News

Today Gov. Jerry Brown signed the California Fair Sentencing Act (SB 1010) authored by Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles). The legislation eliminates the groundless disparity in sentencing, probation, and asset forfeiture guidelines for possession of crack cocaine for sale versus the same crime involving powder cocaine that has resulted in a pattern of racial discrimination in sentencing and inca... Read More

Today a broad coalition of organizations commends Governor Brown for signing Senate Bill 1159, a bill that improves access to economic opportunities to immigrants in California. The bill, by Senator Ricardo Lara (D), allows qualified individuals to obtain professional licenses, regardless of immigration status. Thus California continues to lead the way in fully incorporating immigrants as contribu... Read More

Today California becomes the first state in the nation to eliminate suspensions for its youngest children, and all expulsions for all students for minor misbehavior such as talking back, failing to have school materials and dress code violations. Gov. Jerry Brown’s signing today of AB 420 caps a landmark year for the movement away from harsh discipline policies and toward positive discipline and a... Read More

Today, the California Department of Motor Vehicles announced that the design for drivers' licenses for undocumented residents under California's AB 60 has been finalized. The front of the license will state "Federal limits may apply" on the top-right corner; the additional sentence on the back will remain as previously proposed. In response to this development, the Drive California coalition issue... Read More

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Download the Summer 2014 ACLU of Northern California Newsletter and read about our latest events and initiatives. Read More

Facing its final vote in the Assembly, the California Fair Sentencing Act (SB 1010) authored by Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) won strong approval on a bi-partisan vote today. SB 1010 now returns to the Senate for a final procedural vote before being sent to the Governor. Read More

Today the ACLU of California and the American Friends Service Committee released a report confirming the Latino community’s experience of being targeted for suspected unlicensed driving by California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers in Fresno County, with two officers being largely responsible for the racially disparate impact. Read More

The ACLU of Northern California and the Law Office of Mark E. Merin today charged that an ordinance adopted in May by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors banning panhandling is unconstitutional. A lawsuit filed today in U.S District Court for the Eastern District of California in Sacramento on behalf of the Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee and two individuals alleges the ordinance v... Read More

Civil rights groups filed a lawsuit today on behalf of five Americans who had their information entered into federal law enforcement databases for innocent things like taking pictures, buying computers, or standing in a train station, and were then subjected to investigation. The American Civil Liberties Union of California, the national ACLU, and Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Asian Law Caucus... Read More

Our immigration system is broken. The ACLU joins millions of Americans in calling on our representatives to fix it in a way that stays true to those values. Read More

Today the ACLU of Northern California filed a religious liberty lawsuit against the Fresno County Sheriff over a policy that denies people held in Fresno County jails access to food that complies with their religious dietary restrictions. Read More