AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION

Giving Tuesday is upon us and the season of charitable giving is in full swing.

Evan Minton sued a California hospital for canceling a scheduled hysterectomy after learning days before that he was transgender.

The lawsuit claims the bill imposes on the free speech and academic freedom of Oklahoma students and teachers.

Honolulu police officers and officials with Hawaii’s public school system discriminated against a disabled Black child by handcuffing, arresting and interrogating the 10-year-old girl for a “run-of-the-mill” dispute between children, the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii said. The ACLU sent a letter Monday to the Honolulu Police Department, the state Department of Education and the state attorney general's office demanding the statewide school district make policy changes, including forbidding staff from calling police on a student unless the student presents an imminent threat of significant harm to someone. Honowai Elementary officials called police to the Waipahu school in 2020 because the girl allegedly drew an offensive sketch of a student who was bullying her, according to the ACLU letter.

Two women are suing Nebraska after being denied parental rights over sons they had when they were a couple. Each woman gave birth to one son.

The American Civil Liberties Union asked the federal government on Oct. 7 to investigate the use of force by a suburban Detroit police department, especially incidents involving Black people.

The ACLU is not looking for any criminal charges to be filed, but they do want a higher power to take a look into the Taylor Police Department.

Here’s what's coming up on Local 4 News at Noon.

The state Supreme Court ruled Friday that a Vermont couple cannot be prosecuted in state court for drug violations with evidence seized by a U.S. Border Patrol agent. The court, in a 3-2 decision, said the federal law used by the Border Patrol agent to search the Vermont car after it was stopped during a roving patrol just south of the Canadian border in August 2018 did not comply with the state constitutional guarantee against unreasonable searches. “Evidence obtained in violation of the Vermont Constitution may not be admitted at trial in a state prosecution because such evidence ‘eviscerates our most sacred rights, impinges on individual privacy, perverts our judicial process, distorts any notion of fairness, and encourages official misconduct,'" said the majority decision, written by Justice William Cohen, who was citing an earlier case.

The plaintiffs are challenging a budget measure passed this summer that prevents South Carolina districts from using any state funding to require masks in schools. In papers filed last week, attorneys for McMaster — a Republican who has said repeatedly that parents alone should decide if children wear masks in schools — argued that the ACLU and its clients “have not alleged, and they cannot reasonably or plausibly allege, that Governor McMaster acted with bad faith or gross misconduct.”

Why is a historically libertarian organization backing strict public-health measures?

Here are four things to know about the impact the Supreme Court ruling might have on Illinois.

Multiple inmates in an Arkansas jail said they didn't realize they took an anti-parasite drug that federal health officials have warned should not be used to treat the coronavirus.

Opponents blasted the law, considered the most extreme abortion rights curb since Roe v. Wade ruling. It bars abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, usually around six weeks.

A Washington state judge struck a Seattle measure on homelessness from the November ballot even as the city remains mired in a long-term humanitarian crisis. The so-called “Compassion Seattle” proposal would direct the city to provide 2,000 units of emergency or permanent housing within a year and require the city to ensure parks, playgrounds and sidewalks remain clear of encampments. King County Superior Court Judge Catherine Shaffer said Friday that it would conflict with state law and usurp the City Council’s power.

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit over a South Carolina law that bans school districts from imposing mask mandates.

Here are tonight's top stories.

In its new report, the Michigan ACLU accuses the Michigan Branch of Customs and Border Protection of “blatant racial profiling” and making people of Latino or Hispanic descent a “primary suspect.”

The database by the ACLU of Texas identified fatalities going back to 2010.

Immigration advocates had put their lawsuit on hold to give the Biden administration time to phase out the Trump-era Title 42 measure. But they say they're tired of waiting.

The Michigan Supreme Court threw out out the conviction of a man who was accused of failing to register under an old version of the state's sex offender registry.

“Now as a society, we may be paying a cost for our ignorance about our own history," said a law professor.

