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LGBT Organizations Point Out that Lawsuits Could Set Back Progress on Marriage for Same-Sex Couples (05/27/2009)
NEW YORK – In response to the California Supreme Court decision allowing Prop 8 to stand, four LGBT legal organizations and five other leading national LGBT groups are reminding the LGBT community that ill-timed lawsuits could set the fight for marriage back. The groups released a new publication, “Why the ballot box and not the courts should be the next step on marriage in California.” This publication discourages people from bringing premature lawsuits based on the federal Constitution because, without more groundwork, the U.S. Supreme Court likely is not yet ready to rule that same-sex couples cannot be barred from marriage. The groups also revised “Make Change, Not Lawsuits,” which was released after the California Supreme Court decision ending the ban on marriage for same-sex couples in California. This publication encourages couples who have legally married to ask friends, neighbors and institutions to honor their marriages, but discourages people from bringing lawsuits.

Court Upholds Prop 8; State Continues to Recognize 18,000 Marriages (05/26/2009)
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, in a 6 to 1 decision, the California Supreme Court upheld Proposition 8, the ballot measure that eliminated the right of same sex couples to marry. In the ruling authored by Chief Justice Ronald George, the court stated “We emphasize only that among the various constitutional protections recognized in the Marriage Cases as available to same-sex couples, it is only the designation of marriage — albeit significant — that has been removed by this initiative measure.” At the same time, the court unanimously ruled that the more than 18,000 marriages that took place between June 16 and November 4, 2008 continue to be fully valid and recognized by the state of California. The decision reaffirmed the court’s prior holding that sexual orientation is subject to the highest level of protection under the California Constitution.

California School Bans Sixth Grader’s Presentation on Harvey Milk (05/20/2009)
RAMONA, CA – Wrongly citing a school policy on sex education, a California school illegally censored a sixth grader’s classroom presentation about Harvey Milk earlier this month. According to a demand letter sent by the American Civil Liberties Union to the Ramona Unified School District today, the school violated Natalie Jones’s free speech rights when it refused to allow her to give the presentation in class. Instead, the school improperly required classmates to get parental permission to see the presentation during a lunch recess.

U.S. Supreme Court Rejects California Counties' Challenge to State Medical Marijuana Laws (05/18/2009)
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to hear an appeal brought by San Diego and San Bernardino counties challenging the validity of California's medical marijuana laws. The Court's order leaves intact the rulings of California's state courts, holding that state medical marijuana laws are entirely valid despite the federal prohibition on marijuana.

Attorneys Urge California Supreme Court To Invalidate Prop 8 (03/05/2009)
SAN FRANCISCO - Attorneys for same-sex couples, civil rights organizations and the state Attorney General’s office appeared before the California Supreme Court today to urge the court to strike down Proposition 8, which took away the right of same-sex couples the right to marry. At issue in the case is whether the ballot initiative process can be used to take away a fundamental right only for one group of Californians based on a trait – in this case sexual orientation – that has no relevance to the group’s ability to participate in or contribute to society. Because the case has serious implications for the constitutional rights of all Californians, it has generated unprecedented support from many national and state civil rights groups as well as California legislators, local governments, bar associations, business interests, labor unions, and religious groups. The California Supreme Court, which has struck down several other initiatives in the past, is expected to issue a decision within 90 days.

Religious and Civil Rights Groups, Legislators, Bar Associations, Labor, Businesses, and Legal Scholars Urge Court to Overturn Prop 8 (01/15/2009)
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, hundreds of religious organizations, civil rights groups, and labor unions, along with numerous California municipal governments, bar associations, and leading legal scholars collectively urged the California Supreme Court to strike down Proposition 8. Dozens of amicus curiae or “friend of the court” briefs argue that Proposition 8 drastically alters the equal protection guarantee in California’s constitution, and that the rights of a minority cannot be eliminated by a simple majority vote.

New Filing in Prop 8 Legal Challenge (01/05/2009)
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and Lambda Legal filed a reply brief in the California Supreme Court, the next step in the lawsuit seeking to overturn Proposition 8, which passed by a mere 52 percent on November 4.

California Will Continue to Honor Marriages of Same-Sex Couples Who Married Before the Possible Passage of
Prop. 8 (11/05/2008)
SAN FRANCISCO -- The California Attorney General, Equality California, and the nation's leading LGBT legal groups agree that the marriages of the estimated 18,000 same-sex couples who married between June 16, 2008 and the possible passage of Proposition 8 are still valid in the state of California and must continue to be honored by the state.

