News & Commentary

The news is bad, but the fight is not over.  In a very disappointing vote today, the Judiciary Committee voted down probable-cause warrant requirements for cell phone tracking in an 8 to 5 vote.  (You can read more about how intrusive cell phone tracking has become here.)  The good news is that a bi-partisan gang of five legislators stood up for privacy and the Constitution today.  We are grateful to the following leaders for defending our Fourth Amendment freedom from warrantless cell phone tracking: Representative Jennifer DeChant (D-Bath) Representative Stacey Guerin (R-Glenburn) Representative Kim Monaghan Derrig (D-Cape Elizabeth) Representative Representative Matt Moonen (D-Portland) Representative Stephen Moriarty (D-Cumberland) The other good news is that the Judiciary Committee doesn't get the final word on LD 415.  These five leaders have signed on to a "minority report" that endorses LD 415 to require a probable-cause warrant requirement for cell phone tracking.  Now LD 415 goes to the Senate floor for a general vote.  There's a great right/left coalition working on this bill, and I know that most Mainers care deeply about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  We need your help now more than ever to let your state legislators know that drones and cell phones shouldn't be exempt from the Fourth Amendment requirements of warrants based on probable cause. You can contact your legislator here! And if your legislator happens to be Representative DeChant, Representative Guerin, Representative Monaghan Derrig, Representative Moonen, or Representative Moriarty, give them a big thanks today.  They stood up for the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and voted yes to privacy. As for LD 236, the bill that would require a probable-cause warrant requirement for drone surveillance, it was tabled for two weeks.  We have two weeks to change hearts and minds in the Judiciary Committee to encourage them to support Fourth Amendment protections against massive domestic drone surveillance.  For a full list of Judiciary Committee members, click here. The ACLU of Maine will be working to defend your privacy rights every step of the way.  Despite today's disappointing vote, we're not giving up, and we hope you won't either.

Yesterday we proudly joined the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition and thousands of people who came together in Maine, DC and around the nation to call for fair immigration reform. It was incredible to be surrounded by recent immigrants, new citizens, businesspeople and faith leaders who all had their own reasons for being there - from protecting workers rights to the size of Maine's labor force, from the desire to be a contributing member of society to a personal, moral imperative. As lawmakers in D.C. begin to wrap up months of negotiations, an immigration reform bill could be introduced any day. We at the ACLU believe that immigration reform must create a welcoming roadmap to citizenship for aspiring Americans living in and contributing to the United States. Fundamental fairness as guaranteed by the Constitution requires that these individuals be brought within the legal embrace of U.S. citizenship.   If you agree, click here to add your voice to the movement by emailing Maine’s congressional delegation and telling them that immigration reform must protect civil liberties.   Here are the priorities we’d like them to keep in mind:   ·      Immigration reform must not create a national ID system or include measures that harm fundamental privacy rights.   ·      Immigration reform must end state and local intrusions into immigration policy and enforcement, and ban racial profiling at all levels of government.   ·      Immigration reform must address systemic due process problems with immigration detention and deportation.   ·      Immigration reform must transform border enforcement, which has grown wastefully and abusively without regard for genuine public safety.   ·      Immigration reform must address America’s mass incarceration problem, include no new criminal provisions, and end overreliance on criminal prosecutions.   ·      Immigration reform must include the ability of committed and loving people in same-sex relationships to sponsor their spouse or partner in the same way opposite couples have long been able to.   When it comes to immigration reform that protects civil liberties for all, the time is now.   If you agree, click here to take action today.

Today, I testified for the first time before the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife - not exactly a committee that hears from the ACLU on a regular basis. We opposed two separate bills that would drastically increase criminal penalties for introducing certain types of fish into Maine waters. Later this week, we will oppose another bill that proposes a new crime for the unlawful possession of ruffed grouse.   Why the sudden interest in wildlife? Each of these bills, if passed, would unnecessarily expand Maine's penal code. Criminalizing new behavior does little to solve society’s problems.   Incarceration rates across the country have risen as the result of public policy – laws passed by Congress and in 50 state legislatures each year that have collectively driven incarceration rates dramatically upward, so that in 2008 one out of every 100 adults in the United States was behind bars. The United States accounts for nearly 25% of the world’s prison population while having only 4% of the world’s general population. We imprison more people per capita and in total than any other country in the world by far.   Protecting Maine's wildlife and natural resources is a noble goal. But, laws that protect wildlife by putting Mainers behind bars have devastating effects on our communities. Unfortunately, one such bill passed the House and Senate today. LD 632 creates criminal penalties for elver license violations - which is likely to have a disproportionate effect on the Passamaquoddy tribe.   We hope that the IFW committee will consider other penalties, short of criminalization, as they take steps to protect Maine's wildlife.

