Privacy

01.29.16

2016 Must Not Be a Missed Opportunity for Police Body Cameras

By Lisa Wurm

Police body worn cameras are now a reality in Ohio. Law enforcement rapidly continues to purchase and use them, and before we know it they will be an afterthought as part of everyday policing.

Striking a Balance

Body cams are also a complex issue for organizations like the ACLU of Ohio because they raise issues of police accountability, personal privacy, surveillance, and government transparency. 

07.25.15

Does Ohio Need a Police Shooting Database?

By Shakyra Diaz

There has been recent public outcry about the disproportionate interactions with law enforcement in communities of color. To better understand what’s happening, Ohio could make use of a centralized database that would document instances of excessive force, lethal and non-lethal.

Earlier this year, two criminal justice students at Sinclair Community College in voiced support for a database that specifically would document instances of police shootings.

07.20.15

Ears in the Air Pose Fourth Amendment Risk

By Kimberly Millhoan

When “eyes in the sky” are mentioned, we generally don’t give these spy satellites much thought because, after all, we can’t see them, they’re way up in space, and they’re not focused on us, right?

Spies Much Closer to Us

But the “friendly skies” a few hundred feet over us actually may not be so friendly after all.

06.03.15

It’s Time for LGBT Scout Leaders

By Shakyra Diaz

Brian Peffly

As a former Boy Scout, I can say with all honesty the organization’s founding tenets provide a respectable framework to build a young person’s life upon. And I say this as a bisexual former scout.

Looking through the lens of someone who knows what the Boy Scouts of America is about, I see great hypocrisy in one of its policies—the exclusion of LGBT adults serving as volunteers or professionals in the organization.

05.18.15

Government Snooping On Your Cell Phone

By Shakyra Diaz

It’s known as Stingray, cell-site simulator and many other names.

This powerful surveillance tool is employed by 12 federal agencies, as well as 51 agencies in 21 states and the District of Columbia to capture cell phone locations, physical movements, frequencies of use, user and contact ID numbers, call destinations, etc.

03.18.15

Want the Feds Knowing You Went to a Gun Show?

By Shakyra Diaz

Photo by Kordite at Flickr Commons.

In Ohio alone, there are at least 70 public gun shows every year.

They are visited by collectors of antique firearms, historians, target shooters and hunting enthusiasts—and are often your neighbors. It’s estimated about one of every three Ohioans owns one or more guns.

03.04.15

Police Body Cameras Are Promising, but Need Protections in Place

By Shakyra Diaz

Photo: West Midlands Police via Flickr Creative Commons

Every so often, new or updated technology is introduced to law enforcement. The list includes tear gas, pepper spray, stun guns, dashboard cameras, and automatic license plate readers, among other things.

These tools greatly assist police.

12.19.14

Sunset at the Statehouse

By Shakyra Diaz

As the end of the year approaches, what went on in the final days of the 130^th Ohio General Assembly?

When last I wrote about the Ohio legislature’s “lame duck” session, I provided updates on the so-called Heartbeat Bill and the lethal injection bill.

12.03.14

What Are Ohio Legislators Cooking Up Now?

By Shakyra Diaz

If you are a member of the ACLU of Ohio, you are no doubt used to hearing from us about our work. Perhaps it is no surprise an organization known for protecting the First Amendment often exercises its own right to free speech.

10.24.14

Ebola Does Not Require Government to Choose between Safety and Freedom

By Tim Cable

Susan J. Becker is a member of the ACLU of Ohio board of directors and a volunteer attorney in the Cleveland office.

When faced with a major health threat in this country, elected and appointed officials charged with protecting public health tend to employ a false dichotomy.

07.24.14

Drones for all, laws for none – why Ohio needs to regulate drones before it is too late.

By Melissa Bilancini

If we’re keeping tabs on who has the most sleepless nights these days, my vote goes to the folks who work for the Federal Aviation Administration. In addition to the agency’s numerous other tasks, the FAA is responsible for developing regulations for the use of unmanned aerial vehicles or, as they are more commonly known, drones.

