home > resources > archive ACLU of Utah Activist Email Newsletter: January 2004 In this issue: The ACLU of Utah Argues that the Constitution’s Protection Against Unreasonable Search and Seizure Applies to All Immigrants in the U.S. Due Process and DNA Testing Utah State Legislature prepares to keep the ACLU busy 30th Annual Citizens Day at the Legislature, January 26th New Staff Attorney and Three Board Members Join the ACLU of Utah Take Action! Stop the Bush Administration’s Plans to Implement a Computerized Airline Passenger Profiling System Two Year Update on the PATRIOT Act Salt Lake City Roe v. Wade Anniversary Event Sundance Death Penalty Documentary examines Illinois Death Row Commutations The ACLU of Utah Argues that the Constitution’s Protection Against Unreasonable Search and Seizure Applies to All Immigrants in the U.S. On January 6th, The ACLU of Utah announced the filing of a brief urging the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse an unprecedented lower court ruling that threatens to completely strip many immigrants of their right to be free from unconstitutional searches and seizures that violate the Fourth Amendment. In a case involving a criminal prosecution for illegal reentry into the country, the Utah Federal Court ruled that the Fourth Amendment’s prohibition of unreasonable searches or seizures by law enforcement officers does not apply to "previously deported alien felons." "There has been long-standing recognition by law enforcement and the courts that all persons are protected by this country’s constitutional rights when they are here in the United States," said Dani Eyer, Executive Director of the ACLU of Utah, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case together with the ACLU Immigrants Rights Project, the National Association of Federal Defenders and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Read the full story and brief. Due Process and DNA Testing During the 2002 session, the Utah State Legislature dramatically expanded the state’s DNA database and required that DNA specimens be collected from prisoners of state prisons as well as county jails. The prisoners were to be charged a $75 collection fee to pay for the cost of the testing. Following that session, the DNA testing began immediately and inmates, regardless of their ability to pay were charged the $75. The ACLU of Utah and cooperating attorney Brian Barnard filed two class action lawsuits representing indigent prisoners within the Department of Corrections as well as Salt Lake County Jail who could not afford the fee. The Third District Court agreed with the plaintiffs Nuttall and Kaheaku, who had been Salt Lake County prisoners at the time, stipulating that only prisoners who could afford the fee be charged. Unfortunately the ruling was only for present and future inmates, not for past indigent inmates who had this money unlawfully removed from their accounts and not reimbursed. The ACLU and Barnard filed an appeal before the Utah Supreme Court and on January 14th, 2004, a brief was filed seeking to have all past indigent inmates be granted relief and the $75 reimbursed to them. Read about this case and see the most recent brief. Utah State Legislature prepares to keep ACLU busy The Utah State Legislature prepares to convene on Monday, January 19th. The decisions made during the annual session of the Utah State Legislature have a lasting impact on our communities. While we do not have the resources to keep a full time lobbyist on the hill, we devote a portion of our staff time and energy toward legislative activities and have organized a group of dedicated volunteers to be citizen lobbyists who will help us track and take action on important bills. The list of bills we track will change almost daily, but our current draft of important legislation includes Reproductive Rights SJR 3 - Resolution Urging the State to Recognize Federal Law Prohibiting Partial Birth Abortion, sponsor: Ron Allen. This joint resolution expresses opposition to potential state action or the expenditure of any financial or personnel resources the state of Utah to defend the federal partial birth abortion law. SB 69 - Partial Birth Abortion Amendments, sponsor Curtis Bramble. This bill: modifies sections of the Utah Criminal Code dealing with partial birth abortion procedures from one section and creates a new section that prohibits these procedures; adds definitions; provides and sets limitations on remedies for a father or the maternal grandparents of the fetus; provides a penalty for a physician who performs a partial birth abortion under certain circumstances; and provides that a physician accused of an offense of performing a partial birth abortion is entitled to a hearing before the State Medical Board to determine the necessity of the physicians conduct. On Tuesday, January 20, the ACLU of Utah testified before the Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Committee on the unconstitutionality of SB 69. Read the letter that was distributed to committee members. SB 68 - Prohibition of Public Funding for Abortions, sponsor: Bramble. This bill modifies the offenses against the family section of the U. C. Code prohibiting the state and political subdivisions from using public funds for the performance of an abortion; and provides a penalty for anyone who knowingly authorizes the use of public funds for an abortion. Death Penalty SB 25 - Death Penalty Amendments, sponsor: Ron Allen. This bill repeals use of a firing squad as a means of carrying out the death penalty SB 80 - Capital Punishment Amendments, sponsor