country’s largest detention facility—citing three detainee deaths, a measles outbreak, and about 50 detention standards violations since the camp opened on Fort Bliss in 2025; the suit seeks class-action status and accuses officials of deliberate indifference as detainees report abuse, insufficient food, and denied access to attorneys.
The ACLU of Tennessee filed a lawsuit against state and federal officials running the Trump-ordered Memphis anti-crime taskforce, alleging months of retaliation against observers through tailing, home surveillance, pretextual stops, and at least one aggressive arrest. Six plaintiffs describe incidents such as unmarked-vehicle intimidation and a rough body-cam arrest, arguing the tactics violate constitutional rights and misuse Tennessee’s Halo Law; supporters say the taskforce has contributed to notable crime reductions in Memphis.
An ACLU-backed lawsuit over Suzanne Swierc's firing from Ball State University after a private Facebook post criticizing Charlie Kirk has been settled for $225,000. The ACLU says the firing violated her First Amendment rights as she spoke as a private citizen on a matter of public concern, while Ball State argues the post caused significant campus disruption and risk to enrollment and donations. The settlement resolves the federal suit without a trial and underscores ongoing debates over free speech on social media by government employers.
Tennessee postponed Tony Carruthers's planned execution after staff couldn't establish a second vein for the lethal injection; a central line attempt failed, prompting a one-year reprieve by Governor Bill Lee. The case spotlighted concerns about his trial and calls for DNA/fingerprint testing, with the ACLU and supporters arguing against the execution, while supporters like Kim Kardashian pressed for further testing.
Black voters and civil rights groups represented by the ACLU filed a federal lawsuit alleging Tennessee’s GOP-drawn congressional map intentionally targets Black residents by cracking Memphis into three districts to dilute their electoral power, violating the 14th and 15th Amendments; the suit follows an NAACP challenge and comes amid map redraws spurred by a Supreme Court ruling that narrowed Voting Rights Act protections, with Tennessee’s map shifting the delegation from 6-1 Republican to 7-0 Republican.
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a motion with the Tennessee Supreme Court requesting post-conviction DNA testing in the 1994 kidnapping/murder case that left Tony Carruthers on death row. The petition argues that fingerprints at the crime scene do not match Carruthers or co-defendant James Montgomery and highlights an unidentified male DNA profile on a white blanket linked to the victims. Retrial evidence indicated a different suspect (Ronnie Irving) may be involved, and Montgomery later testified Carruthers was not involved. If the DNA testing could exonerate Carruthers or point to another suspect, it could lead to a stay of his May 21 execution date; the case has long been entangled with claims of inadequate legal representation and reliance on jailhouse informants.