vol. 39, no. 6
Primary tabs
Volume XXXIX
"August 1974, San Francisco
Victimless `Crimes Proj ect
challenges state law
against prostitution
Calling the law against prostitution
``unconstitutional on its face and in its
application,'' the Victimless Crimes
Project filed a taxpayer suit challenging
the statute in San Francisco Superior
Court last month. The Project suc-
cessfully challenged prostitute quarantine
practices in S.F. last March resulting in a
halt to those unconstitutional procedures.
This suit challenges the validity of the
prostitution law itself - Penal, Code
Section 647(b).
The suit seeks. an injunction to halt
enforcement of the law by defendants
Donald Scott, Police Chief of San Fran-
~cisco; Vice-Squad. Captain Gerald
Shaugnessy; SF's District Attorney John
Ferdon; the City and County of San
Francisco: and State Attorney General
Evelle Younger.
Penal Code section 647 (b) provides
that every person is guilty of disorderly
~ conduct, a misdeameanor, ``Who solicits
or who engages in any act of prostitution.
As-used in this subdivision, `prostitution'
includes any lewd act between persons for
money of other consideration.'' The
terms ``solicit,'' and "lewd act'' are not
defined.
Amon 8 the claims made by the taxpayer
plaintiffs in the action are that 647(b)
should be declared unconstitutional on the
grounds that it abridges freedom of speech
and association; it invades the right to
privacy; it discriminates against women
and unmarried persons; it denies equal
protection of the laws; it is void for
vagueness ; and, its enforcement is a waste'
and illegal expenditure of taxpayer funds.
Plaintiffs in the case are: Diane Divoky,
editor of ``Learning Magazine''; Nancy
McDermid, an ACLU-NC Board member
and Professor of Speech at San Francissco
State University ; Sue Bierman, a leader in
community activities and a former Board
member of the San Francisco Chapter ;
and Melissa Gold.
As enforced by the San Francisco Police
647 (b) prohibits the personal and private
verbal communication involved in even
discussing a prostitution arrangement.
. Without the verbal communication, the
sexual conduct is completely legal. 1,649
persons were arrested for this crime of
speech last year in San Francisco.
Their speech was not obscene and it
presented no clear and present danger of
violence, nor did it breach the peace. In all
of the cases, the complaining witness was
a member of the San Francisco Police
Department. In virtually all of the cases,
the policeman was also a party to the
offense.
In San Francisco, 647(b) is primarily -
enforced by the seventeen plain-
clothesmen of the Prostitution Detail,
who are sent out each night to seek
General' Counsel Paul Halvonik, Victimless Cres Project Director
Deborah Hinkel and plaintiff Dianne Divoky explain the discriminatory
nature of prostitution enforcement at news conference.
prostitution solicitations. Approximately
90 percent of the arrests for prostitution
_are by the Prostitution Detail. Victimless
Crimes Project Director Deborah Hinkel
described their task thus: ``They im-
personate businessmen or other male
civilians; they cruise in cars, walk the
streets, frequent bars, purchase drinks for
women and act in a manner to indicate
their willingness, desire or interest in
sexual activity. They then engage women
in intimate conversation and arrest them
for offering or agreeing to engage in sexual
-intercourse for money. They do all this at
taxpayer expense.'
And, that expense to taxpayers is
enormous. In 1969, the Mayor's
Commission on Crime estimated that each
prostitution arrest costs the city $275 in
personnel time, booking procedures,
jailing and legal expenses. That figure has
certainly risen significantly over the past
five years. Also, the Commission's
figure does not include court time, use of
facilities and other related costs. When
over 1500 arrests are involved, this adds
up to a substantial sum. Salaries for the
seventeen policemen and one civilian clerk
of the prostitution detail absorbed more
than $250,000 of taxpayers' funds last
year.
The non-profit firm of Accountants for
the Public Interest has receritly "decided
to assist the Victimless Crimes Project by
auditing the costs of enforcement and
prosecution for violations of victimless
crime laws in San Francisco. They plan to
first study the costs related to prostitution
arrests.
Although the prostitution statute is .
supposed to be sex-neutral, ACLU
charges that in fact it only punishes males
and females who solicit a man, but never
anyone who solicits a female. There are no
female officers on the Prostitution Detail
who arrest males for violations of 647(b).
Continued on page 6
Federal judge orders security clearance reinstated
Both a state court and a federal court delivered good
news to homosexual engineer Allan Rock during the past
two months. ACLU is challenging the Defense Depart-
ment's revocation of Rock's security clearance in federal
district court while the Victimless Crimes Project is
challenging the constitionality of California Penal Codes
used as justification for the revocation in the first place in
San Francisco Superior Court.
Last May, Superior Court Judge Ira Brown overruled
the Attorney General's demurrer and motion for
dismissal. The state had argued that since it was not
prosecuting Rock for violation of the statutes, which -
purportedly outlaw sodomy and oral copulation, no
controversy existed and the court shoud not hear the case.
Victimless Crimes Project Director Deborah Hinkel
argued successfully that Rock was being harmed by the
mere existence of the statutes and that relief from his
predicament was only available through the courts.
Judge Brown agreed that significant issues were
presented by the case when he denied the government's
motions for dismissal. His action means that a full trial on
the issues will now take place in the Superior Court to
determine whether Penal Code Sections 286 and 288a are
constitutional as they purport to outlaw sexual acts of
consenting adults in private. Therefore, round one of the
state court action goes to Rock and against the govern-
ment.
