News & Commentary

Student attorneys at the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic and the Refugee and Human Rights Program at the Maine Law School recently published a guide for immigrant victims of domestic violence. While the guide should not be used as a substitute for legal advice, it does provide invaluable information for individuals whose fear of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) may keep them from contacting authorities. The guide is comprehensive. It details different signs of an abusive relationship, lists free community resources available for victims/survivors, and outlines the steps for obtaining a Protection From Abuse (PFA) order. Ideally, obtaining a PFA will not affect a victim's immigration status. The guide also explains for possible immigration options for victims of violence: U-Visas, T-Visas, asylum, and obtaining green cards through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Information provided by an abuser cannot be used against a victim in immigration proceedings. It is important for us all to know that there are laws to protect all victims of domestic violence living in the US, regardless of their citizenship or immigration status. 

Today, the Washington Post published an article title Ex-Cons But Still Barred, looking at the city of Chicago’s reconsideration of restrictions on people with criminal records living in public housing.  

It’s been nearly a year since Edward Snowden first began revealing just how abusive the government’s surveillance programs really are. Back then, Snowden was asked what his greatest fear was. While acknowledging obvious concerns for his own safety, he ultimately gave a much nobler answer: that “nothing will change.”

I meet with Ruth Lockhart at Bard Coffee to discuss her work in partnership with the ACLU of Maine, and to attempt to (impossibly) capture her lifelong commitment to reproductive rights in a single blog post.

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

On Monday, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rep. Nita Lowey (NY-17) reintroduced the Peace Corps Equity Act in the Senate and the House. The late Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) originally introduced the bill in April 2013. The bill seeks to expand abortion access to individuals volunteering in the Peace Corp who, as of right now, are denied abortion coverage – even in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the pregnant individual is endangered.  The lack of equity in the current policy is clear. This total abortion ban is more stringent than the policies covering all other federal workers. While the Hyde Amendment prohibits the federal government from providing insurance coverage for abortion services, it does provide exceptions in cases of rape, incest, and life endangerment. Peace Corps workers are governed by this same policy, but Peace Corps volunteers must find a way to fund their own procedures in these cases.

Last Tuesday, we all heard the tragic news of the botched execution of Clayton Lockett, an Oklahoma man sentenced to death for the murder of a woman in 1999. Thirteen minutes after the medical technician had injected the sedative and three minutes after the two lethal drugs had been administered, Mr. Lockett’s body twitched, his foot shook and he mumbled. A few minutes later he lifted his head and shoulders off the gurney. At 6:39, sixteen minutes after the execution had started, Oklahoma Department of Correction’s Director Robert Patton halted the execution. At 7:06, Mr. Lockett died of a massive heart attack.

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

The ACLU of Maine was honored to present its annual Justice Louis Scolnik Award to Jack Simmons of Falmouth at a dinner in Freeport on May 1.