Tag Archives: ACLU of Texas

As the SOS advisory numbers get revised down

Posted on January 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This really can’t be emphasized enough. State officials on Tuesday acknowledged widespread errors in their list of 95,000 Texas voters flagged as potential non-citizens, reinforcing the concerns of advocates who say the state’s effort amounts to illegal voter suppression. In … Continue reading →

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A trio of updates about that bogus SOS letter

Posted on January 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Most counties reacted skeptically, as well they should. The Texas Tribune reached out to 13 of the 15 counties with the most registered voters on Monday; Galveston was the only one that indicated it would immediately send out letters, even … Continue reading →

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Civil rights groups push back on bogus SOS letter

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Lawyers with 13 organizations — including the Texas Civil Rights Project, the ACLU of Texas, the League of Women Voters of Texas and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund — are demanding that the state rescind an advisory sent to … Continue reading →

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Bail lawsuit continues in Galveston County

Posted on January 19, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A lawsuit alleging that Galveston County’s cash bail system favors wealthier defendants will continue after a recent ruling by a U.S. district court judge. On Jan. 10, Judge George Hanks Jr. upheld Magistrate Judge Andrew Edison’s denial of the … Continue reading →

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ACLU reminds counties to provide voting materials in Spanish

Posted on September 28, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: With weeks to go before the November 6 election, the ACLU of Texas has sent advisal letters to 36 counties across Texas that may be in violation of the Voting Rights Act. The letters urge the identified … Continue reading →

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Dallas County gets the Harris County treatment in its bail lawsuit

Posted on September 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We have a precedent, even if everything is still a work in progress. Taking a cue from the rulings on Harris County’s bail-setting practices, a U.S. district judge in Dallas issued a temporary order Thursday evening saying the county’s post-arrest … Continue reading →

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ACLU sues Galveston County over bail practices

Posted on April 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The ACLU of Texas, the ACLU and Arnold & Porter filed a federal class-action lawsuit today against Galveston County, Texas, for violating the constitutional rights of people arrested for misdemeanors and felonies. The lawsuit was brought against … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit lets most of SB4 remain in place

Posted on March 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. A panel of three U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals judges ruled Tuesday that most of the state’s immigration enforcement legislation, Senate Bill 4, can remain in effect while the case plays out, handing a victory to Gov. Greg … Continue reading →

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ACLU goes after Judge McSpadden

Posted on March 1, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

As well they should. The ACLU of Texas is asking Harris County’s longest serving felony court judge to resign after making a statement to the Houston Chronicle on his views about black men’s attitudes toward the criminal justice system. The … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Dallas County bail practices

Posted on January 23, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Bring it on, I say. On the heels of a federal ruling slamming Harris County for its bail practices, civil rights lawyers have now set their sights on a county with a similar system: Dallas. Six indigent misdemeanor and felony … Continue reading →

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The First Amendment remains in effect in Fort Bend

Posted on November 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

For now, at least. Karen Fonseca, the owner of a white truck at the center of a social media dispute with Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls, is considering a civil rights lawsuit against the sheriff’s office. Fonseca’s attorney, Brian … Continue reading →

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Federal court bars enforcement if city’s ban on homeless encampments

Posted on August 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Score one for the law’s opponents. A federal court on Tuesday temporarily blocked Houston from enforcing its fledgling ban on public encampments, dealing a blow to city efforts to manage escalating tensions between homeless people and the neighborhoods their camps … Continue reading →

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The “run over a protester” bill

Posted on August 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This was from a day or two after the racist violence in Charlottesville, which included the vehicular murder of a counterprotester. Last month, Rep. Pat Fallon filed legislation to protect motorists who hit demonstrators “blocking traffic in a public right-of-way” … Continue reading →

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ACLU seeks information about state’s compliance with Trump election commission

Posted on July 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Today the ACLU of Texas filed an open records request with the Texas Secretary of State seeking documentation related to the State’s compliance with the federal Election Integrity Commission, which had asked states to submit voters’ full … Continue reading →

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City of El Paso joins in on SB4

Posted on June 30, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Add one more to the list. The city of El Paso voted on Tuesday to join the growing list of local governments that have filed a legal challenge in hopes of stopping Texas’ new immigration enforcement law from going into … Continue reading →

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SB4’s day in court

Posted on June 27, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Sparks were flying. Opponents of Texas’ state-based immigration law told a federal judge Monday that allowing the controversial measure to stand would pave the way for a nationwide police state where local officers could subvert the established immigration-enforcement powers of … Continue reading →

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ACLU files for injunction against SB4

Posted on June 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Texas filed the first motion today to block the anti-immigrant and anti-law enforcement Texas Senate Bill (SB4) before it takes effect. This is the next step in the … Continue reading →