Perhaps even more significantly, U.S. District Judge'
Oliver J. Carter issued a preliminary injuction last month
which ordered th Defense Department to reinstate Rock's
-TOP SECRET security clearance. Judge Carter stated
that Rock `"`will suffer irreparable harm if his security -
clearance is revoked.'' Rock was laid off from his position
at GTE June 21, since he cannot continue his work
without the security clearance.
The judge also held that there appeared to be no danger
of a breach of security. if Rock maintains his position.
Rock has held security clearances of SECRET or higher
for 17 years and admits that he has been involved in
homosexual relations during nine of those years. Until
discovering this however, the Defense Department
never considered him a security risk.
Pointing out that several recent federal cases have held
that homosexuality per se is not good cause for security
clearance revocation, Judge Carter advised that `"`it also
appears to the Court that Mr. Rock has a substantial
chance of succeeding on the merits of the case.''
In essence, Judge Carter's issuance of the preliminary
injunction only means that the court believes that Rock
would be irreparably harmed while the case continues if
. he cannot stay with his job. Despite the judge's comment
on the final outcome of the case, Rock could still lose if
the court refuses to issue a permanent injunction after
hearing the merits of the case. The preliminary injunction
only reinstates Rock's security clearance so that he may
continue his work pending the final outcome of the
litigation.
For the time being, the effect of Judge Carter's ruling is
to overturn the Defense Department's Industrial Security
_ Clearance Review Board which decided to deny Rock's
clearance.
Remcho will return to court this month for a hearing (c)
before U.S. District Judge Samuel Conti to wae for the
issuance of a permanent injunction.
Commenting on Judge Carter's order, Remcho called
it ``fair and just and a significant blow to the federal
bureaucracy's limited perception of the rights of persons
to do as they wish with their own private lives. I am
confident that the courts will ultimately uphold Mr.
Rock's right to pursue his career and not be harassed for
his life-style.''
Aug. 1974
2 aclu news
LEGAL
Lowell High ordered to end sex bias in admissions
Lowell High School, San Francisco's only secondary
school to accept students according to academic grades,
used to require higher academic standards for girls than
for boys. Last month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
tuled that practice to be unconstitutional sex
descrimination. ACLU-NC participated in the case,
Berkelman v. San Francisco Unified School District, as
amicus curiae.
Students at Lowell are provided with the best teachers,
the most money, the newest and most sophisticated
equipment, facilities and resources, a wide variety of
courses, teaching methods and academic opportunities
available at no other high school in the District.
Formerly, Lowell accepted female students who had
3.5 grade-point averages and males who had 3.25
averages. In an unanimous decision, the three-judge
court said that violated the equal protection clause of the
Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The
school had claimed that it needed to use the unequal
standards to assure equal numbers of girls and boys in
each class.
those of males who were accepted.'' In 1972, one
ACLU Legal Director Charles Marson argued that the
policy was invidious discrimination on its face and it ``had-
the effect of denying admission to Lowell of a significant
number of otherwise qualified female applicants who
possessed grade-point averages equal to or superior than
hundred eighty-nine females who had 3.25 averages of
higher were not accepted. _
Marson pointed out to the court that recent law is clear
that sexual equality is far too important to be ignored in
the name of lack of locker space and allowance for the
unproved and untested aptitude of fourteen-year-old -
males, a previously advantaged group. ``Under any test,
the sex-based discrimination practiced at Lowell violates
the equal protection clauses of the federal and state
constitutions.''
In their opinion, the three judges pointed out that
discrimination is especially destructive in education (c)
because it later effects access to jobs. They declared:
- ""Lowell High, as conduit to better university education
and hence better jobs, is exactly that type of educational
Your ivaime
Your hae,
PAY TO THE orl OMe. AVOeTe Politician _
oe eee Dea.
program with regard to which Congress intended to
eliminate sex discrimination when it passed Title IX.''.
The judges specifically rejected Lowell's claim that
boys developed more slowly than girls and therefore need
an edge in the competition. Their theory is that the boys
then catch up with the girls later in their high school
careers. School administration also argued that there was
substantial educational benefit to be derived from having
balanced numbers of males and fetneles ares the
school.
Nevertheless, the Court of Appeals (ouad that the
"unsupported notion that an equal number of male and
female students is an essential element in a good high
school education was the apparent justification for the
school district's policy...but, no actual proof that a
balance of the sexes furthers the goal of better academic
education was offered by the school district.''
The case had been appealed from an unfavorable ruling
in the federal district court by the Youth Law Center
which represented several women who were excluded
from Lowell High School.
Grand jury biased in
MARKET-NEW MONTGOMERY S See
ONE NEW MONTGOMERY ST.,
tbe bOwOO Fb -
manor Be Bh do no/13s's i
__ DOLLARS
ee OU CeO OCs ee eens
ACLU Legal Director Charles
Marson filed an amicus curiae brief last
month in the California Supreme Court
on behalf of an attorney named Wesley
S. Burrows. In 1971, Burrows was
accused of embezzling funds from a
client's trust fund.
In the course of their investigatin the
police obtained a warrant to search his
office. Purportedly pursuant to that
warrant the police confiscated nearly
every piece of paper they could find.
Among the seized materials were three
bank checks which the police thought
might yield further clues.
that the seizure of all of the defendant's
records was illegal and the evidnece was
suppressed. Following up on the checks
_ however, the police telephoned the
banks and received from them copies of
all of Burrows' financial records.
