2014 August

08.29.14

What happened when hundreds of prisoners in Youngstown staged a 14-hour uprising?

Tim Cable

Well, since it happened at a private prison, it’s hard to know – privately-run prisons lack the transparency required at state-run facilities. During the incident and the days following the uprising, Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the for-profit company that runs the prison, kept its lips sealed.

08.28.14

Lights, Camera, and Action! The Puffin Collaborative Film Festival Begins Soon

Steve David

The lights fade out, and the audience falls silent.

There is something about great movies that is hard to describe, but impossible to ignore. The images, sounds and the darkness of the theater create a feeling that grabs you and says, “Pay attention, this is important.”

The Puffin Collaborative Film Festival (PCFF) is built around that feeling.

08.27.14

Standing Between You & Your Rights: Is This Really Good Government? (Part Three)

Adrienne Gavula

Part Three – Politics Over Health:

Following an accidental approval of Women’s Med Center that was quickly rescinded, state leaders launched an internal investigation that lead to firings and retirements. Roy Croy, one of those retired health department chiefs, said, “Someone had to pay…politics are politics.” The state investigation revealed that the Ohio Department of Health created a watch list of clinics, and data shows the state is treating abortion clinics differently than other surgical centers.

08.27.14

20,000 Ohioans Pledge Support for Marriage Equality

Lisa Wurm

The campaign for marriage equality reached an exciting milestone on August 26th by gathering 20,000 pledge cards signed by Ohioans from every county across the state.

Why Marriage Matters Ohio (WMMO) had set this goal to be reached by the end of 2014 and has already surpassed it 4 months ahead of schedule.

08.26.14

Upcoming Likover Memorial Lecture Explores Religious Liberty After Greece v. Galloway

Doug Torok

Save October 12, 2014 on your calendar to learn what religious liberty means post-Greece v. Galloway. Join in the conversation with ACLU of Ohio Staff Attorney Drew Dennis as he discusses the current state of religious liberty with plaintiff Susan Galloway and her choice to speak out against official prayer at public meetings.

08.26.14

Standing Between You & Your Rights: Is This Really Good Government? (Part Two)

Adrienne Gavula

Part Two – Losing Access:

The law does allow clinics to be granted an exception (known as a variance) to the transfer agreement requirement if they can prove that an alternative plan is in place for emergencies. However, HB59 also gave the Ohio Department of Health director wider scope to deny these exceptions than was previously granted.

08.25.14

Standing Between You & Your Rights: Is This Really Good Government? (Part One)

Adrienne Gavula

Part One – The Bureaucratic Smoke Screen:

Since the 1970s, termination of pregnancy has become legal and accessible in most developed countries. In the U.S., however, women have experienced only barriers. With a focus on patients, opponents have used waiting periods; mandated, medically unnecessary tests; healthcare coverage bans; gestational limits; and required counseling to construct barriers to accessing abortion.

08.22.14

Stark County Citizens Set Example for Rest of Ohio

Gary Daniels

“I didn’t realize, while I was on the bench that when I sentenced someone to 5-6 years I was sentencing them to life”.  Those are the words of former Stark County Common Pleas Judge Harry Klide, who sat with me recently to discuss criminal justice reform.

08.18.14

Civil Liberties Field Notes: What’s Rational About Wage Discrimination?

Steve David

I was unpacking my literature bag at the sign-in table when a man approached me and shook my hand.

“You know,” he said, picking up a bust card, “the first check I ever wrote was to the ACLU. Check number 101.

08.15.14

ACLU in the Courts: Fighting for Your Voting Rights

Mike Brickner

Five ACLU staff attorneys.

Multiple volunteer attorneys, clerks, and legal assistants.

Hundreds of hours of staff time fighting unfair restrictions on Ohioans’ right to vote.

On Monday, August 11, the ACLU of Ohio and ACLU National Voting Rights Project went to court in Columbus to challenge cuts to early voting that will hurt working Ohioans.

08.15.14

Is Ohio’s Death Penalty in Its Last Throes?

Mike Brickner

It shouldn’t be news to anyone who has read a paper or watched television that there are significant problems with lethal injection. This year, Ohio, Oklahoma and Arizona have all had executions that left witnesses with little doubt that they were botched.

08.10.14

Inside the Courtroom: Gay Marriage Gets its Day in Ohio

Lisa Wurm

“If I told you it took 78 years crossing the desert back and forth and back and forth, would you be surprised?”

This quote said by Judge Martha Craig Daughtrey during the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit hearings on six marriage equality cases, sums up the day.

08.08.14

Help Kids and Lose Your Funding: New Legislation’s Heartless Approach to Immigration Crisis

Gary Daniels

There is a crisis going on and, like all crises, things are not working out perfectly. In this case, the latest concern is the estimated 57,000+ people who have found their way to the southern border of the U.S. and into the country.

08.07.14

The Challenge of Voting

Steve David

Voting can be hard.  The merits of candidates, sides of issues, and conflicting messages force us to make difficult decisions at the voting booth.  We often have hard conversations with family, friends, and colleagues that examine our beliefs and challenge our thinking. 

08.06.14

Guest Blog – How Ohio’s Marriage Ban Affected My Family

Deb Green

This guest blog post comes from Deb Green, who graciously chose to share her story of what it was like growing up gay and transgender in a small area from Northwest Ohio in the 1970’s. After finding the love of her life, Lillie Ward (Lil), they were unfortunately unable to openly be together.

08.04.14

With No Legal Authority, Ohio Jails Detain Immigrants

Gary Daniels

While Americans of all political persuasions continue the debate about who enters this country and under what circumstances, an important development is taking place under the radar, away from the yelling.

For several years, local jails have cooperated with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to screen all new prisoners.