The ruling temporarily blocked enforcement of the state's ban on gender confirming treatments while a lawsuit challenging the prohibition proceeds. The law had been set to take effect on July 28.

Pop star Britney Spears' conservatorship is back in court today for the first time since her comments about her legal situation leaked.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan (ACLU) is asking the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) to intervene in a “potentially racially hostile education environment” in Brighton schools.

Supreme Court declines to hear bathroom case in victory for transgender student

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a Virginia school board’s appeal to reinstate its transgender bathroom ban.

Michael McCloud, 67 and been out of prison for two years. The Johnson County DA wanted to send him back

Brandi Levy sued her school after she was punished for posting a profane rant on Snapchat when she missed out on making the varsity cheerleading team.

The Supreme Court has ruled that a Pennsylvania public school wrongly suspended a student from cheerleading over a vulgar social media post.

A district court judge has dismissed claims that former White House officials conspired to forcibly remove peaceful protesters last year from Washington, D.C.'s Lafayette Square.

The U.S. Department of Justice is challenging bans involving transgender people that target athletes in West Virginia and children in Arkansas.

"Loving Day" celebrates the historic ruling in Loving v. Virginia, which declared unconstitutional a Virginia law prohibiting mixed-race marriage — and legalized interracial marriage in every state.

Texas has allocated $1 billion in funding for a new border wall amid a surge in illegal migrant crossings, as its governor says the state “will not sit idly by as this crisis grows.” More than 180,000 people were apprehended by US Customs and Border Protection in May - the most since April 2000. Governor Greg Abbott blamed Joe Biden for the record crossings, saying: "It is out of control and a change is needed.” A clearer plan will be revealed next week, but vowing to continue a signature Donald

A lot has changed since the 1960s. And the world can change quickly, too. If there has ever been a time when that is clear, it’s now.

The intruders also attacked the family dog as they left, hitting the pet with a garden tool and leaving it seriously wounded and bloody.

The family reunification task force says it's identified "nearly all" of the children separated from families.

West Virginia accused of violating federal discrimination laws and of believing in ‘false scientific claims’ with ban for transgender girls on sports teams

A mother and daughter who were separated for six years were reunited after a photo of the child at the U.S.-Mexico border was shown on television.

The Biden administration says it has identified more than 3,900 children separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border under former President Donald Trump’s “zero-tolerance” policy on illegal crossings.

A federal lawsuit has been filed challenging West Virginia’s new ban on transgender athletes from competing in female sports in middle and high schools and colleges.

The Biden administration has been negotiating with the American Civil Liberties Union, which sued the government over the expulsions of migrant families.

A Newsy investigation in 2020 found the FDA’s own data show the pill to be safer than Viagra and complications from medication abortions are rare.

A Newsy investigation in 2020 found the FDA’s own data show the pill to be safer than Viagra and complications from medication abortions are rare.

In dozens of lawsuits, inmates argued that jails and prisons violated their constitutional rights by failing to protect them against the coronavirus.

The families are the first to be reunited in the U.S. since President Biden issued an executive order in February to create a task force dedicated to repairing families torn apart as a result of his predecessor’s controversial family separation policy.

Four families are expected to be reunited this week, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said.

Measure also declares the city a "sanctuary for the unborn." Abortion rights advocates are seen as virtually certain to go to court to try to stop it.

The Biden administration said Monday that four families that were separated at the Mexico border during Donald Trump's presidency will be reunited in the United States this week in what Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas calls “just the beginning” of a broader effort. Two of the four families include mothers who were separated from their children in late 2017, one Honduran and another Mexican, Mayorkas said, declining to detail their identities. Parents will return to the United States on humanitarian parole while authorities consider other longer-term forms of legal status, said Michelle Brane, executive director of the administration's Family Reunification Task Force.

The Biden administration is in talks with private prison company GEO Group about possibly renewing a South Florida immigration detention center contract despite the president’s past pledge to do away with private detention facilities and over the vehement objections of immigration advocates.