At Burrows' trial, the court ruled
that the seizure of all of the defendant's
records was illegal and theevidence was
suppressed. Following up on the checks
however, the police telephoned the
banks and received from them copies of
all of Burrows' financial records.
While this handing over of bank
records occurred before the provisions
of the Bank Secrecy Act went into
effect, obviously the issues are quite
similar. In the opinion of the US.
Supreme Court earlier this year on
ACLU-NC's challenge to the Bank
Act, Justice William Rehnquist hinted
that the ruling might be reversed if it
were shown that a criminal defendant
At Burrows' trial, the court ruled
-unreasonable.
Bank check secrecy issue
in state Supreme Court
was being harmed by the provisions of
the act. Such is the case with Burrows.
In his brief, Marson argues that the
warrantless search and seziure - of
Burrows' bank records by the police in
cooperation with bank employees
violated his rights under the Fourth
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
He points out that the decision of the'
U.S. Supreme Court does not preclude
Burrows' claim that the seizure was
illegal since the Court did not invalidate
the claims of bank customers whose
records were actually seized but rather
_ the claims of customers whose records
might be seized.
Marson further contends that bank
customers have a reasonable ex-
pectation of privacy in the documents
detailing their personal financial
transactions. While the records
themselves may not be in the
possession of the customer, he claims
that the customers certainly expect that
their banks will treat their financial
affairs as confidential.
Finally, the ACLU brief charges that
the bank employees who honored the
police request for Burrows' bank
records acted as agents of the police and
also violated the Fourth Amendment.
Marson concludes that the search and
seizure of Burrows' financial records,
without a warrant, must be presumed
prosecution must justify it and, failing
that, the evidence must be excluded
from his trial.
San Quentin Six case
The 1971 Marin County .:Grand Jury
indicted six San Quentin inmates for
murder and conspiracy as a result of the"
escape attempt at the Marin County ~
Courthouse in August, 1971. The
defendants moved to quash the in-
dictments on the ground that the grand
jury was not composed of their peers. The
Grand Jury was handpicked by the five.
Superior Court Judges of the county.
A trial judge from a different part of the
state agreed with the "`San Quentin 6"'
and ruled that the selection system for the
Grand Jury was inherently unfair and that
it denied ``a fair representation of the
_ groups to which the defendants belong, to
wit: the Blacks, the Latin Americans, the
blue-collar working class and the
young...""
In quashing the indictment, the trial
judge also stated that any system of
personal selection will deny fair
representation to the accused and that
some system of unbiased selection would
be required to meet the constitiutional
standards of equal protection, due process
and fair play.
The government has appealed this
ruling and the ACLU Foundation joined
with the San Francisco Barristers Blub to
file an amicus curiae brief in the California
Court of Appeal to support the San
Quentin 6. The ACLU brief was prepared
by volunteer attorney Jon Van Dyke, a
_ professor at Hastings College of the Law.
Van Dyke argues that grand juries must
be selected through a procedure that is
designed to insure that a representative
cross-section of the community be im-
paneled. He points out that the historic
purpose of the grand jury was to act as a
shield against over-eager prosecutors.
Their function is to protect an accused
rights. This function however, requires
that they reflect the community interests
of the accused.
Grand juries are selected in two ways in
the United States: (1) random selection
from a neutral list, and (2) a method in
which discretion is exercised either by the
judges, the court clerks, or a group of
citizens specially selected for this
responsibility. While both methods are
- constitutional, the U.S. Supreme Court'
has noted that the potential for abuse is
great with the second method.
Continued on page 4
Medical privacy
A university research project on
medical records and patients' rights,
would like to hear from anyone in
Kaiser-Permanente Health Plan who
has had experiences with violation of |
confidentiality with his-her record,
refusal to give access to own record, or
other civil liberties type problems.
Write to Project on Medical Records
and Citizen Rights, 960 Lincoln Place,
Teaneck,-New Jersey 07666.
=O fe SO Sf et ODN OLD PY
Therefore, the.
9 issues a year , monthly except bi-monthly in March-April, July-August,
and November-December
Published by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California
Second Class Mail privileges authorized at San Francisco, California
Richard DeLancie, Chairman of the Board Jay Miller , Ee ecaae Director
Mike eaabag Editor and Public Information Director
593 Market Set. San Francisco, California 94105 - 433-2750
Membership $15 and up of which $2.50 is the annual subscription fee for aclu News.
. fF er"
DoDI RR ORE BREAN cet MOD IW tRNA RG aCe
| coven cay a can Ge ae a oP a
as fh re - MD KF DM FF 0 = @ * pert ~~"
Pes OS DD |
LEGISLATIVE
Rape legislation moves
to state Assembly floor
Debate on Senate Bill 1678, the
Robbins Bill, which would alter the
- evidence code for rape trials, will begin
August 8 on the State Assembly floor.
The bill was voted out of the Assembly
Criminal Justice Committee last month
where ACLU-NC opposed it. The vote
was 5-2 with only Assemblymen Alan
Sieroty and Henry Waxman, both
Democrats from Los Angeles, voting
66 39
no.
Just prior to the vote in the Criminal
Justice Committee, several amendments
were added to the bill. These however did
not remove ACLU-NC's objections to the
measure. The ACLU of Southern
California, however, had a staff attorney
testify to the Committee that the
amendments allowed that organization to
lend ``qualified support'' to the Robbins
Bill.
