News Releases

The ACLU has asked the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission to investigate reports that telephone companies have regularly shared consumer telephone records with the National Security Agency without lawful authority.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Center for Justice (CFJ) have reached an agreement with the Spokane Transit Authority to protect freedom of speech at the Plaza in downtown Spokane. The agreement settles a lawsuit challenging restrictions on free speech at Plaza sidewalks that the groups filed on behalf of Donald Ausderau, a Christian minister, and the Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Spokane in June 2003.

All student-initiated clubs have the right to speak on campus and circulate leaflets or underground newspapers at school. However, the ACLU believes that no student-initiated club has a legal right to force the school to give official endorsement and money to the group if the school does not wish to sponsor it.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington today hailed the passage of Initiative 75, a ballot measure making enforcement of marijuana laws relating to adult personal use the lowest enforcement priority for the Seattle Police Department and City Attorney.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington announced today that it is offering attorneys to accompany any individuals in the state who are questioned by officials as part of a U.S. Department of Justice "dragnet" investigation.

The ACLU has made some progress in bringing accountability to the so-called No-Fly list. In April 2004 in Seattle, the ACLU mounted the first nationwide, class-action lawsuit challenging the No-Fly list. In response to a separate lawsuit, the Justice Department released 300 pages of documents that revealed confusion, inter-agency squabbling, and subjective criteria in placing thousands of names on the list.

New documents show that the REAL ID Act will cost the state millions of dollars and cause major headaches at the Department of Licensing.

The U.S. Supreme Court this fall will hear the appeal of a ruling that upheld the Seattle School District’s use of race as factor in assigning students to schools. The ACLU of Washington will file a brief in the case, supporting the district’s policy as a way to prevent racial segregation.

The ACLU is working with advocacy organizations, the criminal defense bar, and law enforcement to devise community-based treatment and services for drug users and people with mental illness.