The ACLU has yet to file a single lawsuit against President Biden in his first 100 days amid the growing humanitarian crisis at the southern border.

WYOMING, MI -- Wyoming city leaders have pulled a proposed parking law from consideration after organizations raised concerns it would criminalize homelessness. Under the proposed law, people would be hit with a $75 civil infraction for a first offense and then a misdemeanor for a second and any further offenses. “It seeks to criminalize homelessness in Wyoming in a time when so many people in the city and the country have lost a lot due to this pandemic. For many people, they’ve lost access to housing, and this ordinance prevents them from getting back on their feet.”Wyoming city officials say the proposed law was not intended to penalize homelessness. The proposed law is also counter to pandemic guidance on unsheltered people from the state’s health department, the ACLU noted.

Arkansas just passed a controversial law that criminalizes gender-affirming medical treatment for trans youth.

ANN ARBOR, MI — Ann Arbor City Council members have said they want to end personal attacks between each other. But new council rules aimed at doing so have been the subject of debate for several weeks now. Ann Arbor’s new City Council rules ‘run afoul of the First Amendment,’ ACLU saysCity Attorney Stephen Postema provided council members with a confidential legal memo on First Amendment issues ahead of Tuesday’s meeting. Citing the attorney’s memo, Council Member Jen Eyer, D-4th Ward, challenged the notion that the new rules are illegal. Postema told council members he’s happy to work with them and talk with the ACLU to resolve the disagreements.

PARKER, Colo. (KCNC-TV)– The mother of a now-12-year-old Colorado boy with autism is suing the Douglas County School District, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and School Resource Officers involved in taking her son into custody in 2019. The lawsuit, filed with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, claims the school district and sheriff’s office failed to adequately train and supervise SROs. The sheriff issues a statement “It was reported that a student had stabbed another student with a pair of scissors. The Douglas County School District issued this statement to CBS4: “The School District has not been served with the complaint and has not yet had the opportunity to fully analyze its allegations and claims. In this incident, it was reported that a student had stabbed another student with a pair of scissors.

The American Civil Liberties Union has announced that its project working on LGBTQ and HIV issues is being named after Jon L. Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović. The Jon L. Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović LGBTQ & HIV Project, located inside of the ACLU Ruth Bader Ginsburg Liberty Center in New York, will continue the ACLU’s work to make justice and equality a lived reality for LGBTQ people and all people living with HIV. The launching of the Jon L. Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović LGBTQ & HIV Project is made possible through a landmark $15 million gift to the ACLU Foundation. “Jon and Slo have been pioneering supporters for our LGBTQ rights work for years,” ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero said. Stryker said, “LGBTQ rights are literally life-and-death human rights issues.

ANN ARBOR, MI — The American Civil Liberties Union has weighed in on the legality of Ann Arbor’s new City Council rules that have been a hot topic of debate among city officials. Under ethics rules, council members can face counseling by the committee or reprimand for misconduct. Council members are still considering whether to adopt new rules for public speakers at council meetings. MORE FROM THE ANN ARBOR NEWS:EPA answers lingering questions about possible Superfund cleanup in Ann ArborAnn Arbor banned Airbnb houses in neighborhoods. Ypsilanti OKs using marijuana application fees to help ex-inmates find housingDowntown Ann Arbor music store pursues liquor license for bar, entertainment use

Deborah Archer, ACLU's first Black president, discusses the group's top priorities The American Civil Liberties Union has elected Deborah Archer to lead its national board. She's making history as the first Black president in the history of the organization. Archer joined CBSN to discuss how the ACLU is fighting for systemic equality.

ANN ARBOR, MI — Some Ann Arbor officials are questioning the constitutionality of new City Council rules aimed at limiting council members’ speaking times and holding them accountable for personal attacks against each other. That borders on infringing on council members’ First Amendment rights, Ramlawi has argued, questioning the discretion it gives the mayor. Under ethics rules, council members can face counseling by the committee or reprimand for misconduct. It has been suggested council members could be stripped of committee assignments if they act badly. Time council members spend asking questions of staff now counts against their speaking times.