It’s been 50 years since President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act of 1963. But according to census data, women still earn, on average, just 77 cents for every dollar a man makes, and women of color take home even less. There are many causes for this unacceptable wage gap, but what makes it especially difficult to fix is that in many workplaces employees can be fired if they simply try to find out how their pay stacks up against coworkers. The ACLU has joined with more than 100 organizations in asking President Obama to issue an executive order that would help fix this problem by banning retaliation against the employees of federal contractors for disclosing or inquiring about their wages. It’s tough to fight for equal pay when you can’t even find out whether you’re being paid equally. There are 26 million Americans who work for federal contractors, so an executive order protecting them would have a significant impact. Tomorrow we’ll “celebrate” Equal Pay Day – the marker for how far into 2013 women have to work in order to earn what men were paid in 2012 alone. That’s a huge gap, and while no one action is going to close it entirely, there are real and concrete steps we can take to narrow it right away. An executive order is a simple and effective step that will ensure more equal pay, and President Obama should issue one immediately. You can read the full letter to President Obama here. If you’d like to learn more about the wage gap and what else the ACLU is doing to close it, check out these resources on ACLU.org.

It’s been 50 years since President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act of 1963. But according to census data, women still earn, on average, just 77 cents for every dollar a man makes, and women of color take home even less. There are many causes for this unacceptable wage gap, but what makes it especially difficult to fix is that in many workplaces employees can be fired if they simply try to find out how their pay stacks up against coworkers.   The ACLU has joined with more than 100 organizations in asking President Obama to issue an executive order that would help fix this problem by banning retaliation against the employees of federal contractors for disclosing or inquiring about their wages. It’s tough to fight for equal pay when you can’t even find out whether you’re being paid equally. There are 26 million Americans who work for federal contractors, so an executive order protecting them would have a significant impact.   Tomorrow we’ll “celebrate” Equal Pay Day – the marker for how far into 2013 women have to work in order to earn what men were paid in 2012 alone. That’s a huge gap, and while no one action is going to close it entirely, there are real and concrete steps we can take to narrow it right away. An executive order is a simple and effective step that will ensure more equal pay, and President Obama should issue one immediately.   You can read the full letter to President Obama here. If you’d like to learn more about the wage gap and what else the ACLU is doing to close it, check out these resources on ACLU.org.

Each Friday, we’ll bring you updates on the latest civil liberties news from Maine and the nation. This week, we bring you highlights from the national ACLU Blog of Rights.What’s Wrong With CISPAWe've written extensively about the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protections Act (CISPA) over the last year, but since the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence is set to mark the bill up next week, and the full House to vote on it the week after that, we're posting in more depth about its shortcomings. Information sharing isn't offensive per se; it's really a question of what can be shared, with whom, and what corporations and government agencies can do with it.VICTORY! Students Triumph over Private Prison Company’s Bid to Name College Football StadiumFor-profit prison company GEO Group announced its decision last night to withdraw the $6 million donation it made to Florida Atlantic University in exchange for naming rights to the school's football stadium. Student groups, faith groups, the ACLU, and other civil rights groups actively campaigned for the university to dissociate from GEO Group.CIA to Promote Head of "Black Site" Where Torture Occurred?According to media reports, the acting director of the CIA's clandestine service has, for the last month, been an official who was "in the chain of command" in the CIA's torture program in the years after 9/11. According to a book by Jose Rodriguez, the former head of the clandestine service, this unnamed official even headed one of the early CIA "black sites"—notorious secret prisons set up overseas to torture detainees. Media reports indicate that the unnamed career officer also reportedly signed off on the destruction of 92 videotapes documenting some of the most brutal mistreatment carried out under the CIA program.

