American Civil Liberties Union

Carded: Supreme Court OKs Voter Photo ID

ACLU Files DNC Lawsuit Against Feds

Dani Newsum to Leave Colorado Inside Out

Some Notable Facts from the DNC Security Trial

"Sloppy Police Work" and the Denver Jail

Off Limits

Politics get raw at the Hamburger Mary's debate

Blinded by Science

Boulder throws another Barbie on the fire.

Wake-Up Call: More scary stuff at DIA

The devil horse. The one-world murals. The underground tunnels where aliens (the extraterrestrial ones) hang out. Yes, Denver International Airport has a lot of scary stuff. Starting with the name of its terminal: Jeppesen. It was supposed to honor pioneering aviation navigator Elrey Jeppesen, wh ... More >>

Evolution's Merry-Go-Round

Modern Muse forcefully revisits the suddenly timely Inherit the Wind.

Off Limits

Burn, baby, burn

Embracing the Future

Traveling out of DIA continues to be a frisky business.

Last But Not Yeast

The DPD's binge-and-purge problem continues.

The Boys Next Door

In the rush to ban sex offenders, cities and counties may inadvertently be creating more of them down the line.

FIGHTING IT OUT IN BOULDER

STREET PEOPLE IN THE COLLEGE TOWN ENLIST HELP IN THEIR BATTLE AGAINST THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.

Wake-Up Call: FU, Senator Brophy

According to state senator Greg Brophy's blog, "he's been called one of the most conservative members of the legislature and a Prius driving, bicycle riding, eco freak. You decide." But first read this, and you might come up with a couple of other descriptors. On April 24, he recounted the tale o ... More >>

ACLU sues Denver for alleged false arrests during Democratic National Convention

Signs of recent times.​It's been a year since the Democratic National Convention took over this town -- and to mark that anniversary, the Colorado branch of the American Civil Liberties Union has taken two legal actions. In the first, an ACLU lawyer is representing eight people in a suit again ... More >>

ACLU wins settlement with Jeffco sheriff's office over Nobama shirt student

Blake Benson rocks his Nobama duds.​Conservatives like to portray the American Civil Liberties Union as a bunch of dangerous lefties with a decidedly progressive agenda rather than principles that transcend the politics of the moment. But that argument was dinged today, when the ACLU's Colora ... More >>

ACLU sues Jeffco sheriff Ted Mink, says he unlawfully imprisoned man for 47 days

Ted Mink allegedly held a man for over a month without charges.​The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit against the Jefferson County Sheriff, accusing him of illegally detaining a man for 47 days for the suspicion that he was an illegal immigrant. Sheriff Ted Mink, the ... More >>

An Opportunity to Stand Up

Ted Mink allegedly held a man for over a month without charges.​The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit against the Jefferson County Sheriff, accusing him of illegally detaining a man for 47 days for the suspicion that he was an illegal immigrant. Sheriff Ted Mink, the ... More >>

In Phoenix, Sheriff Joe Arpaio's reign of terror becomes state policy, thanks to state Senator Russell Pearce and Governor Jan Brewer

Ted Mink allegedly held a man for over a month without charges.​The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit against the Jefferson County Sheriff, accusing him of illegally detaining a man for 47 days for the suspicion that he was an illegal immigrant. Sheriff Ted Mink, the ... More >>

ACLU settles suit over Denver police complaint records

​On the eve of going to court in its effort to protect internal investigations records of police officers from public scrutiny, the City of Denver has agreed to settle a lawsuit by forking over many of the documents sought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado.

ACLU challenging Boulder's practice of ticketing homeless people for sleeping outside

​The ACLU is challenging a Boulder ordinance that penalizes homeless people for sleeping outside under the cover of blankets -- even when the city's homeless shelter is full. That's what happened to David Madison. He was ticketed last November under the city's controversial camping ban for s ... More >>

ACLU puts out travel alert for people traveling to Arizona due to new "racial-profiling" law

Joe Arpaio.​Planning on traveling to Arizona over the upcoming holiday weekend? A fan of dry heat? The American Civil Liberties Union, joined by the Colorado branch, has issued a travel advisory due to the recent passage of SB 1070, which the organization describes as "Arizona's racial-profili ... More >>

