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Slide Show: Survivor Stories >> Supreme Court Strikes Michigan Law The United States Supreme Court ruled that the Michigan law denying legal representation to poor people in a criminal appeal is unconstitutional. The ACLU of Michigan filed the one of a kind case after the law was passed in 1999. Under the law, an indigent criminal defendant who wished to challenge his sentence after pleading guilty was generally not entitled to appointed counsel, even for a first appeal. Michigan was the only state in the country that denied appointed counsel under these circumstances. Read more >> Ensuring Young People's Access to Counsel in Ohio The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, ACLU National, The Children’s Law Center and the Ohio Public Defender’s Office filed a petition with the Ohio Supreme Court on March 9 calling for the court to protect children’s right to counsel when they are accused of a crime. Read more >> Montana's Defense Bill Leads Trend The ACLU applauds the Montana Legislature's passage of ground breaking public defender legislation that creates a new state wide office and guarantees constitutional rights to all Montanans, not just those who can afford to pay lawyers. Read more >> The Trials of Darryl Hunt ACLU Senior Staff Attorney Reggie Shuford talks with Darryl Hunt, left, and Mark Rabil about Darryl Hunt's wrongful conviction. His case brings up questions of cross-racial eyewitness identification, prosecutorial misconduct, inexperienced defense attorneys and racial bias in death penalty cases. Learn more >> MP3 | Podcast Day of Darryl Hunt's Exoneration Feb 2004

Report Reveals Unwarranted Detention Of Massachusetts Youth (12/18/2008)
BOSTON – Massachusetts police and probation officers are unnecessarily incarcerating youth who are arrested when juvenile court is typically closed, according to a report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Massachusetts and the Children's Law Center of Massachusetts. Many have been arrested for minor infractions and pose no obvious risk of flight or danger to the community.

ACLU Applauds Rep Bobby Scotts Youth Violence Summit (12/3/2008)
WASHINGTON – Today, as part of a youth violence summit hosted by Representative Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), ACLU Legislative Counsel Jennifer Bellamy moderated a panel “Law Enforcement/Judicial Perspective on the Need for Prevention.” The purpose of the half-day issues forum, entitled “Empowering Communities to Combat Gang Crime: The Youth PROMISE Act,” is to address the need for evidence-based strategies for juvenile justice prevention and intervention.

Human Rights, Justice Advocate Jennifer Bellamy Is New ACLU Counsel for Criminal Justice (11/6/2008)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union today announced that Jennifer Bellamy is the new legislative counsel for criminal justice issues for the Washington Legislative Office in advance of her remarks on juvenile justice in an Obama administration. In Bellamy’s new role, she advocates on behalf of more than 500,000 ACLU members on a broad range of criminal justice issues including juvenile justice and drug policy reform, eliminating racial disparities in law enforcement practices and strengthening privacy protections for personal information such as DNA.

ACLU Releases Presidential Transition Plan To Restore Civil Liberties (10/27/2008)
WASHINGTON – In anticipation of the presidential election, the American Civil Liberties Union today released a set of detailed recommendations on steps that the new president should take to “clean house,” renew freedom, and restore the nation’s reputation.

NYCLU, ACLU Warn NYPD about Illegal Arrests of Schoolchildren (10/8/2008)