Archive

SACRAMENTO — One year after the tragic shooting death of Stephon Clark in his grandmother’s backyard in Sacramento, the ACLU of California is launching an advertising buy in support of legislation to reduce the number of police shootings in the state. The organization is investing in 30 second radio spots that will be featured for a two-week period on KHYL-FM in Sacramento and KPWR-FM in Los Angel... Read More

The ACLU, along with our client Communications Workers of America and other civil rights groups, announced a historic settlement agreement with Facebook that will result in major changes to Facebook’s advertising platform. Advertisers will no longer be able to exclude users from learning about opportunities for housing, employment, or credit based on gender, age, or other protected characteristics... Read More

SACRAMENTO – Last night, news broke that California Governor Gavin Newsom is planning to announce a moratorium on executions in the state. The following statement can be jointly attributed to the three executive directors of the California ACLU affiliates: Abdi Soltani (Northern California), Hector Villagra (Southern California) and Norma Chávez Peterson (San Diego & Imperial Counties):  Read More

SACRAMENTO – Today, California Attorney General Becerra announced that the state Department of Justice would not bring criminal charges against the police officers who shot and killed Stephon Clark, who was unarmed at the time, in his grandmother’s backyard on March 18, 2018. The announcement comes after days of protests in Sacramento following the decision by the county’s District Attorney who al... Read More

There is a national, statewide, and local pattern of police using excessive force against people of color during routine encounters. The video and reports provided by the San Mateo County District Attorney related to the death of Chinedu Okobi in Millbrae on Oct. 3 have all the earmarks of racial profiling. If crossing the street made Okobi the object of police attention and attempted detention – ... Read More

SACRAMENTO – Today, Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert announced that her office will not press charges against the officers who shot and killed Stephon Clark in his grandmother’s backyard on March 18, 2018. Clark was unarmed, holding a cell phone, at the time he was killed.  Lizzie Buchen, legislative advocate for the ACLU of California’s Center for Advocacy and Policy, had this ... Read More

After more than a month of threats, a government shutdown, and bipartisan action by Congress, President Trump has finally declared a national emergency to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on his border wall obsession. In response, the ACLU will file a lawsuit early next week challenging this blatantly illegal executive action. Let’s get something straight upfront: There is no emergency. Membe... Read More

In June, 2016, the ACLU Foundation of Northern California sued the Stockton Unified School District (SUSD) for violating state and federal law by refusing to release SUSD's Police Department student arrest and citation data. A Public Records Act request by the ACLU revealed that from 2012-2016, the SUSD police department filed 12,000 “incident reports." However, in response to the ACLU's request, ... Read More

SAN FRANCISCO – Late on the night of Saturday, February 9, 2019, six Vallejo police officers shot and killed Willie McCoy, a 21-year-old African American man who had been sleeping in his car. In response, Peter Bibring, Police Practices Director of the ACLU of California, issued the following statement: Our thoughts are with Mr. McCoy’s friends and family as they mourn this heartbreaking los... Read More

Today, in a ruling in Contra Costa Superior Court, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) blocked an effort by six police unions that are seeking to prevent the enforcement of SB 1421 by keeping files private that were created before January 1, when the new law took hold. SB 1421 makes public previously secret information about officers who shoot, kill, or engage in serious misconduct like fals... Read More