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ACLU Appeals Conviction Of Pennsylvania Man Charged With Harassment For Contacting His Public Officials For Help (07/23/2008)
PITTSBURGH - The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania has filed an appeal in the state Superior Court on behalf of Bridgeville, PA resident Marshall Pappert, who was found guilty of harassment after he complained to the Bridgeville borough manager about the noise and pollution caused by a concrete manufacturing plant across the street from his home.

Palm Beach Student's Rights Upheld by 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Pledge of Allegiance Case (07/23/2008)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida today claimed victory in its federal lawsuit, Cameron Frazier v. Cynthia Alexandre et al, as the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an earlier District Court decision preventing a Palm Beach County school from requiring a student from standing to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. The court left the decision that Cameron Frazier's rights were violated untouched while leaving the door open for additional lawsuits by refusing to rule on the statute as it applies across the board to all students.

Federal Court Once Again Upholds Ban On Unconstitutional Internet Censorship Law (07/22/2008)
PHILADELPHIA - In a clear victory for free speech today, a federal court once again upheld a ban on a law that would criminalize constitutionally protected speech on the Internet. The American Civil Liberties Union challenged the unconstitutional Child Online Protection Act (COPA) on behalf of a broad coalition of writers, artists and health educators who use the internet to communicate constitutionally protected speech.

ACLU Applauds Federal Court Decision To Toss Fine In "Wardrobe Malfunction" Case (07/21/2008)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded a federal appeals court decision to uphold free speech by throwing out a $550,000 indecency fine leveraged against CBS for the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” that exposed her breast at the 2004 Super Bowl.

ACLU And EFF Sue Justice Department To Uncover Records Of Cell Phone Tracking (07/01/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed a lawsuit today urging a federal court to order the Department of Justice (DOJ) to turn over records related to the government's use of people's cell phones as tracking devices. The ACLU filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the records in November 2007 following revelations that federal officials are using Americans' cell phones to pinpoint their locations, sometimes without a warrant or any court oversight. The DOJ has failed to release the documents or provide an adequate response to the request.

Government Revoked Muslim Nuclear Physicist's Security Clearance To Retaliate For Criticism Of U.S. Policy, Says ACLU (06/26/2008)
PITTSBURGH - The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania filed a lawsuit today on behalf of Dr. Moniem El-Ganayni, a nuclear physicist and naturalized American citizen whose security clearance was improperly revoked earlier this year by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). In an unprecedented move, the government – counter to its own policy – has denied El-Ganayni the chance to contest the revocation and refused to divulge the reasons behind it, citing "national security."

Journalists Win Appeal In FBI Brutality Case (06/19/2008)
SAN JUAN, PR - A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that an unprovoked attack on journalists by FBI agents would clearly violate the Fourth Amendment. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed an earlier decision to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of journalists who were kicked, punched and pepper sprayed by FBI agents as they attempted to report on the search of a San Juan apartment.

Súplica del Triunfo de los Reporteros en Caso de la Brutalidad del FBI (06/19/2008)
SAN JUAN, PR - Una corte federal de apelación dictaminó ayer que un ataque no provocado contra periodistas por los agentes del FBI violaría claramente la Cuarta Enmienda. La Corte de Apelación de los E.E.U.U. para el Primer Circuito revocó una decisión de desestimación en un pleito traído por la ACLU a nombre de los periodistas que fueron golpeados a patadas y puños y rociados con gas pimienta por los agentes del FBI mientras intentaban cubrir un allanamiento en un apartamento en San Juan.

Federal Court Rules That D.C. Police Unlawfully Arrested Anti-Bush Protesters On Inauguration Day (06/18/2008)
Washington, DC — A federal court ruled yesterday that the District of Columbia had unlawfully arrested about 70 people during an anti-war and anti-Bush protest march on Inauguration Day 2005. The arrestees are now entitled to a trial to determine the amount of the District’s monetary liability to them.

ACLU Urges Court To Uphold Ban On Unconstitutional Censorship Law (06/10/2008)
PHILADELPHIA - The American Civil Liberties Union is in court today, once again urging the courts to uphold a ban on a law that criminalizes constitutionally protected speech on the Internet. The Child Online Protection Act (COPA) would impose draconian criminal sanctions, with penalties of up to $50,000 per day and up to six months imprisonment, for online material acknowledged as protected for adults but deemed "harmful to minors."

ACLU Files Brief In Defense Of Religious Speech (06/04/2008)
NEW ORLEANS - At the invitation of the Alliance Defense Fund, the ACLU Foundation of Louisiana has submitted an amicus "friend of the court" brief at the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. In the case, Netherland v. City of Zachary et al, the ACLU stresses that the First Amendment protects the right of an individual to quote Bible verses on the public streets. John Todd Netherland was arrested in Zachary on charges of disturbing the peace - for quoting the Bible. In its brief, the ACLU emphasizes that the government has no authority to censor speech and that "when a citizen attempts to quote the Bible in public, the Constitution protects his right to do so without fear of criminal prosecution."

MCLU Asks Supreme Court To Reject Augusta's $2,000 Fee for Protest March As Violation of Free Speech Rights (05/29/2008)
PORTLAND, Maine. - Yesterday, the Maine Civil Liberties Union Foundation asked the US Supreme Court to review the constitutionality of the fees of about $2,000 imposed on marchers by the City of Augusta. The request came in the form of a petition for a writ of certiorari--a mechanism for the Supreme Court to review decisions of lower courts across the country-for the case of Sullivan, et al. v. City of Augusta, a case originally filed by the MCLU in 2004. The lower court in question in this case is the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston, which last year upheld Augusta's parade fee provision even as applied to individuals who could not afford the fee.