ACLU-NC Pepistative representative
Toby Sherwood gave detailed testimony
outlining the constitutional problems of
the proposed legislation. She was directed
in her comments by the policy adopted by
the ACLU-NC Board of Directors at their
special meeting in May (ACLU NEWS,
May 1974).
_ A portion of that Board policy provided
that before any evidence of the sexual
history of the complaining witness be
allowed in the trial, that evidence should
first be heard by the judge in a closed voir
dire proceeding. After hearing the
evidence, the judge would then rule by
written order on the relevancy of the
sexual history.
Section I of SB 1678 allows evidence of
sexual conduct of the victim to be offered
only to attack her credibility. To do so,
however, the defendant must make an
offer of proof by signed affidavit which
presents the evidence and its relevancy. If
the judge finds this sufficient, the jury will
Jail conference
The Chapter Commiteee has decided
_to sponsor a Jail Conference sometime
next November at the request of several
chapters which have been attempting to
handle the complex civil. liberties
problems created by local jails. Many
Bay Area Chapters have been hneredees
in jails for some time.
The purpose of the conference would
be to examine, explore and share in-
formation with the end in mind of
developing a workable jail program
both collectively and individually.
Workshops would study recent and
current litigation and legislation,
possible alternatives to jail and met-
thods for implementation of ACLU
policies. Experts in the various fields of
jail problems will be present.
A planning session for the con-
ference will be held on Saturday,
September 7 at 10 a.m. in the ACLU
offices, 593 Market St., Suite 227, San
Francisco. All Chapter Committee
representatives and other interested
chapter members are urged to attend.
For more information, call Louise
Clark, 254-4523, or Louise Riemer,
547-1267.
_ equally irresponsible.
be removed and the questioning of the
victim will be permitted. Then, the judge
must make an order determining the
relevance and admissability of the
proposed evidence.
As Sherwood pointed out to the
Committee, ACLU's policy provides for
the closed session whenever evidence of
prior sexual conduct is to be introduced
but the Robbins Bill provides it only for
the purpose of impeaching the `credibility
of the witness.' Also, the
supports a "`closed'' hearing while the
Robbins Bill only requires that the jury be
removed. In other words, the witness'
privacy might be less protected by SB
1678.
Sherwood's chief objection, however,
was to the burden of proof imposed on the
defendant by the Robbins procedure.
""How can the defendant swear that
certain sexual activity took place if his
defense is that he was not involved?'' she
asked the Committee. If there is relevant
sexual conduct evidence but the defendant
does not know it, ``it is impossible for him
to provide the- affadavit and motion
required by the bill to probe into that
evidence. by cross-examination,'' she
stated.
In short, Sherwood argued that ``SB
1678 establishes in its first section a
procedure which is far more burdensome
on the defendant than the ACLU policy
and which may be less protective of the
complaining witness.''
Section II of the bill is a flat prohibition
of the introduction of any past sexual
conduct of the victim with other than the
defendant in order to prove consent by the
victim. In contrast, the ACLU policy
`states that `"`obviously, all past sexual
activity is not relevant but it is often
introduced to influence juries never-
theless. Szill, to adopt the other extreme,
that no past sexual conduct of the com-
plaining witness is admissable, would be
Such a position
would strip the defendant of virtually all of
his rights to confront his accuser."'
..ACLU agrees that a woman's past
consensual sexual conduct, without more,
has no tendency to prove consent on any
subsequent occasion and that the
relevance of such conduct can no longer be
assumed. Nevertheless, if a defendant
shows a particular connection between
past conduct and her conduct on the
occasion charged as a crime, and thereby
establishes relevance, he must be allowed
to use that evidence in his defense. If even
one defendant is denied his right to con-
front his accuser and cross-examine her
fully, and material relevant to his defense
is suppressed, a grave and unjustifiable
miscarriage of justice will be the certain
result. Conviction for rape is hardly a
trivial matter.
ACLU's policy holds that evidence of
- the sexual conduct of the complaining
witness may be relevant on at least three -
issues: whether the witness consented,
whether complaint of rape is credible, and
whether the defendant reasonably believed
that she consented. The Robbins Bill
would exclude any evidence on the first
issue unless it involved the defendant; it
would demand an offer of proof for the
ACLU -
Pending Congressional action
Besides impeachment, several
important civil liberties matters are in
various stages in Congress which
deserve attention from ACLU
members. The present attitude among
legislators in the wake of Watergate
could mean that some significant gains
in the area of privacy and control on
law enforcement officials might be
made.
On the other hand, Richard Nixon
seems disposed to use his veto as a tool
of impeachment politics in his efforts to
appease the 34 conservative Senators
he needs to be acquitted in an im-
peachment trial. This tactic has been
_ especially apparent regarding the Legal
Services Corporation Act.
LEGAL SERVICES
This bill was originally proposed by
the Nixon Administration. It would
establish a semi-independent cor-
poration to provide legal aid to the
poor, replacing OEO Legal Services.
The Act passed the Senate without
difficulty but the House put drastic
limitations into it. A Senate-House
Conference Committee came up with a
bill that was certainly better than
nothing and it even ended up close to
what Nixon had earlier proposed.
Nevertheless, he started hinting that
he would veto it which would endear -
him to many of the conservatives in the
Senate. The Congress took the bill back
-again and tried to remove the ob-
jections Nixon had. California Senator
Alan Cranston was one of the leaders in
efforts to salvage legal services for the
poor. Nixon has still declined to say
whether he will veto the bill but it is
now awaiting his signature. Telegrams
to the White House urging the
President to sign the Legal Services
Corporation Act should be sent im-
mediately.
