Archive

One day after Fresno PD’s fourth shooting this year, the department released body cam footage of police killing Freddy Centeno last September and claimed that the shooting was justified. But why is the shooting still shrouded in secrecy? Read More

Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice urged local courts nationwide to put an end to policies that penalize people simply for being poor – including the practice of suspending driver’s licenses when individuals miss payments on fines. This practice is all too common in California traffic courts, and is not prevented by amnesty policies that went into place last year.Today, a coalition of legal... Read More

In the early hours of March 3, 1991, George Holliday stepped onto his balcony and saw police begin to beat a motorist on the street below. He then pulled out a video camera and filmed an incident that would become synonymous with police violence and misconduct: the beating of a young African American man named Rodney King by several Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers. News stations acro... Read More

Butte County was one of 32 CA Counties that submitted bids for state financing to build new jails. Butte was the only county to try to use Inmate Welfare Fund money to pay the county’s required contribution. Read More

The ACLU of Northern California today asked the Supreme Court of California to provide justice to people unlawfully sentenced as teenagers to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Read More

The ACLU Foundation of Northern California today asked the Supreme Court of California to provide justice to people unlawfully sentenced as teenagers to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Read More

In an effort to improve transparency, accountability and trust between law enforcement and the public, Senator Mark Leno has introduced SB 1286, a bill allowing greater public access to peace officer records related to serious uses of force and sustained charges of misconduct. Read More

The ACLU Foundation of Northern California filed suit against the City and County of Fresno over complete bans on the cultivation and storage of medical marijuana. The bans are inconsistent with California’s 1996 voter-approved Compassionate Use Act, which allows seriously ill patients and caregivers to grow medical marijuana, and also with more recent legislation. The City and County also have ba... Read More

The ACLU is challenging a Fresno County ban on the cultivation and storage of medical marijuana in the California Supreme Court. The ban is inconsistent with California’s 1996 voter-approved Compassionate Use Act, which allows seriously ill patients and caregivers to grow medical marijuana. Read More

Lawsuit Seeks Information on FBI Activities in Northern CA Muslim Communities; Demand to comply with FOIA request stems from reports of community anxiety and fear over surveillance tactics. Following reports of anxiety and fear over FBI surveillance tactics in Muslim communities, the ACLU Foundation of Northern California joined with the Asian Law Caucus and the San Francisco Bay Guardian in 20... Read More