Legal Groups File Lawsuit Challenging Proposition 8, Should It Pass (11/05/2008)
SAN FRANCISCO – The American Civil Liberties Union, Lambda Legal and the National Center for Lesbian Rights filed a writ petition before the California Supreme Court today urging the court to invalidate Proposition 8 if it passes. The petition charges that Proposition 8 is invalid because the initiative process was improperly used in an attempt to undo the constitution's core commitment to equality for everyone by eliminating a fundamental right from just one group – lesbian and gay Californians. Proposition 8 also improperly attempts to prevent the courts from exercising their essential constitutional role of protecting the equal protection rights of minorities. According to the California Constitution, such radical changes to the organizing principles of state government cannot be made by simple majority vote through the initiative process, but instead must, at a minimum, go through the state legislature first.

Governor Signs Important Disaster Victim Protection Bill (09/29/2008)
A bill requiring public employees who provide evacuees with disaster-related assistance to do so without asking for information or documents not strictly necessary to determine eligibility for the services, AB 2327 (Caballero), was signed into law by the governor yesterday. Civil rights organizations that had provided assistance to victims of last year's California wildfires applauded the bill.

Oceanside Police Grossly Negligent in Responding to Suicidal Persons, says ACLU (08/07/2008)
SAN DIEGO – Oceanside Police mishandled a crisis negotiation in a way that may well have contributed to the suicide of a young man Grant Sattaur, 20, on December 26, 2007, the family said today at a press conference and at a hearing of the San Diego County Board of Mental Health.

ACLU Secures End To Overcrowding At San Diego Correctional Facility (06/04/2008)
SAN DIEGO - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) agreed today to keep the number of immigration detainees housed at the San Diego Correctional Facility (SDCF) within the facility's design capacity.

ACLU National Office Congratulates ACLU Of San Diego & Imperial Counties On 75 Years Of Defending Civil Rights (03/03/2008)
NEW YORK - The following statement can be attributed to American Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Anthony Romero: “As the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties celebrates its 75th anniversary, the ACLU National office congratulates the affiliate for its tireless efforts in defending the Constitution and upholding civil rights. Since its founding three quarters of a century ago by Helen Marston, the San Diego affiliate has been ever vigilant in defending the civil rights of all people who live in this border region and has handled some of the most important cases in history regarding the rights of farm workers and immigrants in the U.S.

Report Surveys the Damage of San Diego Fires to Basic Rights (11/02/2007)
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – As the smoke cleared after twelve days of ravaging fires, the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, Immigrant Rights Consortium, and Justice Overcoming Boundaries released a report today revealing patterns of neglect and instances of abuse of some of the area's most vulnerable populations--especially Latino immigrants and the indigent--in the rescue and relief efforts.

California First State to Prohibit Anti-Immigrant Ordinances (10/11/2007)
SAN DIEGO -- Calling it a major piece of legislation that will keep local government and private citizens out of the role of enforcing federal immigration laws, the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, along with statewide business and apartment associations and civil rights organizations, congratulates Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for signing into law AB 976. The bill, which was sponsored by the Apartment Association, California Southern Cities, will prohibit local cities and counties from enacting ordinances requiring landlords to check the immigration or citizenship status of their tenants, and likewise, will prohibit landlords from inquiring into their tenants' status.

U.N. Independent Expert on Rights of Migrants Begins Fact-Finding Mission in United States (04/30/2007)
SAN DIEGO - The American Civil Liberties Union today welcomed the official fact-finding visit to the United States by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants. The ACLU is among the select groups and individuals that will be meeting with the Special Rapporteur over the next three weeks to testify about the conditions of immigrants and migrants living in the United States.

Same-Sex Couples Urge California Supreme Court to Strike Down Marriage Ban (04/02/2007)
SAN FRANCISCO -- In a brief filed today with the California Supreme Court, attorneys representing same-sex couples, Equality California and Our Family Coalition urged the court to strike down as unconstitutional a law that bars same-sex couples from marriage. The couples and organizations are represented by lead counsel the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Heller Ehrman LLP, and the Law Office of David C. Codell.

ACLU Sues U.S. Immigration Officials and For-Profit Corrections Corporation Over Dangerous and Inhumane Housing of Detainees (01/24/2007)
SAN DIEGO - The American Civil Liberties Union today joined a lawsuit on behalf of immigration detainees at San Diego Correctional Facility, charging that chronically severe overcrowding places detainees’ health and safety at risk and is unconstitutional.

