News & Commentary

When a mundane traffic stop was nearing its end, a state trooper would turn to leave. But after a couple of paces toward the squad car, the trooper would whirl around and go back to the window of the pulled-over driver, hoping to strike up a conversation and find enough reason to scour the car.

Kansas trooper Brandon McMillan pulled Bosire over for driving seven miles per hour over the speed limit, according to court documents. What happened next is an example of a policing practice known as the Kansas “two step,” a tactic that a judge ruled unconstitutional this week.

The Kansas Highway Patrol has been ordered to stop its infamous “two-step” technique by a federal judge, in what the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas calls a “huge win” for all motorists using state highways.

“When we’re trying to make this about something very simple like statutory interpretation, what we’re doing is ignoring the reality that transgender Kansans are going to face every single day in this state,” Sharon Brett, the ACLU of Kansas' legal director, said after the hearing.

"I think it's important to remember that these lawsuits impact people," said Sharon Brett, the ACLU's legal director. "They have impact on people's health and safety and livelihood and dignity and privacy. And those rights could be asserted in the state court and should be asserted[...]"

What the report found is that no counties utilize the entire early voting period allowed by Kansas law; most counties offer very little flexibility in the hours when voting is available; and only 22 counties offer multiple early voting locations.

This is a tough thread to write. Federal public defense is facing devastating budget cuts for FY 2024, following House and Senate appropriation marks. If unchanged, we will be seriously underfunded. Nationally, this could mean losing 10 to 12% of on-board staff. 1/10

“While the court’s decision today is disappointing and undoubtedly leaves transgender Kansans in fear, we want to make clear that this decision is not the final decision in the case,” the ACLU said in a statement. “We will continue to fight for transgender Kansans’ right(s)."

Members of St. Marys five-person city commission have threatened to pull the lease of the public library if they don't remove all LGBTQ+ and other "socially divisive" books from the shelves. Their efforts have drawn a warning from the ACLU of Kansas.