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State files motion to combine all the “sanctuary cities” lawsuits

Posted on June 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This isn’t a surprise, but there is a bit of a twist. In a filing late Thursday, Attorney General Ken Paxton asked a federal district court in Austin to absorb two other legal challenges that have been filed against the … Continue reading →

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ACLU joins first “sanctuary cities” lawsuit

Posted on May 29, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The ACLU of Texas and the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project have joined the lawsuit challenging Texas Senate Bill 4 (SB4), which demands that local governments and their employees engage in federal immigration enforcement practices. The case, City … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed against Houston panhandling ordinance

Posted on May 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The ACLU of Texas announced today that it had filed a lawsuit on behalf of three homeless Houstonian plaintiffs adversely affected by the City of Houston’s camping and panhandling ordinances. Taken together, these ordinances illegally deprive homeless … Continue reading →

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Get ready for the “sanctuary cities” lawsuits

Posted on April 29, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It’s just a matter of time. Now that Senate Bill 4 is on its way to becoming law, opponents are looking to the courts for relief – and a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court case is giving them hope. The high … Continue reading →

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House passes its “sanctuary cities” bill

Posted on April 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Terrible. After more than 16 hours of debate, the Texas House of Representatives early Thursday morning tentatively gave a nod to the latest version of a Senate bill that would ban “sanctuary” jurisdictions in Texas. The 93-54 vote on second … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Muslim ban documents

Posted on April 14, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit [Wednesday] demanding government documents about the on-the-ground implementation of President Trump’s Muslim ban. Today’s action is part of a total of 13 … Continue reading →

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There’s more than SB6 to watch out for

Posted on February 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Keep an eye out for other anti-LGBT bills, because any of them might pass even if SB6 goes down. With the media seemingly preoccupied by Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick’s bathroom bill, three Republican state senators have quietly introduced a sweeping … Continue reading →

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Transgender health directive halted

Posted on January 2, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

One last kick in the rear from the annus horribilis that was 2016. A Texas judge issued an injunction Saturday against a federal mandate aimed to protect transgender people, finding that the federal health rule violates existing law. The preliminary … Continue reading →

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ACLU intervenes in transgender health care suit

Posted on September 24, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. The ACLU and ACLU of Texas are getting involved in a lawsuit over a regulation in the Affordable Care Act. In August, Texas filed a lawsuit against federal regulations that prohibit healthcare discrimination against people who are … Continue reading →

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Paxton encourages schools to discriminate against transgender students

Posted on August 29, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From the ACLU of Texas: [Friday], the ACLU of Texas issued a letter to Texas school districts outlining their ongoing legal responsibility to provide transgender students access to educational opportunities and school facilities on the same basis as all other … Continue reading →

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More on Mississippi’s anti-LGBT law and the effect in Texas

Posted on July 11, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Doesn’t look like we’re going to learn anything from the Mississippi experience. Reeves’ ruling isn’t likely to deter Texas Republicans who have stated adamantly that Christians and others with sincerely held religious beliefs need extra protection when following their faith, … Continue reading →

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State finally releases abortion data

Posted on July 3, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

It’s exactly what you’d expect. The Texas Department of State Health Services has released the state’s 2014 abortion data after weeks of allegationsthat the agency had been intentionally withholding the numbers. The 2014 data is significant because it is the … Continue reading →

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State still resisting refugees

Posted on June 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Because of course we are. The federal government wants Texas to accept more than 2,000 additional refugees this year. Texas’ response: No thank you. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission is putting the federal government on notice that the … Continue reading →

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Where’s the abortion data?

Posted on June 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The ACLU would like to know. With the U.S. Supreme Court poised to decide the biggest abortion case in nearly a decade, the ACLU of Texas is demanding that the Department of State Health Services “stop concealing” abortion statistics for … Continue reading →

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Hanen stays his sanctions

Posted on June 8, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Texas-based judge that last year put a hold on President Obama’s executive order on immigration decided on Tuesday to also suspend a controversial punishment he had recently issued to the administration’s attorneys. U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen asserted in … Continue reading →

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Groups ask Fifth Circuit to block Judge Hanen order

Posted on June 5, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. A coalition of civil and immigrant rights groups on Friday asked an appeals court to stop a federal judge’s order that requires the Obama administration to turn over the confidential information of thousands of undocumented immigrants. The filing in … Continue reading →

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Get ready for more “religious freedom” bills

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Gird your loins. The next Texas legislative session is almost a year away, but Senate Republicans are already zeroing in on proposals to bolster legal protections for religious opponents of same-sex marriage after its legalization by the U.S. Supreme Court … Continue reading →

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