Nudity and mask-wearing ban proposal: ACLU says decorum rules go too far

Seth Brigham being arrested in February.​The February arrest of Seth Brigham, who stripped to his boxers at a Boulder city council meeting in reference to a possible nudity ban, has led to proposed rules of decorum that prohibit disrobing and more. To Judd Golden of Boulder's ACLU branch, the ... More >>

Thomas Mink and The Howling Pig: ACLU's illegal search case moves forward six years later

"Junius Puke" in "The Howling Pig."​In December 2003, the Ault, Colorado home onetime UNC student Thomas Mink shared with his mom was raided by police. His crime? Satirizing a UNC professor named Junius Peake as "Junius Puke" in his self-published newsletter, The Howling Pig. Thus began a cou ... More >>

ACLU suing Boulder over postcards-only policy for inmates

Gino Rael.​In January, registered sex offender Gino Rael was accused of trying to recruit young girls in letters sent from Boulder County jail. Division Chief Larry Hank told Westword he thought such a situation could be prevented by restricting inmates to sending only postcards. But if this ... More >>

Labia-lift searches of female prisoners have to stop, ACLU tells Ari Zavaras

​A few months ago we first reported on the "labia lift" -- an extremely invasive search process that the Colorado Department of Corrections has started using at its Denver women's prison. Now the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado has taken notice -- and demanded that the DOC immedia ... More >>

"Labia lift" strip searches: ACLU action gooses prison officials into changing degrading policy

Krystal Voss​Even under the best of circumstances, prison is an exercise in humiliation. But life just got a little less nasty for female inmates at the Denver Women's Correctional Facility, who no longer have to spread open their genitalia for invasive cavity searches after a family visit. P ... More >>

ACLU stands up for right of Colorado Springs middle schooler to wear rosary at public school

Flickr​Critics of the ACLU portray the organization as an apologist for flag burners. As such, the group loves to show it's about principles, not ideology. Case in point: Its defense of Cainan Gostnell, a Colorado Springs student whose middle school has banned wearing religious symbols like ro ... More >>

Perry Speelman: Denver Police Sgt. accused of racial profiling costs city another $24,000

​In April, Alan Prendergast reported about Sgt. Perry Speelman, one of the defendants in a 2004 racial profiling lawsuit the city settled for $75,000. Tonight, Denver City Council will pay another $24,000 over similar allegations.

ACLU files claim against ICE for harassing U.S. citizens en route to Amway convention

​Today, the American Civil Liberties Union announced a formal administrative complaint against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over an April incident during which dozens of Spanish speakers aboard a Denver charter bus were detained under suspicion of human smuggling. Turns out the ri ... More >>

"Marriage is so gay" T-shirt: Colorado Springs' Falcon High School drops ban after ACLU letter

Large photo below.​Update: Well, that didn't take long. Only hours after the American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to an El Paso County school district demanding that Falcon High School student Kate Cohn be allowed to wear a T-shirt that reads "marriage is so gay," the principal who ori ... More >>

Reader: ICE is racist because agency targets Spanish speakers, ignores whites with no papers

​Some interesting comments on our post about the ACLU filing a complaint against Immigration and Customs Enforcement for detaining a busload of Spanish speakers heading to an Amway Convention. Here are two of the most pointed.

Solitary confinement study "deeply flawed," says ACLU

​As reported here last summer, a controversial state study suggesting no harmful psychological effects from solitary confinement was drawing heated protests from prison activists even before it was published. Now that it's been released, psychiatric experts and the ACLU of Colorado are saying ... More >>

El Paso County Jail's postcard-only policy is returned to sender

​Prisoners in El Paso County got an early Christmas present yesterday, when county officials agreed to stop limiting outgoing inmate mail to just postcards. The ACLU had filed suit against that policy, which the El Paso County Jail adopted this summer, arguing that such restrictions for prison ... More >>

Overland High School newspaper threatened with closure to survive after ACLU complaints

The editors.​Last week, two editors of The Scout, the Overland High School student newspaper, appeared with representatives of the ACLU of Colorado to protest actions of the school's principal, who was said to have ordered the pub to shut down for the year and removed its faculty adviser over ... More >>

Boulder County pays ACLU $65,000 to settle lawsuit over postcard-only jail policy

​This week, the Boulder County jail is expected to formally end its policy of restricting inmate mail to postcards only -- and commissioners agreed to pay the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado $65,000 to settle a lawsuit over an issue that an ACLU spokeswoman hopes is now dead in the ... More >>

Top 10 Colorado license plates worth paying for

​Today's Denver Post reports on a proposal to let Colorado drivers bid for the most sought-after vanity plates. But which ones would bring in the most dough? We've got some ideas about that. Here's our top ten.

