Archive

A state bill to reform civil asset forfeiture, a practice that has come under fire nationwide following widespread claims of abuse, received strong, bipartisan approval from the California Senate today. Senate Bill 443 will now head to Gov. Jerry Brown for his signature. Read More

Matt Coles, deputy legal director and director of the ACLU’s Center for Equality, is retiring after 29 years. Here’s why he’s my hero. Read More

Asbury Howard, a black leader and organizer who headed an effort to register black voters in Alabama, was convicted in January 1959 for having a poster made from a newspaper cartoon. Read More

It's back to school season again. Here's how to make sure your school's sexual health education is up to date and follows California law. Read More

The State Senate just voted to pass AB 2466, a bill that would expand voting rights in California to people caught up in the criminal justice system. The law, if signed by the governor, will clarify who can and cannot vote with a criminal conviction in California. Read More

A bill to limit civil asset forfeiture abuses was approved today by the California Assembly. The bill will return to the Senate for a concurrence vote. SB 443 provides individuals with stronger property rights protections by requiring a conviction in most state civil asset forfeiture cases. Read More

Communities are being torn apart by mandatory immigration detention. Every day, more than 30,000 immigrants are held in prison-like without due process. Read More

A state audit finding that the CalGang database is plagued by inaccuracies and weak oversight provides further evidence of the long-held position of the ACLU of California that the controversial intelligence-gathering system violates individuals’ rights to privacy and fair treatment. Read More

Five years ago today, BART made the unprecedented decision to shut off cell service at multiple stations in order to suppress a protest. Scores of riders were left without the ability to communicate. Read More

On August 4, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the ruling in Mony Preap et al. v. Johnson. The class action successfully challenged the federal government’s practice in California of detaining certain immigrants without bond, often for many months, while they face deportation proceedings. Today’s ruling means thousands of California’s immigrants may now make an individ... Read More