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Updated 11.28.06 The current administration has steadily eroded constitutional guarantees
to due process and limits on search and seizure in the name of “the war
on terror.” These abuses of power range from warrantless searches to the
mistreatment of military detainees.
What’s Happening Nationally
Military Detainees
The House and Senate both voted in October 2006 to allow the
Administration to:
- decide for itself what types of interrogation techniques
constitute “torture,” even when they are prohibited under the Geneva
Convention;
- continue trying “unlawful enemy combatants” before military
tribunals, which the U.S. Supreme Court rejected this past summer in
Hamdan v. Rumsfeld; READ
MORE»
- remove constitutional habeas protections that would allow
detainees to challenge the basis for their detentions in court; and
- permit the continued use of secret evidence and torture-induced
testimony against detainees.
The House passed the bill (H.R. 6166) by a vote of 253 to 168, and
the Senate passed it (S.3930) by a vote of 65 to 34.
PATRIOT Act
Reauthorized in 2006, the USA PATRIOT Act contains a number of
provisions that impact our due process rights. Read more on the
national ACLU website.
go»
What's Happening in Ohio
ACLU of Ohio Litigation
Evans v. Pike County Area Joint Vocational School District
The ACLU of Ohio filed suit in U.S. District Court on behalf of eight
students who were illegally searched by staff at the Vern Riffe Career
Technology Center in January 2006. The searches occurred after two
students reported missing personal items.
READ MORE»
Juvenile Waiver of Appointed Counsel
The Ohio and national ACLU, along with other legal organizations, have
petitioned the Ohio Supreme Court to adopt a rule making it much more
difficult for children charged with being delinquent or unruly to waive
counsel. The Constitution requires that waivers of counsel be
knowing, intelligent, and voluntary. They all too often are not,
especially in the context of minors waiving their rights.
READ MORE»
More
information is available on the national ACLU website.
Resources
Lieutenant Commander Charles Swift, who represented a Guantanamo Bay
detainee in the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Hamdan v. Rumsfeld,
spoke at a Cleveland ACLU gathering on Oct. 8, 2006. To learn more about
Lt Comm. Swift and his work to bring justice to those detained by the
government, click on the links below.
Justice for Guantanamo
Ed Likover Memorial Lecture, Cleveland, October 8, 2006 - MP4 video file
The Cost of Doing Your Duty
New York Times, October 11, 2006
Detainees' Military Lawyer Forced Out of Service
National Public Radio, October 12, 2006
Students! Know Your Rights
Use this guide in conjunction with your school's handbook.
go»
Do you know what to do if you are stopped by the police, taken to a
police station for questioning, arrested, or asked if the police can
enter your home? Read What to Do If You’re
Stopped by the Police
go» To print a version for distribution
click here.
Read “Bigger Monster, Weaker Chains: The Growth
of an American Surveillance Society” explaining how our
activities are increasingly being tracked and recorded.
go»
Visit the
national ACLU’s web page on criminal justice.
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Search & Seizure News
02.02.06
ACLU Files Suit in Student Strip Search Case: Calls Actions of
School Administration Illegal, Unnecessary
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