Archive
Drone surveillance is creepy, and it’s against the law
Jun 27, 2025
For the past six years, Sonoma County's code enforcement section has run an ever-expanding drone surveillance program. They’ve launched more than 700 low-altitude flights that monitor and record residents, their homes and the areas surrounding them.
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Four Decades of Data Reveal California's Death Penalty is Riddled with Racial Bias
Jun 26, 2025
California applies the death penalty disproportionately to people of color, especially when the victim is white. A recent, rigorous statewide study found that Black people are up to 8.7 times as likely to be sentenced to death as similarly situated non-Black defendants, Latino people are up to 6.2 times as likely to be sentenced to death, and defendants of all races are up to 8.8 times as likely t...
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ACLU Joins Calls to Gov. Newsom to Commute All Death Sentences as State Supreme Court Reviews Constitutional Challenge
Jun 26, 2025
The petition demonstrates that racial disparities in California’s implementation of the death penalty are persistent, pervasive, and well documented. Black people are about five times more likely to be sentenced to death when compared to similarly situated non-Black defendants, while Latino people are at least three times more likely to be sentenced to death.
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The ACLUs of California Statement on Ninth Circuit Decision Allowing Federalization of California National Guard
Jun 19, 2025
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling allows Donald Trump to retain control of the California National Guard troops he deployed in Los Angeles while the state's lawsuit proceeds.
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ACLU Statement on SCOTUS Ruling in U.S. v. Skrmetti
Jun 18, 2025
Though today’s decision is devastating for trans people across the country, California law still protects the rights of trans youth to access the care they need.
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California ACLUs Applaud State Leadership's Fight Against Federal Abuse of Power in the Deployment of the National Guard
Jun 17, 2025
As we await the Ninth Circuit decision on Trump’s unlawful federalization of CA National Guard, the ACLUs of California thank Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta for filing suit to protect the fundamental rights of all Californians and challenge this dangerous abuse of power that threatens core democratic principles. Although a federal judge ruled to halt Trump’s deployment of the...
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ACLU Statement on Trump's Deployment of National Guard in Los Angeles
Jun 07, 2025
Trump's decision to send thousands of National Guard troops into Los Angeles is clearly retaliatory and an attempt to suppress constitutionally protected protests against the administration's violent immigration enforcement raids.
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ACLU Sues Sonoma County over Code Enforcement’s Runaway Drone Spying Program
Jun 04, 2025
The ACLU Foundation of Northern California filed a lawsuit to block Sonoma County code inspectors from using drones to conduct surveillance of people's homes without a warrant.
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