California
FBI v. Fazaga
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FBI v. Fazaga
Privacy & Technology
Status: Closed (Judgment)
In a case scheduled to be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on November 8, 2021, three Muslim Americans are challenging the FBI’s secret spying on them and their communities based on their religion, in violation of the Constitution and federal law. In what will likely be a landmark case, the plaintiffs — Yassir Fazaga, Ali Uddin Malik, and Yasser Abdelrahim — insist that the FBI cannot escape accountability for violating their religious freedom by invoking “state secrets.” The plaintiffs are represented by the Center for Immigration Law and Policy at UCLA School of Law, the ACLU of Southern California, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Council for American Islamic Relations, and the law firm of Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai.
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Featured
Immigrants' Rights
Innovation Law Lab v. Wolf
Status: Ongoing
The American Civil Liberties Union, Southern Poverty Law Center, and Center for Gender & Refugee Studies filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s new policy forcing asylum seekers to return to Mexico and remain there while their cases are considered.
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Racial Justice
MediaJustice, et al. v. Federal Bureau of Investigation, et al.
Status: Ongoing
On March 21, 2019, the American Civil Liberties Union and MediaJustice, formerly known as “Center for Media Justice,” filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking records about FBI targeting of Black activists. The lawsuit enforces the ACLU and MediaJustice’s right to information about a 2017 FBI Intelligence Assessment that asserts, without evidence, that a group of so-called “Black Identity Extremists” poses a threat of domestic terrorism. The Intelligence Assessment was widely disseminated to law enforcement agencies nationwide, raising public concern about government surveillance of Black people and Black-led organizations based on anti-Black stereotypes and First Amendment protected activities.
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All Southern California Cases
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February 16, 2023
February 16, 2023
Knight v. St. Joseph Hospital
LGBTQ Rights
Status: Closed (Settled)
The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Northern California, the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Southern California and Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP filed a lawsuit on March 21, 2019 on behalf of Oliver Knight, a 29-year-old transgender man who was denied surgery minutes before it was scheduled to take place based on the hospital’s religious beliefs, which do not recognize gender-affirming care.
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September 19, 2022
September 19, 2022
Rutherford v. Luna
Prisoners' Rights
Conditions at the LA County Jail system have been the subject of court oversight since 1978.
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March 24, 2022
March 24, 2022
Kariye v Mayorkas
Civil Liberties
Status: Ongoing
In March 2022, the ACLU, ACLU of Minnesota, and ACLU of Southern California filed a lawsuit on behalf of three Muslim Americans who have been subjected to intrusive questioning from border officers about their religious beliefs, practices, and associations in violation of their constitutional rights.
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November 29, 2021
November 29, 2021
Inland Empire – Immigrant Youth Collective v. McAleenan
Immigrants' Rights
Status: Closed (Judgment)
The ACLU and the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California won a nationwide preliminary injunction on behalf of a class of young immigrants challenging the Trump administration’s unlawful revocations of their Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status.
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November 1, 2021
November 1, 2021
Dignity Health v. Minton
LGBTQ Rights
Status: Closed (Voluntarily Dismissed)
Evan Minton was turned away from a Dignity Health hospital because he is transgender. He filed a lawsuit against a Dignity Health medical center for withholding medical care because of a patient’s gender identity, amounting to sex discrimination in violation of California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act.
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