Law enforcement agencies can respond that way under an arcane Oregon law that critics say allows them to violate people's First Amendment rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. In 1971, the Virginia Supreme Court invalidated Virginia’s unlawful assembly statute on First Amendment grounds, the ACLU of Oregon said. The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon says that because unlawful assembly is not a crime in Oregon, the vast majority of protesters who were arrested were charged with interfering with a peace officer. The Oregon law is still unconstitutional because it gives police outsized power to silence dissent, said Kelly Simon, the ACLU of Oregon’s interim legal director. “Ironically, or maybe not so ironically in Oregon, unlawful assembly declarations too often are precursors to police violence against those asking for the government to recognize their right to be safe,” Simon told Bynum's subcommittee.

(AP Photo/Matt York)WASHINGTON – The Biden administration has asked the Supreme Court to put off arguments over two controversial Trump administration policies that have been challenged in court now that President Joe Biden has taken steps to unwind them. In his first days as president, Biden rescinded the national emergency Trump declared on the southern border and ordered a pause in wall construction. AdThe American Civil Liberties Union, which represents groups that sued the Trump administration in both cases, has agreed to putting off both cases, acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the court. “It’s a good start that the Biden administration is not rushing to defend Trump’s illegal wall in court, but just hitting the brakes isn’t enough. Trump’s wall devastated border communities, the environment, and tribal sites,” ACLU lawyer Dror Ladin said.

She succeeds Susan Herman, a professor at Brooklyn Law School who had served as president since 2008. Early in her career, after graduating from Yale Law School, she was a legal fellow at the ACLU in 1997-98. At NYU Law School, Archer is a professor of clinical law and director of its Civil Rights Clinic. Ad“There is no one better equipped, who best personifies or is more capable to helm the future battles for civil rights, civil liberties, and systemic equality than Deborah Archer,” Romero said. “President Trump may be gone but his toxic legacy on civil rights and civil liberties is still very much with us,” Romero said.

The Legislature approved changes last week to Michigan's sex offender registry after federal courts declared the current policy unconstitutional. LANSING — The Legislature approved changes last week to Michigan's sex offender registry after federal courts declared the current policy unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Robert Cleland had ruled that some changes in the current registry law made in the last two decades were too vague or impossible to enforce and therefore unconstitutional. In 2011, the state approved a requirement for registrants to immediately report changes in addresses, vehicles and phone numbers. The legislation would require offenders to report changes in phone numbers and vehicles to authorities.

LANSING, Mich. – The Legislature approved changes last week to Michigan’s sex offender registry after federal courts declared the current policy unconstitutional. In 2006, the state prohibited those on the registry from living or loitering within 1,000 feet of school property. In 2011, the state approved a requirement for registrants to immediately report changes in addresses, vehicles and phone numbers. Since the judge's February decision, officers were advised not to take enforcement action for certain violations involving the registry and school safety zones, said Michigan State Police spokeswoman Shanon Banner. The legislation would require offenders to report changes in phone numbers and vehicles to authorities.

LANSING, Mich. – “We are, so excited about this coalition, and we’re excited about these reforms. They prove that when people work together, they make genuine real process in Lansing,” said Kimberly Buddin. Thursday, several organizations -- like Americans for Prosperity, the ACLU of Michigan, Safe and Just Michigan and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy -- presented the Justice Reform Package to the State House and Senate. They addressed key and important issues like driver’s license suspensions, mandatory minimum sentencing, case initiation, sentencing, probation, racial justice and fairness. The State House approved the package, now they move on to the Senate.

