News & Commentary

Another win has been declared for reproductive rights this week. On Monday, a federal judge declared an Alabama law that restricted women's access to abortion was unconstitutional. HB 57 required that doctors performing abortions have admitting privileges at local hospitals. The bill, similar in nature to bills in Texas and Wisconsin, would have forced three out of five abortion providers in the state to cease providing abortions. The judge called these potential closures a “striking result,” and issued temporary injunction on the law. The judge will solicit comments and feedback from attorneys from both sides before issuing his final ruling.

Perhaps one of the most insidious aspects of our prison system is that even after serving their sentence, the majority of former offenders find themselves unable to extricate themselves from the system. In addition to having the dubious honor of being the largest incarcerator in the world, the United States also has the highest rate of recidivism of any country in the world. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, over two-thirds of people released from prison will be rearrested within three years. In Maine, a study of 966 offenders released in 2004 found that 58% of them had been re-incarcerated by May 2008.

Last month, the ACLU joined several other groups in filing a nationwide, class-action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of children, challenging the federal government’s failure to provide them with lawyers in their deportation hearings. Late last week we followed up with a preliminary injunction motion to ask that the proceedings be delayed until several of our plaintiffs – ranging in age from 10 to 17 - are provided with attorneys.

A new infographic out from the ACLU debunks the notion that putting more people in prison means safer streets. In fact, as the infographic shows, many states are reducing crime while at the same time reducing their reliance on the prison system and its crippling economic and human costs. 

Finally, some good news in the world of reproductive rights! On Tuesday, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 against a Mississippi law that would close the state’s lone abortion clinic. The case brought into question the constitutionality of a 2012 law requiring physicians at the clinic, Jackson Women’s Health Organization, obtain admitting privileges at a local hospital. The clinic and Dr. Willie Parker challenged the law, arguing that it interfered with a woman’s constitutional right to obtain an abortion. The three-judge panel ruled that the law was indeed unconstitutional, arguing that closing the clinic means  that Mississippi would be shifting its constitutional obligation to neighboring states and would place an undue burden on a woman’s right to seek an abortion. Physicians affiliated with the clinic tried to obtain admitting privileges at all of the local hospitals, but their requests were denied. An injunction was put in place to keep the clinic open while the case was being decided. The ruling upholds that injunction. 

Last week, we got the news of yet another botched execution, this time in the state of Arizona. After being given an experimental combination of lethal drugs from an unknown source, Joseph Woods took nearly two hours to die, snorting and gasping for air 660 times. This comes not long after the botched execution of Oklahoma prisoner Clayton Lockett, who writhed in pain for 45 minutes before dying of a heart attack.

This fall, we will host our annual student conferences at three different locations across Maine, each featuring a series of workshops on different civil liberties topics that directly affect young people. Between these conferences and our many classroom visits we were able to reach more than 1,800 students last school year, but as we’ve been looking ahead to the 2014-15 school year we’ve been searching for ways to reach even more.

Each Friday, we’ll bring you updates on the latest civil liberties news from Maine and the nation.

Two weeks ago, Mallory Loyola became the first woman to be arrested as a result of Tennessee's new law criminalizing pregnant women. In April, Governor Bill Haslam signed a bill that allows a woman to be charged with criminal assault if she uses narcotics during her pregnancy. The law went into effect early July. One week after the bill was enacted, Mallory Loyola was arrested and charged with assault after she and her newborn tested positive for amphetamine. Amphetamine is not a narcotic.