Each Friday, we’ll bring you updates on the latest civil liberties news from Maine and the nation. This week, we bring you highlights from the national ACLU Blog of Rights. What’s Wrong With CISPA We've written extensively about the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protections Act (CISPA) over the last year, but since the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence is set to mark the bill up next week, and the full House to vote on it the week after that, we're posting in more depth about its shortcomings. Information sharing isn't offensive per se; it's really a question of what can be shared, with whom, and what corporations and government agencies can do with it. VICTORY! Students Triumph over Private Prison Company’s Bid to Name College Football Stadium For-profit prison company GEO Group announced its decision last night to withdraw the $6 million donation it made to Florida Atlantic University in exchange for naming rights to the school's football stadium. Student groups, faith groups, the ACLU, and other civil rights groups actively campaigned for the university to dissociate from GEO Group. CIA to Promote Head of "Black Site" Where Torture Occurred? According to media reports, the acting director of the CIA's clandestine service has, for the last month, been an official who was "in the chain of command" in the CIA's torture program in the years after 9/11. According to a book by Jose Rodriguez, the former head of the clandestine service, this unnamed official even headed one of the early CIA "black sites"—notorious secret prisons set up overseas to torture detainees. Media reports indicate that the unnamed career officer also reportedly signed off on the destruction of 92 videotapes documenting some of the most brutal mistreatment carried out under the CIA program.

Our colleagues at the ACLU National Prison Project have written a powerful blog post about the torture of a prisoner in Maine. It is worth reading, and the video is difficult to watch but powerful. Here in Maine, the incident has been the subject of on-going reporting by David Hench of the Portland Press Herald.You can read the full text of the ACLU blog post below. Originally posted on the ACLU Blog of Rights.Shocking Video from Maine Prison Shows a Restrained Prisoner Being Tortured with Pepper Spray"You're never going to win… Bottom line is the house wins every time."That's what Maine Correctional Center Captain Shawn Welch said to a prisoner who was strapped into a restraint chair, his face coated with pepper spray and his legs shaking in pain and fear. The entire ordeal was captured in a disturbing video that recently hit the internet. After Captain Welch pepper sprayed prisoner Paul Schlosser in the face, Captain Welch ignored Schlosser's plea that he could not breathe; at one point, Captain Welch responds to Schlosser's pleas for help with the taunt, "Last I heard, I was as useless as tits on a bull."How in the world did this come about?A former military medic, Paul Schlosser has received treatment in prison for both bipolar disorder and depression. After being held in solitary confinement for two months, he began to cut himself – a common response to such long-term isolation. On June 7, 2012, Schlosser pulled off his bandages and refused to be treated. He was then strapped to a restraint chair and confronted by Captain Welch.In the video, we see Schlosser immobilized in the restraint chair and surrounded by officers in riot gear. Schlosser remains compliant until one of the officers pins Schlosser's head to the back of the chair; Schlosser responds by squirming and then spitting at the officer. Without warning, Captain Welch suddenly coats Schlosser's face at close range with pepper spray from a canister only intended to be used on large crowds from a distance of twenty feet or more, according to an investigator's report. Schlosser chokes and fights for breath. He pleads, "I can't breathe, Captain," but Welch does nothing. Instead of following accepted professional standards and rinsing away the liquid, Welch puts a spit hood on Schlosser, effectively trapping the pepper spray against the man's face. For over 20 minutes, Welch, with canister in hand, paces in and out of the small area where Schlosser is being restrained, and refuses to let him wash the burning spray from his face and eyes.Sadly, this is one of many examples of corrections staff abusing restraints and pepper spray, at times with deadly results:

Take action now to bring our laws up to speed with advancing technology! Our privacy laws haven’t been updated since 1986 – that’s before the World Wide Web, before we all carried cell phones, before we used email to communicate on a daily basis.   TAKE ACTION TODAY! Now the Maine legislature has a chance to put necessary updates in place. LD 236 and LD 415 would require a probable cause warrant before the police could use surveillance drones to spy on us or track the location of our cell phones. New tools shouldn't be exempt from the 4th Amendment. Take action now to bring our laws up to speed with advancing technology! Click HERE to send your legislator an email!