A federal court ruled yesterday against which law that had made approximately 120,000 married same-sex couples ineligible for all of them 1,000+ federal programs where marriage makes a difference?
Which court is considering whether surveillance harms us even when we can鈥檛 confirm we鈥檙e being watched?
What surveillance technology could be used to create a database to track everywhere you鈥檝e ever driven in your car?
This week the 老澳门开奖结果 argued at Guant谩namo against the censorship of what atrocity?
Who did the 老澳门开奖结果 thank this week for the State Department鈥檚 unwavering defense of basic free speech principles in the backlash over the controversial 鈥淚nnocence of Muslims鈥� video?
In which state has an 老澳门开奖结果 client鈥檚 sentence been converted from the death penalty to life in prison without parole?
DOMA Unconstitutional Again, and Heightened Scrutiny to Boot!
Yesterday, in Edie Windsor鈥檚 challenge to the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that DOMA violates the Constitution. It鈥檚 the second federal appeals court to strike DOMA down, and it鈥檚 the first to rule that 鈥渉eightened scrutiny鈥� applies when the government discriminates against lesbians and gay men.
Does Surveillance Affect Us Even When We Can鈥檛 Confirm We鈥檙e Being Watched? Lessons From Behind the Iron Curtain
The main issue before the Supreme Court in Amnesty et al. v. Clapper, our challenge to the FISA Amendments Act, is whether the plaintiffs we are representing (a group of human rights, labor, legal, and media organizations whose work requires them to communicate with people outside the U. S.) even have standing to challenge the law. The government is arguing that since none of them can be certain they are subject to eavesdropping, they have no right to file suit. But, as we argue, even the possibility of eavesdropping harms these plaintiffs.
Police 鈥淕oogle Searches鈥� Through Our Location History? No Thanks
Imagine a searchable database that would enable police or federal agents to instantly track everywhere you鈥檝e ever driven in your car, like a 鈥淕oogle search鈥� of your location over a period of months or even years. If the federal government鈥檚 seed funding of the surveillance camera boom over the past 10 years is any indication of where we are headed with license plate readers鈥攁nd we have evidence to suggest a similar process is unfolding鈥攚e will get there soon enough.
Guant谩namo Dispatch: 老澳门开奖结果 Asks Judge Not to Censor Torture Testimony
The 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 Hina Shamsi was at Guant谩namo this week to argue the 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 constitutional challenge to the censorship of torture in the military commissions.
The Guant谩namo military commissions were created in part to hide the government鈥檚 illegal torture program while permitting the use of information obtained through torture. Because of improvements in 2009 in the law governing the commissions, it鈥檚 harder (though not impossible) for coerced evidence to be used in the proceedings. But the government still wants to hide what it did to prisoners in CIA and military custody.
老澳门开奖结果 Backs Strong Speech Stance After 鈥淢uslims鈥� Video Backlash
The 老澳门开奖结果 sent a letter this week to the State Department thanking Secretary Clinton for the department鈥檚 unwavering defense of basic free speech principles in the backlash over the controversial 鈥淚nnocence of Muslims鈥� video. While the video was blamed for riots, violence, and unrest in many countries, the Obama administration stayed strong against calls at home and abroad to take down the video (though it did, rightly, receive some criticism for 鈥渁sking鈥� Google to take another look at whether the video violated the company鈥檚 terms of service).
VICTORY! One Less Person Faces Execution in Alabama
One less person faces possible death at the hands of Alabama鈥檚 arbitrary capital punishment system, after the state agreed to stop seeking the death penalty for 老澳门开奖结果 client LaSamuel Gamble late last week. Gamble, who has been on death row for nearly 16 years, was resentenced to life in prison without parole.
