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New Plaintiffs Join ACLU Illegal Arrests Lawsuit, Call on City Police to Finally End Unconstitutional Practices (12/18/2007)
BALTIMORE ­ Charging that Baltimore City police continue to arrest thousands of people without just cause each year, the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland today added new plaintiffs to its lawsuit against the Baltimore City Police Department ­ amending the case to challenge wrongful arrests that took place since the filing of the lawsuit in 2006. The legal filing includes an original plaintiff in the lawsuit who was wrongfully arrested for a second time, a young man who was illegally arrested twice in the same summer, and four plaintiffs who were wrongfully arrested while engaged in protected First Amendment activity.

Maine Civil Liberties Union Applauds Federal Court Decision Striking Down Portions of Unconstitutional Parade Ordinance (12/14/2007)
PORTLAND – Today the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit found that advance notice and meeting requirements associated with the city of Augusta’s parade ordinance are unconstitutional. The decision upholds an earlier decision by the district court in Bangor to strike down Augusta’s restrictions on free speech because they improperly limited the rights of citizens to march and protest in the state’s capital.

ACLU of Eastern Missouri Applauds Decision In Free Speech Case (12/06/2007)
ST. LOUIS – The American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri welcomed a decision today preserving the constitutional protection of unpopular speech. The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit found in favor of Shirley L. Phelps-Roper, a member of the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), in a case challenging a Missouri law that stripped her of her constitutional rights to free speech and religious liberty by banning protests at funerals. The court’s decision in Phelps-Roper v. Nixon reverses an earlier decision that denied Phelps-Roper’s request for a preliminary injunction while the constitutionality of the law is reviewed.

ACLU Seeks Government Records on Use of Cell Phones as Tracking Devices (11/29/2007)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request today with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to learn the details of the government’s use of cell phones as tracking devices. The request follows on the heels of revelations that federal officials are using Americans' cell phones to pinpoint their location, sometimes without any court oversight.

ACLU of Utah Asks State Supreme Court to Invalidate Tax Law That Censors Free Expression (11/16/2007)
SALT LAKE CITY – Citing First Amendment violations, the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the Utah Supreme Court today in a case challenging a state law that imposes a substantial tax on businesses deemed to be “sexually explicit.”

ACLU-MN sues state of Minnesota over unconstitutional massage therapist law (11/15/2007)
Saint Paul, Minn - The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, on behalf of LaRae Lundeen Fjellman and Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals, filed a lawsuit today against the current and former Commissioners of Health for the state of Minnesota. In their lawsuit they allege that the Minnesota statute (§146A.08, subd. 1(d)) which prohibits alternative health care providers from engaging in acts of private, consensual, noncommercial marital and non-marital sex with a former client within two years of termination of the professional relationship violates the rights of privacy and equal protection guaranteed by the Minnesota and United States Constitutions.

ACLU Asks Senate to Take Stronger Stand on Freedom of the Press (11/02/2007)
Washington, DC – In a letter to Senate leadership, the American Civil Liberties Union called for a vote on the House version of the federal reporters’ shield law. The House passed H.R. 2102, the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007, by a veto-proof majority of 398 to 21.

Maine Civil Liberties Union Says Attorney General's Office Unfairly Targeted City Councilor (11/01/2007)
PORTLAND, Maine -- The Maine Civil Liberties Union Foundation today began negotiations with the Maine attorney general's office on behalf of Jill Duson, a Portland City Councilor who is running for re-election on November 6. Duson, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania School Of Law, came under criticism from the attorney general's office last week for referring to herself as an attorney in campaign material, in reference to her previous work in Pennsylvania as a lawyer for low-income and elderly clients.

Maine Civil Liberties Union Says Attorney General’s Office Unfairly Targeted City Councilor (11/01/2007)
PORTLAND, ME - The Maine Civil Liberties Union Foundation today began negotiations with the Maine attorney general’s office on behalf of Jill Duson, a Portland City Councilor who is running for re-election on November 6. Duson, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania School Of Law, came under criticism from the attorney general’s office last week for referring to herself as an attorney in campaign material, in reference to her previous work in Pennsylvania as a lawyer for low-income and elderly clients.

ACLU of North Carolina Announces Successful Resolution Protecting First Amendment Right of Town Resident to Speak at Public Meeting (10/23/2007)
OAKBORO, NC - The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) today announced the successful resolution of a battle between local anti-drug activist Brandon Smith and the Oakboro Town Board of Commissioners over Smith's constitutional right to free speech during the public comment portion of the Town Board of Commissioners meetings.

