Archive

Living in California is already expensive enough for working families – paying rent, paying for childcare, putting food on the table, etc. – without also having to pay to retrieve a towed car. But every year, California local governments push countless families that are struggling to make ends meet deeper into poverty by towing their legally parked cars. Hundreds of thousands of cars are towed eac... Read More

OAKLAND — Today, the ACLU of Northern California will give public comment at the BART Board of Directors meeting calling on the Board to forgo any potential ordinance that would prohibit panhandling on BART. In its public comment letter, the ACLU warns that panhandling, busking, and other forms of solicitation are free speech protected under the First Amendment as well as state law. The letter ... Read More

TULARE — The ICE Out of Tulare Coalition has decided, as a strong collective action, to not physically attend the Transparent Review of Unjust Transfers and Holds (“TRUTH”) Act Forum of Tulare County’s scheduled for August 20th, 2019. We stand as a coalition united in solidarity to not exert efforts to organize behind the unsuitably planned TRUTH Act Forum this year. The Sheriff and Board of S... Read More

SACRAMENTO — Propelled by the leadership of hundreds of family members whose loved ones were killed by California police officers, Governor Gavin Newsom today signed historic legislation to strengthen the state’s law on police use of force. Introduced by Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), Assembly Bill 392: The California Act to Save Lives will establish a “necessary” use of force standar... Read More

California families impacted by police violence, advocates, and allies just made history. Today, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 392, the California Act to Save Lives, a bill to address police shootings – one of the most pressing forms of police violence afflicting Black and brown communities in the state. With this new law, California will go from having one of the deadliest, most permissive use ... Read More

After a parole board granted Richard Mireles his freedom earlier this year, he was shocked to learn that he still couldn’t cast a vote in California, the state he had lived in since he was born. Just three months shy of his 21st birthday, a court gave Richard a life sentence on his first felony case. In the two decades of his incarceration, Richard worked hard to change his life. He got sober, wor... Read More

SACRAMENTO — After putting facial recognition technology to the test using photos of all 120 members of the State Legislature, the American Civil Liberties Union of California released results that further support the need for AB 1215 by Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), which bans facial recognition in police body cameras. Read More

BAKERSFIELD — Farm worker and immigration activist Jose Bello, who was arrested and imprisoned by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents shortly after reciting an anti-ICE and Trump administration poem at a public meeting, has been freed. His ICE-imposed bail of $50,000 was paid by: National Football League players Josh Norman and Demario Davis, who are members of the of the Players C... Read More

Erica Smith was making a fresh start. After being forced out of her home by domestic violence, she had spent the last three years cycling between homelessness and jail for petty offenses. But with the help of reentry organization Starting Over Inc., she finally secured stable housing and a job helping women who had experienced challenges like hers. She found community support in the Riverside chap... Read More

Download the Summer 2019 ACLU of Northern California Newsletter and read about our latest events and initiatives. Read More