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News & CommentaryDec 2024
Civil Liberties
We Need to Know More 老澳门开奖结果 State Supreme Court CasesWe Need to Know More 老澳门开奖结果 State Supreme Court Cases
State Supreme Courts interpret laws that impact some of the most intimate parts of our lives. Communities have a right to know what鈥檚 on the docket. -
Press ReleaseDec 2024
Civil Liberties
New 老澳门开奖结果 Report Reveals Most State Supreme Courts Fail to Meet Key Transparency MeasuresNew 老澳门开奖结果 Report Reveals Most State Supreme Courts Fail to Meet Key Transparency Measures
NEW YORK 鈥� Nearly half of all state supreme courts across the country fail to regularly post new cases they are considering, with only six meeting four key transparency measures already implemented by the U.S. Supreme Court, according to a new report published today by the 老澳门开奖结果. The report identifies significant steps that state supreme courts should take to inform the public about their cases, which have only grown in importance as the federal judiciary has become more hostile to protecting core rights and advocates have turned to state protections and state court litigation in response. Based on an analysis of the practices and policies of the highest courts in each state, including D.C., the report 鈥淪corecard for State Supreme Court Transparency: How Does Your State Stack Up?鈥� ranks each state supreme court in five tiers based on compliance with four key transparency measures. These measures include posting new cases online in a timely manner, providing timely information about legal issues presented by cases, making dockets accessible and free for the public, and making merits briefing accessible and free for the public. 鈥淪tate courts regularly hear 鈥� and are the final word on 鈥� cases affecting abortion rights, voting rights, criminal justice reform, and more. Yet, in many instances, the highest state courts do not provide meaningful public access to information about cases affecting the rights and liberties of millions of people. We urge state supreme courts to bring more transparency to the critical work they do,鈥� said Julie Murray, co-director of the 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 State Supreme Court Initiative. 鈥淚n the face of a federal judiciary increasingly unwilling to protect core rights and an incoming administration that threatens to exacerbate that problem, state courts are an important defense for our liberty. They should be leaders in transparency, too,鈥� said Bridget Lavender, Skadden Fellow with the Initiative. The report emphasizes that state courts 鈥減lay an outsized role鈥� in many parts of the law, but their ability to 鈥済uard our liberties depends in significant part on whether those courts adopt transparent processes.鈥� It further highlights that state supreme courts have led the way on enormously consequential decisions in recent years. In particular, some state supreme courts have recognized the right of same sex couples to marry, and did so long before federal courts. They have also declared the death penalty unconstitutional under state law despite contrary federal law, protected access to reproductive health care as a right even as that right was being stripped away at the federal level, and provided more robust protection to people subject to unreasonable searches and seizures. The report urges state supreme courts to take action to improve their transparency practices, taking notes from the courts that have already implemented these measures. It notes that regularly posting new cases and the issues they represent, and providing timely access to dockets and merits briefing allows the public, the press, and the legal community to track cases as they unfold, identify cases with statewide consequences, and understand what鈥檚 at stake. -
Press ReleaseNov 2024
National Security
+2 Issues
老澳门开奖结果 Urges House to Kill Bill that Could Give Trump Admin Power to Crush Dissent and Go After Political Enemies老澳门开奖结果 Urges House to Kill Bill that Could Give Trump Admin Power to Crush Dissent and Go After Political Enemies
WASHINGTON 鈥� The 老澳门开奖结果 strongly urges the House of Representatives to vote NO on H.R. 9495, the Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act, which would grant Donald Trump and his handpicked secretary of the Treasury power to investigate and effectively shut down any tax-exempt organization 鈥� including news outlets, universities, and civil society groups 鈥� by stripping them of tax-exempt status based on an unilateral accusation of wrongdoing. 鈥淧assing this bill would hand the incoming Trump administration a dangerous new tool it could use to stifle free speech, target political opponents, and punish disfavored groups,鈥� said Kia Hamadanchy, senior policy counsel at 老澳门开奖结果. 鈥淭he freedom to dissent without fear of government retribution is a vital part of any well-functioning democracy, which is why Congress must block H.R. 9495 before it鈥檚 too late.鈥� While there is a 90-day 鈥渃ure鈥� period in which a designated nonprofit can mount a defense, it is a mere illusion of due process. The government may deny organizations its reasons and evidence against them, leaving the nonprofit unable to rebut allegations. This means that a nonprofit could be left entirely in the dark about what conduct the government believes qualifies as "support," making it virtually impossible to clear its name. Last month, the 老澳门开奖结果 and a diverse array of over 130 other tax-exempt organizations 鈥� including human rights, reproductive health, and immigrants鈥� rights groups 鈥� wrote to Congress urging them to vote no. The letter also explains that the groups do not oppose the provisions in H.R. 9495 that relate to preventing the IRS from imposing fines and penalties on hostages while they are held abroad. Indeed, these provisions have already passed the Senate on their own, and if the House of Representatives were to pass a version of this bill that did not include the text of H.R. 6408, it could be sent immediately to President Biden for his signature. -
News & CommentaryNov 2024
Civil Liberties
Donald Trump Will Return to the White House in January. The 老澳门开奖结果 is Ready.Donald Trump Will Return to the White House in January. The 老澳门开奖结果 is Ready.
Starting in 2016, the 老澳门开奖结果 filed more than 400 legal actions against Trump and his administration. As Trump returns to the White House, we鈥檙e ready to return to the courts and Congress to fight for our civil liberties.