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American Civil Liberties Union
Should religion give businesses an excuse to not serve gay couples?
There is strong support for gay marriage in the United States, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll, but there is even stronger support for allowing businesses to deny services to same-sex couples on religious grounds. Americans favor same-sex marriage by 44% to 39%, with 15% having no opinion, according to the poll published Thursday. It also found that 57% of respondents said they favored a religious exemption, and 39% said they were opposed. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. The question has taken on more urgency in recent weeks after a string of legal battles in New York, Oregon, Colorado, Washington, Illinois and New Mexico. ...
Related "American Civil Liberties Union" Articles
Should religion give businesses an excuse to not serve gay couples?
There is strong support for gay marriage in the United States, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll, but there is even stronger support for allowing businesses to deny services to same-sex couples on religious grounds.
Americans favor same-sex...
Capitol minister aims to deliver state leaders from temptation
Amid the crush of lobbyists, lawyers and lawmakers packing the hallways of the Capitol in the final days of each legislative session, one figure moves through the corridors with noticeable serenity.
Tall and lean, Frank Erb might be mistaken for a...
Sorting out U.S. visas for crime victims
As a society, we want people to report crimes and help bring criminals to justice. Without the cooperation of victims, the criminal justice system doesn't work very well. One particular problem for police and prosecutors is that people living in the...
New York foundations bankrolled Proposition 47
The power of nonprofit foundations to change state law was exemplified by the bankrolling of Proposition 47, a $9.5-million campaign that reduced drug possession and minor theft charges to misdemeanors. By contrast, opponents reported spending a...
VA unveils settlement to provide veterans housing on West L.A. campus
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced a legal settlement Wednesday that will transform its sprawling West Los Angeles campus into a center of permanent housing for homeless veterans and curtail the controversial practice of leasing VA...
Texas executes convicted killer with IQ of 67
A Texas inmate who had been described as intellectually disabled by civil rights advocates was put to death Thursday, officials said.
Robert Ladd, 57, was pronounced dead at 7:02 p.m. at Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, according to a...
License-plate tracking by DEA trades away too much liberty
The military calls it "mission creep" — sending troops out for one purpose, then adding to their marching orders over time. This kind of metastasis is innocuous in some contexts, but not so benign when the government is collecting information...
U.S. settles suit over misuse of West L.A. veterans campus
The federal government has agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing the Department of Veterans Affairs of misusing its sprawling West Los Angeles health campus while veterans with brain injuries and mental impairment slept in the streets, people familiar...
Finally, housing for homeless vets at the West L.A. VA facility
The Veterans Administration's agreement, announced Wednesday, to house more homeless vets at its West Los Angeles facility is a stunning turnabout and a huge win for veterans' advocates, who have been trying for years to persuade the agency to provide...
Prop. 47 brings a shift to longer time spent behind bars
For decades, Los Angeles County jail inmates divided their sentences by five, 10 or 20 to calculate the time they would actually spend behind bars.
Because of overcrowding, they left after completing as little as 5% of their sentences.
Now, as...
Obama's renewed push to close Guantanamo prison is seen as promising
President Obama has recharged his campaign for closing the Guantanamo Bay detention center with a strategy legal experts say holds out new hope of achieving that signature objective of his presidency.
After years of being thwarted by Congress from...
L.A. will buy 7,000 body cameras for police officers
L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Tuesday that the city would purchase 7,000 body cameras for police officers in an effort to increase transparency.
Body cameras for officers have become a major issue in the wake of the shooting of unarmed black...
Have a full and open debate on rules for LAPD body cameras
The Los Angeles Police Department has committed to outfitting all officers on patrol with body cameras starting next year. The effort was launched last year by Police Commission President Steve Soboroff, but it gained momentum after deadly encounters...
Arizona 'Dreamers' happy but wary of Supreme Court ruling on licenses
For now, Carla Chavarria plans to keep taking the bus. And Julio Zuniga will remain cautious every time he drives past a police car.
Although the Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that Arizona must offer driver’s licenses to young immigrants who entered...
Ferguson-area school district strips power from black voters, ACLU says
The American Civil Liberties Union on Thursday filed a federal lawsuit against a school district that serves Ferguson, Mo., alleging that the district disenfranchises black voters.
The lawsuit, filed in conjunction with the Missouri NAACP, comes after...
In Ferguson's shadow, two lawsuits focus on inequalities
The St. Louis area first faced outrage in the streets after the police shooting of unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown. Now, discontent has moved to the courts — and the issues have little to do with the police use of force.
A pair of lawsuits filed in...
'Dreamer' immigrants in Arizona get driver's licenses after legal fight
Sunrise was still hours away when Ramon Maldonado showed up at an Arizona Department of Transportation office Monday hoping to get a driver’s license.
After waiting 2 1/2 years for permission to take the exam, Maldonado wasn’t about to wait a minute...
State appeals court overturns ban on LAPD's vehicle impound policy
A state appeals court panel Friday overturned a ban on the Los Angeles Police Department's controversial vehicle impound policy that restricts when officers can seize the cars of unlicensed drivers.
The three-judge panel from California's second...
A trial balloon on cruise missile defense
When the weather's good, a strange speck will be visible on the Baltimore skyline: a giant balloon the Army is floating to scan for cruise missiles.
The balloon — technically an aerostat — took to the air Saturday morning. Two will be floated...
KKK loses lawsuit on handing pamphlets to drivers in Missouri town
In trying to take its message to the streets, the Ku Klux Klan has been ordered to keep white supremacy on the sidewalk.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected a Klan chapter's lawsuit against a Missouri town, which...
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