06.06.14

Is an Enhanced ID Worth the Risk?

By Tim Cable

This post discusses HB 346, and security/privacy risks regarding enhanced IDs.

In 2005, the federal government passed the Real ID Act, in the hopes of creating a national identification card that all people would carry. In fact, without one of these identification cards, you would hypothetically be unable to fly commercially, or enter a federal court.

05.22.14

Think that’s a cell phone you’re carrying?

By Melissa Bilancini

This is the fourth in a series of posts focusing on issues we will be tackling at the 2014 ACLU of Ohio biennial conference, Resist. Reclaim. Restore Your Rights!

It may make calls, but your cell phone is actually a tracking beacon.

04.18.14

Automatic License Plate Readers: A Recipe for Trouble

By Nick Worner

Privacy isn’t about hiding your information. Privacy is about controlling your information. That’s why automatic license plate readers (ALPR’s) are so troubling.

There’s nothing new about police officers checking individual license plates sporadically throughout the day. But a machine that scans every single plate that passes by 24/7 is something totally different.

10.26.13

Media Roundup: Week of 10/20/13

By Nick Worner

• Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction: Rehab at core of our mission – Toledo Blade, 10/20
• High School Football Player Kicked off Team, Suspended Over Poem – Fox8 Cleveland, 10/22
• Ohio ACLU files suit over right to write on sidewalk – Toledo Blade, 10/23
• Group gets OK to write with chalk on sidewalk – Toledo Blade, 10/24
• School Officials: Student’s Poem Punishment Overturned – Fox8 Cleveland, 10/24
• Audit: Private Prison Retains Increased Levels of Violence – Cincinnati CityBeat, 10/24
• Ohio Abortion Clinic Closings Likely to Accelerate Under New State Regulations – Cleveland.com, 10/25
• Since Ohio Is Forcing Abortion Clinics Out Of Business, More Women Are Leaving The State To Get Care – ThinkProgress, 10/25
• Arm police officers in schools, voters say – Columbus Dispatch, 10/25
• Face-check access goes beyond Ohio – Cincinnati Enquirer, 10/25/13
• State Says Ohio Prison Inmate Commits Suicide – AP, 10/25/13

09.06.13

About-Face: The Troubled Launch of Ohio’s New Facial Recognition System

By Nick Worner

In June 2013, The Ohio Attorney General’s office flipped the switch on a new facial recognition program that allows the government to compare anonymous snapshots to the state’s existing database of license photos and mug shots in order to look for a match.

08.15.13

Journal Entry 4: Should we be concerned about drones?

By Melissa Bilancini

ACLU of Ohio Policy Coordinator Melissa Bilancini recently went under cover at the 2nd Annual Ohio UAS Conference. This is an account of what she learned…

I leave this conference with my head full of information and concerns about the future of Ohio’s skies.

08.07.13

Journal Entry 3: What’s the FAA got to do with it?

By Melissa Bilancini

ACLU of Ohio Policy Coordinator Melissa Bilancini recently went under cover at the 2nd Annual Ohio UAS Conference. This is an account of what she learned…

What’s the FAA got to do with it?

In short: everything. I learned in today’s workshop on regulations that Congress tasked the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) with incorporating drones into the national airspace system, and developing six test sites where such integration can be tested.

07.31.13

Journal Entry 2: Drones: “In theater” and in Ohio

By Melissa Bilancini

ACLU of Ohio Policy Coordinator Melissa Bilancini recently went under cover at the 2nd Annual Ohio UAS Conference. This is an account of what she learned…

Thus far, my cover is holding.

Conference attendees are really surprised that a social worker would have an interest in drones.

07.22.13

Journal Entry 1: Game of Drones

By Melissa Bilancini

ACLU of Ohio Policy Coordinator Melissa Bilancini recently went under cover at the 2nd Annual Ohio UAS Conference. This is an account of what she learned…

I’m deep undercover at the Ohio UAS Conference. My cover story? “I’m just a part-time social work professor with an interest in drones and other new technologies.”

My real story?