(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)LAS VEGAS – Some military voters are concerned they have been thrust into the center of unsubstantiated fraud claims by President Donald Trump’s campaign that several thousand people may have improperly voted in Nevada. Still, lawyers from Trump’s campaign sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr alleging they had uncovered what they described as “criminal voter fraud” in Nevada. Those people were identified by “cross-referencing the names and addresses of voters with the National Change of Address database,” according to the letter. Instead, it listed voters by the county, city, state and zip code they moved from, and the city, state and nine-digit zip code they moved to. Voting rights activists say hundreds of people on the list appear to be linked to the U.S. military.

Most of the parents were deported to their Central American homelands, and their children were placed with sponsors in the U.S., often relatives. But it was later discovered an additional 1,556 children were taken from their parents going back to summer 2017, including the 545 kids who are still separated. The administration’s foot-dragging has made it even tougher to find the parents because of how much time has passed, he said. The judge called for an update on Dec. 2 and set another hearing for Dec. 4 to discuss the progress. Just nine parents separated from their children were allowed back in January.

DETROIT – The battle over foreclosures in Wayne County took a new turn Thursday in Detroit. The American Civil Liberties Union wants the county to protect many from foreclosure for years to come. The county has taken action to protect those struggling by suspending all foreclosures through the end of the year. Now the ACLU wants to take it a step further protecting those from foreclosure for years to come. Local 4 reached out to the Wayne County Treasurer’s Office but calls have not been returned.

SAN DIEGO – Court-appointed lawyers said Tuesday that they have been unable to find parents of 545 children who were separated at the U.S. border with Mexico early in the Trump administration. The children were separated between July 1, 2017, and June 26, 2018, when a federal judge in San Diego ordered that children in government custody be reunited with their parents. The American Civil Liberties Union, which sued over the practice, said a court-appointed steering committee located parents of 485 children, up 47 from August. That leaves 545 still unaccounted for among the 1,030 children for whom the steering committee had telephone numbers from U.S. authorities. About two-thirds of parents of those 545 children are believed to be in their countries of origin, the ACLU said.

DETROIT – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic shouldn’t stop you from voting. Engage Michigan is teaming up with the ACLU and many other organizations to create MichiganVoting.org, a website that provides information for voters. The website is expected to have information on how to get to the polls on election day. Watch the video above for the full report

Pearland Police Chief Johnny Spires defended the large law enforcement presence. Drake said the ACLU was deeply troubled that BORTAC agents were part of the law enforcement response. BORTAC agents have been criticized for how they have detained and arrested protesters in Portland, Oregon. A representative of Customs and Border Protection in Washington, D.C., declined to comment on the work of BORTAC agents in Pearland. CBP said its special operations teams are routinely deployed to help law enforcement nationwide.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. Brown University rebutted what the school calls spurious conspiracy claims" as it responded to an allegation that it is failing to comply with a 1998 agreement ensuring gender equity in sports. The Ivy League school this year announced it was cutting several varsity women's and men's sports, and reducing them to club status. The agreement stemmed from a lawsuit filed after Brown dropped womens gymnastics and volleyball as varsity sports. Brown last month released internal documents, including emails from high-ranking school officials, that Public Justice and the ACLU said show Brown wanted to undermine and dismantle the 1998 agreement. Brown President Christina Paxson said the school fully supports women's sports.

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, challenging the legality of the actions taken by U.S. agents sent by President Donald Trump to subdue protests in Portland. The federal agents exceeded the limits of their authority, making illegal arrests and using tear gas, rubber bullets, pepper spray and other tactics to squelch the protests, the lawsuit alleges. A video of plaintiff and Navy veteran Christopher David's encounter with U.S. agents outside the Portland courthouse circulated widely on social media. It showed one agent hitting David with a baton and another dousing him in the face with pepper spray. Local police have arrested hundreds of people over the three months and federal agents arrested at least 94 people at the height of the demonstrations in July.