Same-Sex Couples Appeal to California Supreme Court in Marriage Case (11/13/2006)
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -Today, attorneys representing same-sex couples, Equality California, and Our Family Coalition asked the California Supreme Court to decide whether barring same-sex couples from marriage violates the California Constitution.

Civil Rights Organizations File Lawsuit Over Unconstitutional Ordinance in Escondido, CA (11/03/2006)
ESCONDIDO, CA - A coalition of civil rights organizations and law firms today filed a lawsuit against the city of Escondido, charging that the city's anti-immigration ordinance is unconstitutional and illegal under federal and state law. In a demand letter issued last week, the coalition urged the City Council to avoid spending taxpayer dollars on a lawsuit defending the unconstitutional ordinance, and pressed instead for the measure to be repealed before the November 18 implementation date. The city failed to respond to the letter.

ACLU Represents Jewish War Veterans and San Diego Residents in Effort to Relocate Mt. Soledad Memorial (08/24/2006)
SAN DIEGO – The American Civil Liberties Union, the Jewish War Veterans and local residents announced today that they are suing the U.S. government and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, charging that the continued display of the Mt. Soledad Latin cross on federally owned land unlawfully entangles government with religion.

Medical Marijuana Patients Get Say in Counties’ Legal Challenge to California Medical Marijuana Law (08/04/2006)
SAN DIEGO – A San Diego Superior Court ruled today that lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans for Safe Access and the Drug Policy Alliance will be permitted to intervene in a lawsuit brought by several California counties seeking to thwart the state’s Compassionate Use Act, which makes medical marijuana legal for patients with a doctor’s recommendation. The groups joined the case on behalf of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers and doctors in order to assure their adequate representation in the legal proceedings.

ACLU Urges California Court to Strike Down Law Banning Same-Sex Couples from Marriage (07/10/2006)
SAN FRANCISCO – After appearing in court today, we are hopeful that we persuaded the Court that it goes against California’s rich history of fairness for all people to deny same-sex couples the ability to marry. Same-sex couples fall in love, make commitments and raise children just as straight couples and shouldn’t be denied the ability to marry and the dignity and protections that come with it.

ACLU and Others Step In To Defend California’s Medical Marijuana Law From Rogue Counties’ Attack (07/07/2006)
SAN DIEGO - The American Civil Liberties Union, Americans for Safe Access and the Drug Policy Alliance moved today to intervene in a lawsuit brought by several California counties that seeks to overturn the state’s Compassionate Use Act, which makes medical marijuana legal for patients with a doctor’s recommendation.

ACLU of San Diego Defends 15-Year-Old High School Honors Student Disciplined for Wearing an American Flag in Her Back Pocket (04/13/2006)
SAN DIEGO -- Fallbrook Union High School officials violated the First Amendment when they ordered 15-year-old honors student Malia Fontana to remove the small American flag she was carrying in her back pocket, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties said in a letter delivered to the school today.

ACLU of San Diego Defends 15-Year-Old High School Honors Student Disciplined for Wearing an American Flag in Her Back Pocket (04/13/2006)
SAN DIEGO -- Fallbrook Union High School officials violated the First Amendment when they ordered 15-year-old honors student Malia Fontana to remove the small American flag she was carrying in her back pocket, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties said in a letter delivered to the school today.

ACLU Seeks Pentagon Files on Peace Groups (02/01/2006)
WASHINGTON -- In the wake of new evidence revealing Pentagon surveillance of peace groups and protest activities, the American Civil Liberties Union and its affiliates across the country today filed multiple Freedom of Information Act requests seeking to uncover who is being spied on by the Pentagon and why.

Medical Marijuana Patients Serve San Diego Supervisors a Taste of their Own Medicine (01/24/2006)
SAN DIEGO - The American Civil Liberties Union, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) and the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) announced today that they would intervene in the San Diego County Board of Supervisors’ federal lawsuit seeking to overturn California’s Compassionate Use Act.

ACLU California Affiliates Seek Information About Government Spying (12/21/2005)
SAN DIEGO -- Only a day after widespread reports that the FBI is monitoring and infiltrating political organizations, the three California affiliates of the American Civil Liberties Union are seeking information about the intelligence gathering efforts of law enforcement agencies in the state. The Public Records Act request is being sent to Attorney General Bill Lockyer and focuses on the California Anti-Terrorism Information Center (CATIC) and information that it may have received from the FBI.

