Legal Docket
For decades, the ACLU Foundation of Northern California has used the courts to protect and expand the rights of all Californians. From fighting against the internment of Japanese Americans, to suing California Highway Patrol for targeting Black and Latinx drivers, the ACLU is building a more just state one lawsuit at a time.
You can also find our amicus brief filings here.
Office of State Public Defender et al. v. Bonta
Apr 09, 2024
Original writ petition challenging California’s death-penalty system under the state constitution’s equal protection provisions.
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American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and First Amendment Coalition v. City of Fresno (Public meetings law)
Nov 15, 2023
The ACLU Foundation of Northern California and the First Amendment Coalition have sued the City of Fresno for holding secret budget negotiations in violation of California’s open meetings law. The lawsuit calls on the court to order Fresno to comply with the Brown Act.
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ACLU NorCal v. ICE (FOIA action seeking grievance logs)
Jun 23, 2023
A Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking to compel production of grievance logs filed at ICE detention centers.
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UFW v. The County of Kern
May 09, 2023
The ACLU Foundations of Southern and Northern California and co-counsel Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP and Martínez Aguilasocho Law, Inc. filed a lawsuit today against Kern County and Kern County Superior Court for systematically denying poor misdemeanor defendants their constitutional rights to counsel and due process. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of UFW Foundation and three Kern County resident...
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Asian Prisoner Support Committee v. CDCR
Apr 27, 2023
On April 27, 2023, incarcerated and formerly incarcerated Californians sued the state prison system for illegally discriminating against people suspected of being born outside the U.S. The lawsuit claims that the California prison system unlawfully discriminates against hundreds of people each year by referring people in custody to ICE for detention and deportation after they have served their tim...
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ACLU NorCal v. CDCR (PRA seeking CDCR / ICE collaboration materials)
Feb 15, 2023
A California Public Records Act lawsuit seeking to compel production of documents and information reflecting collaboration between the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and ICE.
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Stiavetti v. Ahlin (State Hospital Suit)
Dec 12, 2022
The ACLU Foundation of Northern California has filed a lawsuit to protect the constitutional rights of defendants with psychiatric and intellectual disabilities in California.
Read MoreAmerican Civil Liberties Union of Northern California v. Vallejo Police Department (Police misconduct)
Nov 22, 2022
The ACLU of Northern California has filed a lawsuit to compel the city of Vallejo to release public records that contain information about officers in the Vallejo Police Department who allegedly bent their badges after on-duty shootings as a badge of honor.
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California Racial Justice Act – District Attorney Transparency Cases
Oct 31, 2022
The ACLU of Northern California has filed a number of cases challenging district attorneys’ failure to provide access to prosecutorial data, policies, and training materials necessary for effective implementation of the Racial Justice Act.
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Yesue et al v. The City of Sebastopol
Oct 26, 2022
The ACLU Foundation of Northern California, Disability Rights Advocates, Legal Aid of Sonoma County, and California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Sebastopol for enacting an ordinance that prohibits vehicles “designed or altered for human habitation” from parking anywhere within city limits during the day.
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Simon et al v. The City and County of San Francisco, Sheriff Paul Miyamoto
Sep 30, 2022
The ACLU Foundation of Northern California and the law firm Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati filed a class-action lawsuit to prevent the San Francisco Sheriff's Office from requiring that individuals agree to unconstitutional “four-way” searches and GPS location data-sharing as conditions of pretrial release on electronic monitoring.
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Coalition on Homelessness v. City and County of San Francisco
Sep 27, 2022
On September 27, 2022, the Coalition on Homelessness and seven individual plaintiffs filed suit against the City and County of San Francisco and Mayor London Breed for their efforts to criminalize homelessness through an array of brutal policing practices that violate the constitutional rights of unhoused San Franciscans. Plaintiffs are also seeking a preliminary injunction to stop these practices...
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