ACLU objects to Ken Buck's comments after $295K Operations Numbers Game settlement

Ken Buck.​In 2008, the Weld County Sheriff's Office raided Amalia's Translation and Tax Service in Greeley as part of Operations Numbers Game, an effort to bust identity thieves who were also undocumented immigrants. The ACLU filed suit over the action -- and this week, Weld District Attorney/ ... More >>

Settling police and sheriff claims cost Denver $10 million since 2002, ACLU finds

Alex Landau.​As detailed in last week's feature on Independent Monitor Richard Rosenthal, Denver is in the midst of a police-misconduct story that won't go away. Now, as part of its "Race to Justice" police brutality awareness campaign, the ACLU tracked down all city payouts for police-relate ... More >>

School voucher program stopped: Dougco appeal would waste taxpayer money, ACLU says

Michael Martinez.​"School Vouchers on Hold" read a weekend headline in the print Denver Post. But while plaintiffs, including the Colorado branch of the American Civil Liberties Union, technically requested a preliminary injunction to stop the Douglas County Choice Scholarship Program, Judge ... More >>

Breast-milk pumping results in job loss?: ACLU takes action on behalf of Heather Burgbacher

​Did a Jefferson County charter school decide not to renew the contract of veteran teacher Heather Burgbacher because she pumped breast milk at work? That's the contention of the ACLU of Colorado, which has taken legal action on Burgbacher's behalf that could lead to a lawsuit against Jeffco ... More >>

Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act endorsed by ACLU, petition signatures reach 60,000

Mason Tvert.​The Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act of 2012 hasn't sparked up love from all pro-marijuana activists, but it continues to win support from other sources. According to Regulate proponent Mason Tvert, the latest organizations to endorse the measure are the American Civil Libertie ... More >>

ACLU urges schools to adopt policy banning school police officers from working with ICE

​ The American Civil Liberties Union has jumped in on the debate simmering in Carbondale and Glenwood Springs over whether school resource officers should be allowed to collaborate with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Occupy Denver: ACLU investigates constitutionality and safety of police action

Phillip Becerra.​Colorado ACLU communications director Rosemary Harris Lytle confirms her organization has launched an investigation of "an escalation of police force" at Occupy Denver -- like, for example, the shooting of Phillip Becarra, seen here, with pepper bullets. The ACLU has expressed ... More >>

Occupy Denver: ACLU investigating the seizure of personal property during most recent raid

​One week after the Colorado ACLU launched an investigation into the constitutionality of police action at Occupy Denver, the group has yet to receive the records it requested from the Denver Police Department and the Colorado State Patrol. In the meantime, the ACLU is researching a secondary ... More >>

Reader: Occupy Denver legal team member calls out ACLU over civil-rights case claims

​Kelsey Whipple's recent post about Occupy Denver's legal team exploring legal precedents involving tents as examples of speech drew a sharp response from a member of the occupation's Legal Issues Working Group. His post focuses on both the aforementioned lawyers and the ACLU, which he feels c ... More >>

Occupy Denver: ACLU reacts to restiction against recording during court appearances

​Westword has been present at every Sunday-morning arraignment related to Occupy Denver arrests. It was only this past Sunday, however, that I was forbidden by the court from recording anything while inside. The recent ban on anyone other than lawyers taking notes on the arrests and bond rates ... More >>

Boulder approves penalty reduction for sixty municipal offenses, ACLU wants forty more

Boulder City Council.​Tuesday night, Boulder City Council reduced fines and approved no jail time for first and second convictions on sixty municipal offenses -- an effort to prevent a flood of minor cases (like Occupy Boulder camping tickets) from filling courtrooms. Some aspects of these ch ... More >>