NO-KNOCK REPEAL
The Senate voted 63-61 last month
to repeal authorization for no-knock
search and arrest warrants prescribed in
the 1970 District of Columbia Crime
` Control Act and the U.S. Drug Abuse
Prevention Act. The measure is
sponsored by Senators Sam Ervin (D-
N.C.) and Gaylord Nelson (D.-Wis.).
While the bill went through the
Senate relatively easily, it will certainly
have a tougher time in the House.
Action in the House has not been
scheduled yet but the bill will go to the
`has not been printed and forwarded to
` variety of measures designed to reverse
- Representative Don Edwards (D. San
records except where the customer .
Aug. 1974
aclu news 3
House Committee on Interstate and
Foreign Commerce. Though the bill
that committee, letters to its California
members (John E. Moss. Lionel Van
Deerlin, and Barry M. Goldwater, Jr.)
now urging House approval of the no-
knock repeal would be especially
impressive indicating an alert, in-
formed and interested constituency.
ABORTION
Hearings are proceeding before
Senator Birch Bayh's Subcommittee on
Constitutional Amendments on a
the Supreme Court's ruling upholding
the right to abortion. :These hearings
started as a result of anti-abortion
forces demanding action on_ their
proposals. The tactic seems to be back-
firing however since the hearings are
bringing out previously unnoticed
support for the constitutional right of
women to control their own bodies.
Frustrated, the abortion foes are
leaning very heavily on California
Jose) to begin similar hearings in the
House. Edwards has been resisting the.
arguments of the supporters of anti-
abortion amendments but he needs
mail from constituents in Northern
California to bolster his position in
favor of maintaining the Supreme
Court's ruling.
BANK SECRECY
Senator Alan Cranston and
Representative Fortney H. Stark are
sponsoring identical ``Right to
Financial Privacy'? amendments to
reverse the ruling of the U.S. Supreme
Court upholding the Bank Secrecy Act
of 1970. ACLU-NC_ unsuccessfully
challenged the Act in the High Court
earlier this year. The measure allows
the government to inspect the financial
records of citizens and forces banks and
other financial institutions to maintain
the records.
Cranston and Stark held hearings
this month of a Senate banking sub-
committee which Cranston chairs.
ACLU-NC Legal Director Charles
Marson testified at one of the hearings
in Los Angeles. Their measures would
prevent banks from disclosing customer
consents or a court so orders. In all
cases, the customer would be notified
in advance.
To support the bills, write Cranston
and Stark as well as your own
Representative.
second issue; and it is completely silent on
the third.
Sherood concluded before the Criminal
Justice Committee that the Robbins Bill
does not offer a reasonable solution to the
problems presented by rape trials nor does
it resolve all the conflicts between the
rights of the defendant and the rights of
the complaining witness. She added,
however, that ``the bill. would im-
permissibly burden the right of the
defendant to confront and cross-examine
witnesses and to present relevant evidence
in his defense.''
ACLU is convinced that reforms are
necessary in the rape laws and is sup-
porting a package of thirteen bills proposed
by Assemblyman Sieroty which conform
much more closely to ACLU's policy. The
effort to pass these bills will be renewed
once a final determination has been made
on the Robbins Bill.
After debate on the Assembly floor, the
bill must go back to the Senate for con-
currence on the amendments attached by
the Criminal Justice Committee. If the
Senate cannot agree on those, the measure
will be referred to a conference committee
to hammer out differences in the two
versions. In the meantime, ACLU will
continue to convince the senators and
assemblypersons of the gravity of tam-
pering with the precious constitutiona!
rights involved. If you agree, write your
state legislators and ask them to oppose $B
1678.
Aug. 1974
aclu news
Wayne Mortimer Collins, who served as ACLU-
NC's General Counsel for more than three decades,
died last month aboard a jet enroute from
Honolulu. to San Francisco at the age of 74.
Anyone associated with ACLU during the 0x00B030's,
'40's or '50's knows what a deep loss his death is to
the thousands of people whose rights he devoted his
life to.
_- Paging through past issues of `ACLU News,"'
one is awed by the unrelenting chronicle of the
achievements of Wayne Collins. One of his first
cases was on behalf of a nine-year old girl who was a
Jehovah Witness. She had refused to salute the flag
in school because she considered it a form of
idolatry against her religion. Wayne fought on her
behalf all the way to the Supreme Court between
1935 and 1939.
During World War II and the post-war years,
Wayne Collins was one of the few people in the
United States who fought for the rights of Japanese-
Americans who had been interned. He virtually
abandoned his private law practice to defend the
displaced Nisei in deportation proceedings, the
forced removals and acquiring citizenship. He
visited the internment camps constantly and was
often the subject, of threats, intimidation and
actual violence himself.
One of his most famous cases was that of the
`*Tule Lake Renunciants'' - 331 Japanese who
had renounced their citizenship after being in-
terned. Wayne's efforts resulted in the rein-
statement of citizenship for over 5,600 West Coast
Japanese.
In the early 0x00B050's, Wayne Collins was again in
the forefront of the battle for civil liberties defen-
ding countless victims of ``McCarthy hysteria'
and the Levering Oath. _
And, his achievements go on and on.
It can be said of few people that they contributed
as much to the rights of us all as did Wayne Collins.