NORFOLK, Va. A Virginia state senator has been charged with damaging a Confederate monument in Portsmouth during protests that also led to a demonstrator being critically injured when a statue was torn down, authorities said Monday. Lucas is a longtime Democratic legislator and a key power broker in the state Senate, joining the chamber in 1992. The monument in Portsmouth consists of a large obelisk and statues of four Confederate military personnel. Felony charges leveled against a sitting state senator are to be taken seriously, and should not be sought out for political gain, he said in a statement. "It is for that reason that the Republican Party of Virginia calls for Senator Lucas to turn herself in.

As of this week, the ACLU has filed nearly 400 lawsuits and other legal actions against the Trump administration, some meeting with setbacks but many resulting in important victories. As of this week, the ACLU has filed nearly 400 lawsuits and other legal actions against the Trump administration, some meeting with setbacks but many resulting in important victories. Donald Trump has provided a full employment program for ACLU lawyers on all of our issues, Romero said. By a similar 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court also allowed the implementation of the Trump administration policy barring transgender people from enlisting in the military. In an email, Turley questioned the wisdom of the torrent of lawsuits against the Trump administration.

Robert Williams was the victim of shoddy investigative work," police Chief James Craig said. Williams, 42, was arrested in January in front of his family at their home in Farmington Hills, a Detroit suburb. The video wasn't as clear as he felt it should be. The ACLU, which opposes the use of facial technology by police, publicized Williams' case. He blamed it on subpar work by police and prosecutors but said the technology can be useful if handled properly.

DETROIT The controversy over the use of facial recognition technology continues after a Farmington Hill man was arrested at his home for a crime he didnt commit. They claim he was arrested based off of facial recognition software. READ: A closer look at facial recognition technologyAll of the photos had two things in common, said Williams Attorney, Victoria Burton-Harris. They were all Black faces and men.Once the cops identified Mr. Williams using facial recognition technology, said Phil Mayor with the ACLU of Michigan. The family is demanding a public apology and for the DPD to scrap its use of facial recognition software.

DETROIT Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy spoke to Local 4 Defenders after a Farmington Hill man was arrested at his home for a crime he didnt commit. He was arrested after facial recognition software identified the wrong man. She said the case brought by Detroit police was based only on the departments use of facial recognition technology. I am 100% sure they arrested the wrong person.It was issued by a prosecutor that shouldnt have, Worthy said. RELATED: Facial recognition technology: Rep. Tlaib raises concerns during tour with Detroit police chiefThis never should have happened.

A spokesman for the Human Rights Council in Geneva confirmed that it had received a letter Monday from the groups outlining their call, as Black Lives Matter protests continue to gain traction well beyond the United States notably in Europe. I want to appeal to the United Nations to help him. Help black men and women in America, he added. Its time the United States face the same scrutiny and judgment it is quick to pass on to other countries, said Jamil Dakwar, who heads the ACLUs human rights program. The Trump administration pulled the United States out of the council two years ago amid accusations that it was biased against Israel and counted some repressive or autocratic regimes that abuse human rights as members.

A second wave of tech-assisted pandemic surveillance tools is on its way, this time with the imprimatur of tech giants Apple and Google. It's traditionally conducted by trained public health workers who interview those who may have been exposed, then urge them to get tested and isolate themselves. She urged governments to set rules addressing both privacy and efficacy so that surveillance tools don't interfere with more conventional public health methods. As early as this week, Rhode Island has said it is set to launch a one-stop pandemic response phone app. It was updated on May 19, 2020, to correct information about the usage of COVID-19 contact-tracking apps.

A Detroit-area woman who was fired by a funeral home after she no longer wanted to be recognized as a man died Tuesday before the U.S. Supreme Court could rule on whether federal civil rights law protects transgender people. Aimee Stephens death was announced by the American Civil Liberties Union, which represented her in a lawsuit against R.G. AdvertisementMore than anything, this is what we hope you'll listen to today: Aimee Stephens' fight for trans rights, the moment she realized how many people were behind her in this fight, and why we should never give up, in her own words. The funeral homes owner, Thomas Rost, said Stephens appearance would be a distraction for grieving families. @DrBiden and I are saddened to learn of the passing of Aimee Stephens.