ACLU Cheers Decision by California Appeals Court Removing Legal Challenge to Domestic Partnership Law (04/04/2005)
SACRAMENTO- The American Civil Liberties Union today cheered a decision by California's Court of Appeal throwing out a legal challenge by anti-gay activists to the state's comprehensive domestic partnership law.

ACLU of San Diego Challenges Sectarian Prayers at City Council Meetings on Behalf of Resident (05/05/2004)
SAN DIEGO - Acting on behalf of a local resident, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties today sent a letter to the Mayor of La Mesa and City Council officials, asking them to end the practice of opening Council meetings with sectarian prayers that make specific references to Christianity, and to adopt a policy ensuring that all future invocations will be non-sectarian.

Court Rejects Justice Department's Attempt to Enter San Diego Boy Scout Lease Case (03/17/2004)
SAN DIEGO-- The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties today applauded a ruling that the United States Department of Justice cannot intervene in its challenge to the constitutionality of subsidized leases for the San Diego Boy Scouts.

ACLU of San Diego Secures Landmark Settlement in Boy Scout Lease Case (01/08/2004)
SAN DIEGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties today announced a settlement with the City Council here in its 2000 lawsuit challenging the city's subsidy of the Desert Pacific Boy Scout Council through preferential leases for public land in Balboa Park and Fiesta Island Aquatic Park.

First-Ever Poll of California's Latino Voters Dispels Myth That Majority Supports Hard-Line Drug Policies (07/02/2003)
NEW YORK - Citing the first-ever poll to ask California's Latino voters about their views on drug policy, the American Civil Liberties Union said today that the overwhelming consensus in opposition to incarceration for low-level drug offenses confirms its call to end the failed experiment of mass incarceration as a way of ending drug abuse.

ACLU Files Discrimination Lawsuit on Behalf of Lesbian Couple Treated Unfairly by CA Adoption Agency (05/01/2003)
LOS ANGELES--The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California together with the ACLU of San Diego today filed a lawsuit against an Orange County adoption agency for discriminating against a lesbian couple who sought to adopt children currently under foster care.

High Court Rebuffs San Diego's Latest Attempt to Manipulate Sale of Cross on Public Lands (04/21/2003)
SAN DIEGO--The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties today hailed a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to deny review of an appeals court ruling that found San Diego had violated the California Constitution when it gave unfair advantage to a religiously oriented organization in the sale of the city-owned Mt. Soledad Park.

ACLU of San Diego and Coalition of Civil Rights Groups Denounce Police Department's Efforts to 'Whitewash' Racial Profiling Data (01/13/2003)
SAN DIEGO - A study on racial profiling conducted by the San Diego Police Department and released today contains troubling data on racial disparity in vehicle stops, yet the findings are being misrepresented by the department's chief official, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties and a coalition of civil rights groups said today.

ACLU of San Diego Hails Appeals Court Decision on Sale of Soledad Cross (10/22/2002)
SAN DIEGO-The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego today hailed a ruling by an 11-judge appeals court panel that denied four separate requests by the city of San Diego to reconsider a June 2002 finding that the city violated the California Constitution when it gave unfair advantage to a religiously oriented organization in the sale of a city-owned park.

Federal Court Rejects San Diego's Effort to Preserve Cross on Public Land (06/25/2002)
SAN DIEGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego emerged victorious today when a federal court of appeals ruled that San Diego violated its state constitution when it gave unfair advantage to a religiously oriented veterans organization in the sale of a city-owned park.

San Diego's New Lease With Boy Scouts to Come Under Court Scrutiny in Discrimination Lawsuit (05/23/2002)
SAN DIEGO--The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties today applauded a federal judge's decision to review the legitimacy of a controversial lease between the City of San Diego and the local chapter of Boy Scouts of America for 18 acres of land in Balboa Park. 

Human Rights Commission to Hear Case About Migrant Deaths on Southwest Border (11/13/2001)
WASHINGTON D.C. - - At a hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights tomorrow, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation will present arguments about the sharp rise in migrant deaths along the southwest U.S. border. Both organizations asked the Commission in 1999 to find that the Immigration and Naturalization Service's use of a migrant redirection strategy is abusive and a risk to human life. 

