News & Commentary

A new proposal limiting surveillance by drones will be debated by Missouri lawmakers, but the ACLU thinks it may not go far enough.The bill would require police to get warrants to gather evidence before sending unmanned aircraft over farmland or homes. Doug Bonney, legal director of the local chapter of the ACLU, likes the bill, but says it could be broadened because technology is leading us down a slippery slope."Governments are engaging in surveillance of people in their homes and in their yards with cameras fixed to trees or light poles and that kind of thing," says Bonney.Drones used by law enforcement have come down in price and generally courts have ruled aerial surveillance without a warrant is legal. But Bonney says he's worried that privacy is rapidly being written out of existence and he'll be watching the legislation carefully."ACLU watching legislation on surveillance in Missouri" KMBZ, January 4, 2013

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Drug Policy Alliance’s 2006 report argued that drug testing is not worth the cost.Schools risk false-positive drug tests, they say. The tests take dollars away from other prevention programs. They can undermine trust and drive away students who might otherwise have gotten help in other school programming.“Nothing prohibits it,” said Doug Bonney, the legal director for the ACLU of Kansas and Western Missouri. “But it is a colossal waste of money.”

May 17, 2012Governor Sam BrownbackCapitol, 300 SW 10th Ave., Ste. 241-STopeka, KS 66612-1590Dear Governor Brownback,I write to today on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Kansas and Western Missouri, representing thousands of members and activists throughout the State of Kansas who seek to preserve and expand individual freedoms and civil liberties guaranteed under the United States an Kansas Constitutions. Respectfully, the ACLU asks that you veto House Substitution for Senate Bill 79 (H Sub SB 79). I have outlined our concerns with this bill below.

As 2011 comes to end, we’re taking a look back at the year in criminal justice. Over the next few days, we’ll run a series of blog posts on the developments, good and bad, that have shaped our justice system – from overincarceration and sentencing policy to the treatment of prisoners and capital punishment.Read the series here.It is said that you can tell a lot about a society by how it treats its most vulnerable members. In the United States, a good measure might be how we treat those who come in contact with our criminal justice system, for they are often the very same. In 2011, the American Civil Liberties Union made the fight against overincarceration a top organizational priority with the launch of our Safe and Fair Campaign. It was the perfect time to do so: after decades of “tough on crime” policymaking, there is now an opening to shift to being smart on crime, and to make policy based on facts and evidence, rather than emotion and politics. America’s criminal justice system should keep communities safe, treat people fairly, and use fiscal resources wisely. It should use prison as a last resort. While we are having some success in breaking our addiction to mass incarceration, we still have a long way to go.The good news:

 Hon. Emanuel Cleaver, Julian Bond, and John Bluford  Susan Schmelzer, Ruth Shechter, Judge George Draper, Judge Judy Draper, Niki Lee Donawa, and John Bluford Pamela Horowitz, Julian Bond, Niki Lee Donawa, and Pam Woodard Ralph Reid and Brian Williams

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Kansas HB 2372 – AZ SB1070-Like LegislationSection 1: Requires that all state and city governments, as well as government contractors and subcontractors, use e-verify, a federal employment eligibility verification program used by DHS in partnership with the Social Security Administration.Section 2: "Show me your papers" section requiring law enforcement officers to determine the citizenship and immigration status of a person if "reasonable suspicion" exists that the person is unlawfully present in the U.S.Section 3: "Aiding and Abetting" section making it a crime to harbor or transport anyone unlawfully present in the U.S or encouraging a person to enter the U.S. unlawfully. Punishable by class A misdemeanor to level 8, person felony.Section 4: Requires the Kansas Attorney General to enter into a cooperative agreement with DHS to allow performance of immigration officer functions by state officers and employees.Section 5: No person unlawfully present in the U.S. shall receive any state or local public benefits. This includes but is not limited to: "any grant, contract, loan or commercial or professional license provided by an agency of state or local government, or any retirement, welfare, health, disability, housing, food assistance or unemployment benefit."Section 6: Makes is unlawful to fail to complete or carry immigration documentation when unlawfully present in the U.S. punishable by a class C misdemeanor and $100 fine.Section 7: Any section of this bill that is found to be unconstitutional shall be stricken from the law and all other sections will remain intact and valid.Section 8: Knowingly manufacturing or selling falsified identification a felony.Section 9: Any person charged with a crime and unable to prove citizenship will have their immigration status verified. If verified as unlawfully present, then will be presumed to be at risk of flight.