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Free Market Foundation, ACLU, Texas Eagle Forum PAC (02/13/2008)
AUSTIN, Texas – A broad-based coalition of plaintiffs today filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Austin that challenges a state law blocking individuals and organizations in Texas from engaging in true public debate over the election of the speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.

ACLU Urges William & Mary to Allow Controversial Show to Go On (02/04/2008)
Richmond, VA -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia today faxed a letter to William & Mary President Gene Nichol urging him to allow a performance of the Sex Workers’ Art Show to take place tonight as scheduled. The letter also informs him that a special contract the college is requiring sponsoring students and performers to sign is unconstitutional.

ACLU Files Court Brief In Support Of Attorney General's Right To Speak Out in Lead Paint Case (02/01/2008)
PROVIDENCE, RI - Supporting the public’s right to know, the Rhode Island ACLU has today filed a brief urging the R.I. Supreme Court to reverse the imposition of $15,000 in fines against Attorney General Patrick Lynch for public comments he made during the “lead paint public nuisance” case. The brief argues that the fines violated not only Lynch’s First Amendment right to free speech, but also the public’s right to hear the “views of attorneys concerning pending litigation in which the attorneys are involved.”

ACLU Says NY Times Reporter Subpoena Is Assault On Free Press (02/01/2008)
Washington, DC – After reports that a federal grand jury issued a subpoena to New York Times reporter James Risen last week in an attempt to force disclosure of a confidential source, the American Civil Liberties Union today strongly objected to the subpoena, saying that basic First Amendment principles are at stake when reporters are called into the courtroom against their will. According to reports, a chapter in Mr. Risen’s book on the Central Intelligence Agency, "State of War," piqued the interest of the Justice Department and consequently he has been ordered to appear before the grand jury next week.

ACLU Calls FCC Fine Paternalism at its Worst (01/28/2008)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today criticized a Federal Communications Commission proposal of a $1.4 million fine against 52 ABC network affiliates that aired a 2003 episode of NYPD Blue during which a woman’s nude buttocks can be seen. The ACLU responded that the fine represents another egregious example of the government trying to decide what grown adults can and cannot watch.

ACLU Statement In Support Of Senator Larry Craig’s Efforts To Withdraw His Guilty Plea (01/16/2008)
NEW YORK – The American Civil Liberties Union supports Senator Larry Craig’s attempt to have his guilty plea withdrawn because the Minnesota law under which he was arrested is unconstitutionally broad. The statute punishes “offensive, obscene or abusive language” which tends to arouse “alarm, anger or resentment” in others. Clearly, this law has the potential to ensnare and criminalize legal, constitutionally protected free speech, including solicitation for private sex.

ACLU Sues Law Enforcement for Shielding President Bush From Protestors (01/15/2008)
ALBUQUERQUE - The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of New Mexico filed a lawsuit in federal court today on behalf of several New Mexico residents and advocacy organizations who were made to stand more than 150 yards away from the site of a fundraiser being attended by the president as they peacefully protested the views of the administration, while a group of people expressing support for President Bush were allowed to stand only a few feet from the fundraiser site.

ACLU of North Carolina Asks North Carolina Judicial Standards Commission to Investigate Judge’s Decision to Close Courtroom in Blackwater Protesters’ Trial on Trespass Charges (01/09/2008)
RALEIGH – The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) filed a complaint today with the North Carolina Judicial Standards Commission, asking the Commission to investigate a Currituck County district judge’s decision to clear the courtroom on December 5, 2007, during a criminal trial. The decision, made by Judge Edgar Barnes, came during the criminal trespass trial of seven individuals arrested in October 2007 after protesting on Blackwater USA’s property in Moyock. Based upon reports that the ACLU-NCLF received from several individuals who were present in the courtroom that day, including some of the defendants, several reporters and a concerned citizen, it appears that Judge Edgar Barnes held a significant portion of the trial behind closed doors, ordering sheriff’s deputies to clear the courtroom. Everyone, except the defendants, prosecutors, sheriff’s witnesses and a Blackwater official, was immediately barred from the trial. Reportedly, Judge Barnes did not give a reason for clearing the courtroom. Further, by all reports, there was no disruption on the part of the public attending the trial. Judge Barnes then proceeded to try the cases, finding all seven defendants guilty of trespassing.

Massachusetts Education Department Drops Appeal of Adverse First Amendment Ruling (12/19/2007)
BOSTON – The Massachusetts Department of Education (DOE) has agreed to drop its appeal of a lower state court’s ruling that DOE officials violated the First Amendment when they coerced education conference organizers into cancelling the keynote speech of Alfie Kohn, a well-known critic of high stakes exams like the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) testing program. In dropping the appeal, the DOE issued a statement acknowledging that a former DOE official “violated the First Amendment rights of Alfie Kohn to be heard and to communicate information and of people to hear and receive information, at a conference in western Massachusetts in 2001.” The DOE said, “The DOE’s position is that vigorous debate about education issues is healthy and welcome.”

Information Even More Free with Passage of Bill to Strengthen FOIA (12/18/2007)
Washington, DC – The ACLU applauds Congress for passing a bill to strengthen the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the law that allows Americans to find out what their government is up to. The Openness Promotes Effectiveness in our National (OPEN) Government Act will impose strict, meaningful deadlines on FOIA requests and punish federal agencies if they miss the 20-day deadline the law demands. The bill also ensures requesters will have timely information on the status of their requests, creates real oversight with a FOIA ombudsman and clarifies that government records held by private contractors can be obtained through FOIA.

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.