We only hope that we are able to continue his work
with the dedication and human kindness he had for
all people. We all mourn his loss.
Grand Jury
Wayne Collins |
LEGAL
Project challenges inmate transfers
ACLU Prison Project Director Peter Sheehan filed a
class action lawsuit last month in U.S. District Court to
challenge the policies of the California Department of
Corrections regarding transfers of inmates within the
state prison system.
- While the suit has been brought on behalf of all inmates
in California prisons, two plaintiffs are named specifically.
Christopher Walker was incarcerated at the California
Men's Colony in San Luis Obispo for 16 months. Early
- this year, the Department of Corrections transferred him
to Soledad. Russell Esters was at the Men's Colonly for
21 months before being sent to San Quentin last
December.
Both men were in the East Facility of the Men's
Colony which is a medium security institution. The 2400
inmates there are divided into 600 man ``program units"'
and each man has his own room, to which he has his own
key. Between 6:30 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., the inmates are
given virtually unrestricted access to their section of the
institution, including the day room, the television room,
the showers, and outdoors in the quad.
In addition, Walker, Esters, and the other Men's
Colony inmates had a table, bed, toilet, sink with hot and
cold water, earphones with piped-in music, air ven-
tillation and an outside window in their rooms.
The men are paid $7.50 per month for their jobs and
are allowed ``contact'' visits for up to seven hours at a
time. There is also a Family Visiting Program where the
inmates can visit overnight with their families in a special
facility. Two weekly phone calls are allowed and
correspondence is unlimited. Group therapy, psychiatric
counseling and college-level courses are also available.
Since their transfers, however, life has changed
dramatically for Walker and Esters. At Soledad, Walker is
limited to one-hour visits with a screen between him and
his visitor , he can only correspond with a small number of :
people. Similar restrictions are in effect at San Quentin for
Esters and the move placed him about 300 miles further
away from his family, which lives in San Diego and
visited him often in San Luis Obispo.
Transferred inmates are housed in ``B'' Section at San
Quentin, along with the institution's disciplinary
problems. It is overcrowded ; few cells have only one man.
Prisoners are locked in their cells most of the day, allowed
out te for ricals: weekly showers, and exercise every
other week. ``B'' Section inmates are denied canteen,
gym, or library privileges and may be visited only My
attorneys.
At Soledad, Walker was placed in the Segregation
Unit, called O-Wing. He is locked in his cell 24 hours a
day , except for a shower and a brief exercise period three
times per week. For visits, the inmates' hands must be
handcuffed to a waist-belt.
Neither man was told either before or after his Gandier
~ why the Department was moving him. They were not
afforded any hearing or other due process and Department
regulations hold that none need be given. It is these
regulations which are being challenged by the ACLU suit.
Besides the loss of the more amenable facilities and.
privileg Ss at the Men's Colony, both Walker and Esters
are in'greater physical danger of assault or murder as a
result of thier transfers. Furthermore, their chances for
parole are diminished since the rehabilitative programs
which they were involved in at the Men's Colony are now
denied them.
Sheehan argues that Walker and Esters must be granted
at least the minimum safeguards of procedural due
process guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution before they may be subjected to the
obvious detriments of their transfers. He also charges that
all inmates in California are treated with the same denial
of rights by the Department of Corrections when
transferred.
Therefore, Sheehan asks the federal court to declare the
prison regulations allowing such transfers un-
constitutional and to order the Department to halt the
summary transfers. He also argues that inmates should be
granted prior notice and a statement of reasons for any
transfer. He should, in addition, be entitled to a hearing
at which he can confront witnesses or evidence against
him and that a written record of the hearing be kept.
Finally, Sheehan requested that the court order the
Department of Corrections to return Walker and Esters to
their status and privileges at the Men's Colony. Until that
time, however, the Department of Corrections will no
doubt continue in its belief and practice that inamtes have
no rights and that treating them as less than human will
setve society now and once the prisoners are released.
indictments
Continued from Page 2
Van Dyke charges that a hand-selected
grand jury must be statistically repre-
sentative of every identifiable group in
the jurisdiction. He noted that the judge
found that this was clearly not the case in
Marin and that the burden for justifying
the disparity shifts to the government.
The trial judge found that they had not
met that burden.
`In Marin County, Blacks, Hispanic-
Americans, blue-collar workers and the
young, constitute readily identifiable
groups in the jurisdiction which may not
be- excluded from grand jury service,''
Van Dyke adds. He claims the trial court
correctly quashed the indictments because
a prima facie showing of discrimination
was made and it was not rebutted by the
government.
_ In his concluding argument, Van Dyke
stated, ``defendants are members of the
excluded groups and thus have a special
interest in the composition of a grand jury.
But, in quashing the indictments, the
court below vindicated more than the
rights of the defendants to indictment by a
Bie earch: called egal by ALL.
Clarence Stevens is an out-patient at the
California Rehabilitation Center which has
jurisdiction over many of the state's drug
offenders. As an out-patient, he is allowed
to live away from the center, supervised
by a CRC agent, and under a list of
conditions similar to conditions of parole.
XN
RY
properly constituted grand jury. It also
vindicated the rights of Blacks, Mexican-
Americans, wage-earners, and the young
to their place in the California system of
criminal justice. They too are entitled to
the full and equal protection of the laws.''
Richard Sims II of the Barristers Club
joined with Van Dyke in the brief asking
the Court of Appeal to sustain the ruling
of the lower court.