J. Valentine. This bill amends time provision regarding execution of the death penalty provides that execution may not be conducted on Sunday, Monday, or a legal holiday. Lesbian Gay Bi Transgendered Issues SB 24 - Marriage Defined, sponsor: Chris Buttars. This bill declares that the public policy of this state on marriage is that it may only be contracted between a man and a woman and declares same sex marriages or civil unions void and unenforceable. It would also prohibit Utah Courts from even addressing a dissolution of a legal union originating in another state. Privacy HB 25 - Governmental Internet Information Privacy Act, sponsor: Wayne Harper. This bill modifies the Information Technology Act to enact the Governmental Internet Information Privacy Act introducing provisions governing privacy policies and the collection of personally identifiable information by a governmental entity; and enacts provisions regulating the posting of personally identifiable information on a court website. Open Government HB 33 - Authorization to Close a Meeting, sponsor, Greg Curtis. This bill amends the Open and Public Meetings law to expand the purposes of closing a meeting Other bills of interest SB 21 - Drug Offenders Reform Act, sponsor, Chris Buttars. This bill amends provisions regarding the Utah Substance Abuse and Anti-Violence Coordinating Council and the Code of Criminal Procedure to implement screening and assessment of offenders regarding substance abuse. HB 22 - Civic and Character Education in Schools, sponsor, LaVar Christensen. This bill provides legislative recognition that Civic and Character Education are fundamental elements of the public education systems core mission and constitutional responsibility and are required to be included in the curriculum of the public education system. It includes portions specifically directed toward "value" and abstinence only sex education. HB 68 - Criminal Penalty Amendment, (Hate Crimes) sponsor: David Litvack. This bill modifies the Criminal Code by providing enhanced penalties if the defendant selects a victim because of the defendant’s bias or prejudice toward a group. (There is also a bill introduced by Senator Evans, which would eliminate any group classifications.) To keep track of what we are doing at the legislature, please visit our web page. 30th Annual Citizens Day at the Legislature On January 26th, Utah Issues invites you to attend the 30th Annual Citizens Day at the Legislature. This Free annual event provides Utahns from all around the state the opportunity to understand the legislative process and to learn how they can participate in that process. It also provides citizens the chance to sit down with a legislator and discuss concerns. When: January 26, 8am - 1pm Where: State Capitol For more information, contact Jennifer by phone at 801-521-2035 ext. 100 or by email at jennifer@utahissues.org, or visit the web page at http://www.utahissues.org New Staff Attorney and Three Board Members Join the ACLU of Utah After several years of service, first as a volunteer and then as staff attorney, Janelle Eurick is moving on to pursue her career in law. After a thorough search and interview process, we are pleased to announce that Margaret Plane will be assuming the responsibilities as our only staff attorney on January 15th. Margaret will have her work cut out for her as the ACLU litigates a broad range of constitutional cases in federal and state court including, but not limited to, free speech, freedom of religion, reproductive rights, LGBT rights, discrimination, equal protection and due process rights, search and seizure, and privacy rights. The staff attorney also regularly engages in advocacy on a wide range of civil liberties issues in an effort to resolve issues before they result in litigation. If you need to contact the ACLU attorney for any reason please send an email to aclu@xmission.com or visit our web page to fill out a complaint form In addition to the new staff attorney, the ACLU of Utah is also pleased to announce three new members to the Board of Directors. Christine Contestable, Emma Gross and Jennifer Schwartz. The Board of Directors works closely with the executive director to develop and implement ACLU policies. They also help with fundraising, and approve, upon recommendation of the legal panel and the staff attorney, the litigation docket. Take Action! Stop the Bush Administration’s Plans to Implement a Computerized Airline Passenger Profiling System Despite strong opposition from airlines, privacy advocates and Members of Congress, the Bush Administration is pushing ahead with plans to implement a computerized airline passenger profiling program that would -- without making us any safer -- create secret blacklists of innocent people prevented from flying. This new profiling system would use giant databases of personal information and secret intelligence information to perform a background check on any person who wishes to fly. Innocent people misidentified as terrorists could be barred from flying with no way of clearing their names. This system will not only create a false sense of security since terrorists will easily circumvent its basic protections, it will also compile private information about you and your family. Airlines have refused to participate in the program, but the Bush Administration is planning to mandate their involvement. Take Action! Urge your Members of Congress to oppose this program. Click here to get more information and to send free faxes to your Members of Congress. Two Year Update on the PATRIOT Act More than two years have passed