Reporters Shield Bill that Passed the House Compromises on Free Speech, ACLU says (10/17/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today expressed disappointment with the version of the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007 that passed in the House last night, but believes the reporters’ shield legislation is a step in the right direction. H.R. 2102, introduced by Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) and Rick Boucher (D-VA), will lessen the chance that reporters will be arrested or intimidated for their reporting, particularly when using government sources.

ACLU ‘Howls’ Against FCC Destroying the Best Poems of a Generation (10/03/2007)
Washington, DC – On the 50th anniversary of a court ruling that deemed Allen Ginsberg’s ‘Howl’ not obscene, the American Civil Liberties Union lamented an ironic reversal of First Amendment rights. A New York public radio station chose not to air the poem in its news story commemorating the decision, fearful that massive FCC fines that would have effectively shut down the station. WBAI instead posted the poem online, out of the reach of the FCC.

ACLU Urges Senate Panel to Rework Reporters’ Shield Legislation, Says Free Flow of Information Vital to Democracy (09/27/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to amend S. 2035, The Free Flow of Information Act of 2007, during its markup of the bill to give greater protection to reporters and their sources. Raising concern was an exception for national security circumstances in the bill that was broadly written and could be misused in such a way as to nullify any protection afforded a source. The ACLU is asking that the exception be rewritten to allow the press as much freedom as possible when it comes to reporting relevant news to Americans.

Verizon’s Blocking Content is a Cry for Government Action on Net Neutrality, Free Speech Advocates are Feeling the Big Chill (09/27/2007)
Washington, DC –- The American Civil Liberties Union said that Verizon’s actions to block political speech in text messages do not bode well for free speech. While the ACLU appreciates that Verizon immediately changed course and allowed the speech after public outcry, Director of the ACLU’s Washington Legislative Office Caroline Fredrickson said, “this is exactly why we need the Government’s leadership on net neutrality for a free and open marketplace of ideas to continue to thrive in this country.”

ACLU Holds Symposium on Free Speech (09/20/2007)
Washington, DC - The American Civil Liberties Union, American University Washington College of Law and American University Law Review have joined together to host a two-day symposium titled Left Out in the Cold? The Chilling of Speech, Association, and the Press in Post-9/11 America. Topics including government surveillance, reporters' shield legislation and academic freedom will be discussed by members of Congress, First Amendment scholars, and government officials.

ACLU Says Pickering Bill Treads on First Amendment (09/19/2007)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union said today that legislation that attempts to regulate the content of television programs introduced today by Rep. Chip Pickering (R-Miss.) treads on the First Amendment. The legislation would attempt to regulate “indecent” television programming by requiring the Federal Communications Commission to implement a policy that would make a single word or image “indecent.”

Wardrobe Malfunction Case Demonstrates the Government Makes A Lousy Parent (09/11/2007)
WASHINGTON – Today the Third Circuit Court of Appeals has an opportunity to make clear to the Federal Communications Commission that the job of parenting belongs to parents and not to government. The U.S. appeals court today considers the case of singer Janet Jackson's famous “wardrobe malfunction” during the 2004 American football Super Bowl halftime show.

ACLU of Florida Speaks Out Against Free Speech Violation, Threatens Litigation (08/30/2007)
ORLANDO - The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida sent a letter today on behalf of Bryan J. and Leilani J. Orr, whose constitutionally protected free speech right to display political signs in their front yard was recently suppressed by the City of Clermont, FL, located in Lake County. Code Enforcement Officer Betty McMinamen demanded that the Orrs remove the sign from their yard in an August 23 letter citing a City code requiring a $50.00 deposit in order to display a political sign.

ACLU Rebukes Censorship of War Documentary (08/27/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for the effect of its vague and inconsistent treatment of “indecency.” Because of the uncertainty, some broadcasters are wary of airing a documentary on World War II since the fourteen hour movie contains a total of four expletives. The film, “The War” by filmmaker Ken Burns, is scheduled to air on the Public Broadcasting Channel on September 23. The FCC has the ability to enforce indecency laws by fining broadcasters for instances of “indecency” between 6 a.m. and 10pm.

ACLU Sues TSA Official, JetBlue for Discriminating Against Passenger Wearing Arabic T-Shirt (08/09/2007)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union and New York Civil Liberties Union today filed a federal civil rights lawsuit charging that a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) official and JetBlue Airways illegally discriminated against an American resident based solely on the Arabic message on his t-shirt and his ethnicity.