(Reuters) - The diverse opponents of qualified immunity have thrown their weight behind at least five appeals now awaiting the Supreme Courts attention, each considered a potential means of removing or softening the doctrine. A federal district court judge hearing Baxters case allowed it to move forward. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, granted the officers immunity. Baxter then petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn the lower court. Others call for a rethink of the two-question test for deciding requests for qualified immunity.

OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. – On Friday, several civil rights and racial justice groups filed a federal lawsuit calling for the release of medically vulnerable people inside the Oakland County Jail, arguing that county officials are risking the lives of everyone inside and the community at large. Naming Oakland County, its Sheriff, Michael Bouchard, and Commander of Corrective Services Curtis D. Childs, the lawsuit filed by Advancement Project National Office, American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan (ACLU), Civil Rights Corps (CRC), LaRene & Kriger P.L.C. and the Law Firm of Pitt, McGhee, Palmer and Rivers in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, argues that Oakland County officials are violating the constitutional rights of people in the jail by exposing them to an unnecessary risk of infection, illness or death during the coronavirus pandemic.

A Monroe County resident and another former county detainee recently were temporarily released, while two more immigrants also argue for their release, given their risk to coronavirus. Jose Nicolas Chavez-Vargas, a 50-year-old Mexican national, and Gener Alejandro Chinchilla-Flores, a 36-year-old Costa Rican national, both detained at the Monroe County jail, also are awaiting decisions on their release. Public health experts warn that social distancing is absolutely necessary to limit the spread of COVID-19. Officials from the Monroe County jail did not comment on the pending lawsuit, stating that the agency cannot comment or provide any information related to ICE detainees. Jails are not designed or equipped to handle this extraordinary public health crisis.

BOSTON, MA – A federal court in Boston has ruled that warrantless U.S. government searches of the phones and laptops of international travelers at airports and other U.S. ports of entry violate the Fourth Amendment. They say border officers must now demonstrate individualized suspicion of contraband before they can search a traveler's electronic device. The number of electronic device searches at U.S. ports of entry has increased significantly, the ACLU said. During that same period of time, it conducted 40,913 border searches of electronic devices, representing less than .01 percent of arriving international travelers. "The court said today that suspicionless searches at the border of cell phones and laptops violate the Fourth Amendment," Rossman said.

FILE - In this Sept. 10, 2019, file photo, government contractors remove existing Normandy barriers that separate Mexico and the United States, in preparation for a section of Pentagon-funded border wall along the Colorado River in Yuma, Ariz. A federal appeals court has heard arguments against diverting Pentagon money for border wall construction as time runs out. It says the Trump administration has moved quickly to spend the money after the Supreme Court rejected an emergency appeal to prevent work from starting in July. (AP Photo/Matt York,File)A federal appeals court heard arguments Tuesday on a bid to halt military funding for construction of President Donald Trump's border wall with Mexico as the pace of construction increasingly raises questions about whether time is running out for the administration's critics. The Pentagon has diverted $6.1 billion to pay for construction since Trump declared a national emergency on the border in February. Ladin said in an interview that sections of wall in dispute should be torn down if the ACLU prevails.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan alleges a Republican candidate for Congress has discriminated against a troupe of drag performers with Down syndrome. The civil rights group filed a complaint Thursday with the Michigan Civil Rights Department against Peter Meijer, one of several GOP candidates running to replace the newly declared independent Rep. Justin Amash. Meijer denied access to the U.K.-based Drag Syndrome for a performance in a Grand Rapids building he owns. Copyright 2019 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved.