since the USA PATRIOT Act was signed into law. Considered in its totality, this legislation represents a perverse inversion of the principle on which America’s justice system is based: innocent until proven guilty. As a result of two years of sustained public education efforts by the ACLU, people around the country and across the political spectrum are questioning the necessity of many of the most troubling provisions of the Patriot Act and heeding our call to take action to restore rights lost to this ill-conceived legislation. However, far from repealing sections of the PATRIOT Act that many agree have gone too far too fast, the Bush administration is demanding even more powers. In the House of Representatives, legislation has already been introduced that would: Allow the government to seize records and compel testimony in terrorism cases without prior review by a court or grand jury. Allow the government to deny bail, without proving danger or flight risk, for a laundry list of federal crimes said to be terrorism-related. Expand use of the death penalty for crimes of domestic terrorism as defined by the PATRIOT Act a definition so broad that it could cover acts of civil disobedience by protest groups. These proposals go far beyond what is necessary to fight terrorism and infringe on basic civil liberties. But the ACLU’s call to reconsider and repair the PATRIOT Act is also being heard. Legislation to repeal sections of the PATRIOT Act that authorize "sneak and peek" searches and allow the FBI to access secretly all private records of any American is awaiting action from the House of Representatives. In the Senate, a bipartisan bill was introduced late last year to protect First Amendment activities by restoring a sensible definition of domestic terrorism by providing greater judicial oversight of federal investigations involving highly private and sensitive data. We are also encouraged by two recent federal court decisions one rejecting the White House’s assertion that the President can unilaterally detain American citizens as enemy combatants,and another ruling that the non-citizen enemy combatants held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are entitled to habeas corpus reviews to determine the propriety of their detention. Both of these decisions affirm the basic American commitment to checks and balances on executive branch power. The ACLU believes that most Americans think that it is a mistake to give unchecked surveillance, investigative and detention powers to any government official elected or appointed, current or future. We are determined to turn that belief into effective grassroots action an irresistible force for liberty that will overcome not just one ill-conceived law, but all threats to freedom. Salt Lake City Roe v. Wade Anniversary Event January 22, Roe v. Wade Anniversary Salt Lake City Event On the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Young Advocates Council of Planned Parenthood Action Council presents a 2003 Sundance Film Festival Selection The Story Behind Birth Control Pills Hear the facts on the pill that has changed the shape of the world! Thursday, January 22, 2004, 7 p.m. Breviews Cinema and Pub - 677 South 200 West Join us after the movie! We will host a conversation with Utah State Senator Paula Julander to learn about upcoming legislation and how to take action on important reproductive health issues. $20 donation inlcudes snacks, two beverages and your annual PPAC membership dues. For more information and to reserve your seat contact PPAC at 801-328-8939 Sundance Death Penalty Documentary examines Illinois Death Row Commutations: DEADLINE (FORMERLY TITLED LIFE AFTER DEATH ROW) On the eve of his departure from office, George Ryan longtime conservative Republican, supporter of the death penalty, and governor of Illinois surprised the nation by commuting the sentences of all 167 prisoners on Death Row. Directors Katy Chevigny and Kirsten Johnson bring us directly into the debate and the legal process that is set into motion when a group of Northwestern University journalism students uncover evidence of numerous innocent people of Illinois’ Death Row, undermining the credibility of the entire capital justice system. In the wake of this evidence, Ryan orders special clemency hearings for every prisoner awaiting execution. Within these courtrooms is human drama in its most distilled form. Using astounding access to the hearings, prisoners on Death Row, and Governor Ryan, Deadline delivers a measured sense of justice for all their subjects and astutely contextualizes the debate with historical material. From the well-reasoned legal debates to the heart-wrenching testimony of family members of the victims as well as the condemned, Deadline contributes reason and passion to the ongoing debate about whether nations should employ the ultimate punishment and how justly it is administered. DEADLINE - SUNDANCE SCREENING & EVENT TIMES Friday, January 16th at noon Holiday Village Cinemas, Screen #3 Friday, January 16th at 9pm Broadway Theater, Salt Lake City, Broadway #6 (special Q &A) Sunday, January 18th at 4-6 pm Renee’s in Park City -- Reception and Outreach Launch Party Sunday, January 18th at 11:59pm Holiday Village Cinemas, Screen #4 Wednesday, January 21st at 9:30pm Holiday Village Cinemas, Screen #4 Friday, January 23rd at 8pm Holiday Village Cinemas, Screen #1 Form more information about this film and the investigations that led to it, please visit http://www.bigmouthproductions.com/films/deadline. Return to top of page

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