ACLU Restores Free Speech to San Diego Welfare Offices (08/02/2001)
SAN DIEGO - Under pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union, San Diego County Health and Human Services has agreed to stop violating the free speech rights of a parents' advocacy organization that had been restricted from distributing literature and talking with welfare applicants at two county welfare offices. 

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: ACLU of San Diego Looks at Rights of Protesters During Weeklong Biotech Conference (06/27/2001)
SAN DIEGO--The ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties today issued an initial assessment of how civil liberties fared during the demonstrations and other activities associated with this week's conference of the biotechnology industry. 

ACLU Wins Higher Legal Standards for Gang Injunctions (05/10/2001)
SAN DIEGO -- The California Court of Appeal ruled today that prosecutors must first prove through clear and convincing evidence that a young man is a gang member before using an anti-gang injunction to restrict his right to engage in everyday activities.

CA Appeals Court Says Decision to Try Juveniles in Adult Court Belongs to Judges, Not Prosecutors (02/07/2001)
SAN DIEGO--A California Court of Appeals today ruled that Proposition 21, the Juvenile Crime initiative that's under challenge by the American Civil Liberties Union, violates the separation of powers provision of the state constitution.

ACLU Challenges "No Free Speech Zone" at San Diego Welfare Offices (01/04/2001)
""The constitution protects everyone's right to communicate with others in a lawful and non-disruptive manner,"" said Guylyn Cummins, an ACLU volunteer attorney. "County welfare offices may not select certain groups to express their ideas on government property while silencing others just because they may not like what that group has to say." 

ACLU Supports Legal Challenge to Adult Trials for California Teens Charged with Hate Crimes (12/15/2000)
SAN DIEGO--The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties, along with the ACLU affiliates of Northern and Southern California, today filed a friend-of-the-court brief in a San Diego case in which the District Attorney is prosecuting eight teens charged as adults for a hate crime.

ACLU Files Federal Lawsuit to End Preferential Treatment for Boy Scouts in San Diego (08/28/2000)
SAN DIEGO, CA--The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties and the Tom Homann Law Association today filed a federal lawsuit seeking to require the City of San Diego to terminate lease agreements with the Boy Scouts for use of city park property.

ACLU Challenges Invasive Home Searches Of Welfare Recipients in San Diego Area (07/24/2000)
SAN DIEGO, CA -- The American Civil Liberties Union and other civil rights advocates today filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of welfare applicants and recipients who have been subject to unannounced and highly invasive searches of their homes as a condition to receiving government aid.

ACLU of Southern CA Honors Attorney Donald Passman and Director Frank Darabont at Torch of Liberty Gala (07/12/2000)
LOS ANGELES -- At a gala dinner tonight, entertainment attorney and civil libertarian Donald S. Passman and writer/director Frank Darabont will receive the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California's 2000 Torch of Liberty Award.

ACLU Challenges Sectarian Invocation at San Diego County Board of Supervisors Meetings (06/29/2000)
SAN DIEGO -- For the second time in three months, the American Civil Liberties Union has lodged a complaint on behalf of a citizen who objected to the opening of a governmental meeting with a prayer to Jesus Christ, in direct violation of the First Amendment.

San Diego Police Data Program Urged as Local Model for Other Agencies (06/15/2000)
SAN DIEGO -- According to a story in today's San Diego Union-Tribune, civil rights groups yesterday urged other local law enforcement agencies to follow the lead of the San Diego Police Department of voluntarily studying racial profiling by collecting race and ethnicity data about traffic stops.

San Diego Ends Nine-Year Effort To Keep Christian Cross in a Public Park (09/03/1999)
SAN DIEGO--After nearly a decade and reviews by more than 30 federal judges, the County of San Diego has finally conceded defeat in its effort to mount a Christian cross in a public park, the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties said today.

ACLU Secures Free Speech Rights for State University Students in San Diego (08/11/1999)
SAN DIEGO -- In a settlement announced today by the American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties, state university officials here agreed to rescind all disciplinary action against a student who refused to remove a political sign containing a vulgar four-letter word from the window of his dormitory room.

ACLU Demands San Diego End Public Subsidy of Boy Scouts (08/04/1999)
SAN DIEGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties and the Tom Homann Law Association today demanded that the City of San Diego stop subsidizing the activities of the Boy Scouts as long as it persists in discriminating on the basis of religion and sexual orientation.