One of those conditions in his case was
that he must consent to a search of his
personal effects and the place he is living
upon request by his supervising agent. He
was living with two women in Redwood
City. Police there suspected that one of
the women in the house was selling drugs.
They did not have probable cause to justify
a watrant or arrest of her however.
Instead, the police contacted Stevens'
CRC agent and told the agent they had
reason to believe that Stevens, not the
woman, had been selling drugs. The CRC
- agent authorized the police to search the
house. They searched everything in the
house, while Stevens was not even there,
including articles that obviously did not
belong to Stevens. They found drugs in
the possession of one of the women and all
three occupants of the house were
arrested.
ACLU-NC filed an amicus brief on
behalf of the three last month to argue that
the search was illegal. The brief was
prepared by Legal Director Charles
Marson. He argues that Stevens did not
consent to this search and he made no
blanket waiver of his Fourth Amendment
right to be secure from such searches.
Marson notes that any search conducted
under the condition of Stevens' out-
patient status must meet two tests: 1) the |
search must be reasonable as to time,
place, manner, and execution; 2) the out-
patient must be notified and present at the
search. ``The search of Stevens' house
failed both of these tests.'
The sole grounds that the state ad-
vances for the validity of the search as to
the two women is that Stevens' waiver of
his rights encompassed all his co-tenants
as well. Marson charges that ``Stevens
could not consent to any'' search of the
premises in his absence nor could he
waive the Fourth Amendment rights of
his co-tenants. In addition, he certainly
couldn't consent to any search of the
personal property of his co-tenants.''
In conclusion, Marson pointed out that
the warrantless search was illegal because
it did not come within any of the
*"Sealously and carefully drawn'' ex-
ceptions to the warrant requirement of the
Fourth Amendment. ``The search was
also unlawful because the police
fraudulently lied to the CRC agent to
procure his participation.''
For these reasons he asks the California
Supreme Court to uphold the trial court's
decision to exclude the evidence.
om whe gem --" rt -rarrn
SAVE tara doll eg hy meen LL mma TAL Ute 8
PST ACE RE NS ATLEAST SIMs Sr ay Sars Oo SEC Ce GUN A asco
RU Sy iY ene hey Aas Sezai MY ASA Raa NLS Ric eT RAR (ONL ER ER YA ay
IMPEACHMENT
Massive impeachment outpouring needed now
By RITA FRIEDMAN
Impeachment Coordinator
Since I started working on the im-
peachment. campaign sometime in late
September a great deal has happened. I can -
now, without hesitation, name all 38
members of the Judiciary Committee.
On command I can recite (with or without
inflection) the entire conversation that
took place in the Oval Office on March
21st ...Peter Rodino and I have developed
a ``meaningful relationship'? and I
consider him to be one of the best pen-pals
I've ever had ... BUT RICHARD NIXON
IS STILL PRESIDENT.
There are times, I must admit, that I
begin to feel rather discouraged by it all.
However, upon reflection certain positive
thoughts keep re-occurring. In September
the ACLU was a lonely voice, somewhere
off in the distance, but by mid October
what had once been considered an exercise
in futility had become a ``cause celebre.''
No longer do I feel that perhaps the
word impeach should not be used in mixed
company. I now hear that word being used
on T.V. without being bleeped. The latest
polls indicate that the public has accepted
the idea of impeachment as part of the
political process, rather than an act of
disloyalty. It's taken almost ten months to
reach this point and the end is now in
Contributions
ACLU-NC and the ACLU Foundation
receive gifts and contributions each year in
memory of individuals. Also, many
memberships are given for birthdays,
Christmas presents, etc. The ACLU will,
of course, acknowledge your gift to the
recipient or next of kin. Bequests and gifts
to the Foundation are tax-deductible.
What better gift or memorial could be
es than one which encourages freedom.
sight. It' s been a long haul and most of us
are beginning to show definite Ee of
battle fatigue.
There is still more for us to do, the
Judiciary Committee has voted to send 3
Articles of Impeachment to the full House
for a vote. Therefore the time has come
again for us to generate a great deal of mail
to the House demanding a ``yea'' vote on
impeachment. Even if your representative
has said he intends to vote for im-
peachment, it helps if he can exploit the
fact that his' mail from home is over-
_ whelmingly in support of his position.
The sheer volume of mail received by
the House in a given period of time acts as
a positive force. It worked after the Cox
firing and it will work again. There are
two very well organized and _ financed
groups generating a great deal of mail in
support of the President. :
In the last month or so because of their
effort, they have been able to tip the
balance of mail received by the House so
that it is running in opposition to im-
peachment. We've worked too hard and
too long to allow this last minute deluge to
wipe out what we have been able to
achieve.
Sit down right now and write a strongly
worded letter to your representative and
send a copy to the House leadership of
both parties. Keep the letter where it can
be picked up and. mailed rmiedicely,
Mail it out as soon as the House nears the
conclusion of its debate on the Articles of
Impeachment and is preparing to vote.
Ask your friends and neighbors to do
the same thing. We must be prepared to
generate enough mail to equal or surpass -
the amount received after the firing of
Archibald Cox. We have already for-
warded to Washington petitions bearing
the names of over 60,000 Northern
Californians who are demanding the
Aug. 1974 ;
aclu news (c)
impeachment of Richard Nixon.
The issues raised in Article No. 2, are
of special interest to ACLU. Imbodied in (c)
these articles are the major violations of
civil liberties - i.e., amendment rights -
stress these issues in your letters.