The bill would ban the use of facial recognition and any biometric surveillance system in police-worn body cameras. Currently, there are no cities in California that have that technology in their police body cameras, Ting said Tuesday at a news conference. Others says the technology is a "necessary tool"Some law enforcement agencies disagree and say the bill would impair the ability of officers. "This technology allows law enforcement agencies to compare images of hundreds of thousands of individuals, which saves time and agency resources," Mirisch writes. Other states have banned itIf the bill is passed, California will become the largest state to prohibit facial-recognition technology in police-worn body cameras.

Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images(CNN) - Abortion rights supporters are suing Missouri over its ban on abortions after eight weeks of pregnancy, arguing that the measure is unconstitutional. "By imposing a ban on abortion prior to viability, the 8-Week Ban violates Plaintiffs' patients' rights to privacy and liberty guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution," the groups wrote. The challenge joins several others by abortion rights supporters in response to laws passed this year restricting abortion in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana and Ohio. Parson signed the Missouri measure into law in May, and it is slated to go into effect on August 28. The law would ban abortion outright should the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark ruling legalizing abortion nationwide and establishing the age of viability at 24 weeks.

Immigrant asylum seekers wait at a bus station after being released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), on Nov. 1, 2018, in McAllen, Texas. A federal court had ordered family separations to end at that time, except in cases where a parent is unfit or presents a danger to the child. But the ACLU filing maintains that US Customs and Border Protection agents continue to do so despite the court order, separating children based on minor offenses like traffic violations. Earlier this year, a federal judge ruled that potentially thousands more parents and children the US government split up at the southern border would now be included in a lawsuit over family separations. Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan said at a recent House hearing that fewer than 1,000 migrant children have been separated from their parents at the southern border this fiscal year, out of 450,000 families who have crossed.

If you think a veggie burger sounds unappealing, wait until it's listed as a "vegetable-based protein" on a restaurant menu. - If you think a veggie burger sounds unappealing, wait until it's listed as a "vegetable-based protein" on a restaurant menu. That's how it could appear in Arkansas, the latest in a string of states to pass bills that control how so-called fake meat is marketed. Companies found to misrepresent a vegetarian item as a meat product could be fined $1,000 per violation. The ACLU said companies use "meat" terminology to prevent confusion rather than cause it.

Since most migrants from Central America travel through Mexico, it would prevent those people from making asylum claims. The Los Angeles Times first reported on the memo and two sources familiar with the memo confirmed its accuracy to CNN. Migrants will generally be deported to their country of nationality based on the new rule, according to a source familiar with the implementation. "This is the Trump administration's most extreme run at an asylum ban yet. As of Tuesday, no guidance had been sent to the US Border Patrol workforce on implementation, according to an agency source.

The challenge comes as several of the laws coming out of red state legislatures restricting abortion are being taken to court, with the two organizations also challenging Alabama's near-total abortion ban. The ACLU and Planned Parenthood have requested that US District Judge Kristine Baker, who is overseeing the Arkansas case, halt the laws from going into effect as scheduled on July 24. "Without this relief, the Restrictions will have a devastating effect on women seeking to access abortion in the state," the ACLU and Planned Parenthood argue. "By imposing a ban on abortion prior to viability, the 18-Week Ban violates Plaintiffs' patients' right to privacy guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution," the ACLU and Planned Parenthood argue in the complaint. The two groups filed the case on behalf of Little Rock Family Planning Services, Planned Parenthood Great Plains and two abortion providers against Arkansas officials, including Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge.

DETROIT – The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan is reaching out to more than 100 clerks across the state Thursday urging them to inform voters that state law allows voters to cast a ballot with or without photo identification. In a letter sent to the clerks, the ACLU is asking that they post clear, accurate information about voter identification requirements at voting sites Tuesday to eliminate any confusion. If you’re a registered voter in Michigan, you have a right to vote – with or without a photo ID,” said Sharon Dolente, with ACLU of Michigan. “I wasn’t sure what my rights were but I assumed I could still vote,” said White. “Voters rely on the guidance of election officials to ensure that they can exercise their fundamental right to vote,” said Dolente.