Federal Court Rules for Protestors In a major victory for free speech rights, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a ruling today denying the City of New York’s effort to dismiss the lawsuit challenging the NYPD’s…
Reprinted from The Huffington Post NEW YORK — Hundreds of people arrested on the Brooklyn Bridge in the early days of the Occupy Wall Street protests can proceed with their lawsuit against the police, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday. The…
The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund is serving as co-counsel with Southern Legal Counsel challenging unconstitutional restrictions on First Amendment rights imposed by the city of St. Petersburg, Florida. The Plaintiff in the lawsuit, Rev. Bruce Wright, is an advocate…
Counter-terrorism officials partner with corporate retail trade association The documents reveal that Fusion Centers and their personnel even conflate their anti-terrorism mission with a need for intelligence gathering on a possible consumer boycott during the holiday season. There are multiple…
Reprinted from The New York Times When the Occupy protests spread across the country three years ago, state and local law enforcement officials went on alert. In Milwaukee, officials reported that a group intended to sing holiday carols at “an undisclosed…
“Counter-terrorism” agencies’ domestic spying on free speech activity The Department of Homeland Security (DHS)-funded Fusion Centers used their vast anti-terrorism and anti-crime authority and funding to conduct a sprawling, nationwide and hour-by-hour surveillance effort that targeted even the smallest activity…
First order of business for police chiefs’ intelligence-sharing subcommittee: Occupy The documents reveal that the police chiefs of major U.S. cities created an “Emerging Issues” Subcommittee and that “The first issue the committee is working is the Occupy Movement.” The…
Tell Congress to Follow the Oversight Board’s Recommendations and End Bulk Surveillance! PCJF statement on Oversight Board report By Carl Messineo, Legal Director andMara Verheyden-Hilliard, Exec. Director The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board’s (PCLOB) report, calling for an end…
Reprinted from McClatchy DC Serious questions shadow President Barack Obama’s proposal to add a public advocate to the secret court that oversees surveillance programs. The public advocate, Obama says, would provide an “independent voice in significant cases” before the Foreign Intelligence…
Reprinted from CNN In a development that should surprise absolutely no one, anti-NSA activists were quick Friday to say that President Barack Obama’s efforts to limit the agency’s spying activities didn’t go far enough. Leading up to a speech in which he…
Community activists and civil rights organizations have filed a petition Jan. 15 with the Missouri State Circuit Court to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate prosecutor Robert McCulloch’s conduct in the case of Officer Darren Wilson. Since the Nov. 24…
Reprinted from The Washington Post A free-speech advocacy group wants to show its appreciation to Edward Snowden, the former U.S. intelligence contractor who publicly disclosed secret surveillance programs run by the National Security Agency. So the group purchased an ad. “Thank…