If all goes well, perhaps by Octoer I can
add to the list of things I've been able to do
since I took on this job, the ability to name
without `hesitation the names of 67
Senators who voted for the conviction of
Richard Nixon.
Philip Burton - (D) San Francisco
Don Clausen - (R) Santa Rosa
Ronald Dellums - (D) Oakland
Don Edwards - (D) San Jose
Harold Johnson - (D) Roseville
_ Robert Leggett - (D) Vallejo
Paul McCloskey - (R) Palo Alto
John McFall - (D) Manteca
John Burton - (D) Marin - San
Francisco
Robert Mathias - (R) Merced
John Moss - (D) Sacramento
Leo Ryan - (D) San Mateo -
B.F. Fisk - (D) Fresno
Northern California Delegation
Fortney Stark - (D) Oakland
Burt Talcott - (R) Salinas
Jerome Waldie - (D) Martinez
Mathias and Talcott are the only
two Northern California Delegates
who oppose impeachment - if you
live in these districts really go all
out.
Address:
House Office Building
Washington D.C. 20515
Northern California Delegation
`Three interns assist legal program
The ACLU Foundation Legal Program
has enjoyed the assistance of three interns
this summer who have provided much of
the research for several recent ACLU
lawsuits.
Katie Doyle is a third-year student at
Hastings College of the Law in San
Francisco. Funds for her position are
provided by an anonymous alumnus of
Hastings who has established a yearly
National ACLU conference
calls for decriminalization
The University of Wisconsin at
Milwaukee was the site of this year's
Biennial Conference which was the largest
in ACLU's history. Close to 500 persons
attended the sessions which lasted four
days. ACLU-NC was represented by
Board Members Ruth Jacobs, Germaine
Wong, Marilyn Patel, Ann Ginger, Rose
_ Bonhag and Board Chairman Richard
DeLancie. General Counsel Paul Halvonik
and six staff members also attended.
Two of the major issues at this year's
conference were impeachment and vic-
timless crimes. The National Board of
Directors met just prior to the conference
to decide what ACLU's position and
activity should be once an impeachment
trial begins in the Senate. Some members
advocated that ACLU could properly call
for Richard Nixon's conviction if the facts
of any civil liberties charge are not in
dispute and the defense is simply that the
violation was not an impeachable offense.
Others were concerned that until the
`ment.
actual articles of capecuient are passed
by the House, it is impossible to know
what the charges or the defenses are. They
were concerned that ACLU should not be
in a position of appearing to prejudge
-Nixon's case and they wished to advocate
maximum due process protections for him
in the trial.
The Board decided to take no action
before the House had completed its
determination of the charges. As soon as -
possible following a final vote by the
House of Representatives, the National.
Board will "meet again to develop an
ACLU policy on the Senate trial.
During the conference itself, a plenary
session and several workshops discussed
the topic of ``How to Prevent Another
Water gate.'' Some of the areas of possible
solutions coming out of these were
proposals for campaign reforms, a per-
manent special prosecutor and various
methods for reducing secrecy in govern-
Continued on page 6
internship from that school for ACLU.
Before entering law school, Katie, who
graduated from the University of
Michigan, was a social worker in the
Department of Welfare for three years.
She has been spending much of her time
working with Staff Counsel Joseph
Remcho on Allan Rock's security
clearance case.
Tova Indritz comes to ACLU from Yale
Law School where she begins her third
year in the Fall. She did her undergraduate
study at George Washington University
and received a Master's Degree in Urban
and Regional Planning from' the
University of Pittsburg. She worked two
years as an urban planner in New Mexico.
Her position is partly funded by the Law
Students Civil Rights Research Council.
JOHN TRUE
TOVA INDRITZ
At ACLU, she has been working on
Fourth Amendment cases with Legal
Director Charles Marson and some other
privacy problems.
John True, a third-year student at Boalt
Hall Law School, was a volunteer for
ACLU last Spring and is now being funded -.
by the Law Students Civil Rights Research
Council. John is a graduate of Trinity
College in Connecticut and spent two
years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal
and then as an administrator in
Afghanistan. He is married and has one
child. John has been researching prison
cases for Prison Project Director Peter
Sheehan and worked on Richard Hawk's
contempt appeal with Joe Remcho.
Aug. 1974
aclu news -
Earl Warren's legacy
News of the death of former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice and Governor
of California, Earl Warren, saddened us all. We are proud to have established
the Earl Warren Civil Liberties Award last year and honored that he attended
our Bill of Rights Celebration to receive the first casting of the award named for
him.
In a very areound way his successes were ours and his loss first from the
Court and now from life is a loss for all those who believe in civil liberties.
Earl Warren changed the very role of the law and the courts in public life.
Before his time, the courts were largely instruments for maintaining the status
quo. Under Chief Justice Warren's leadership, the courts took the lead in
extending the protections of the constitution to previously disfranchised people.
The ACLU, which appeared before Chief Justice Warren with great frequency, -
has special reason to mourn his death. But so does every American who values
the sense of integrity, fairness and justice which he epitomized.
Earl Warren: A contemporary hero?
By EDISON UNO
On Friday, July 21, at high noon, the city of San
Francisco conducted memorial services for former Chief
Justice Earl Warren. The impressive ceremony was held
in the massive hall of Grace Cathedral. Less than 150
friends, associates, and the public attended this final
tribute to a native son who gained international fame and
respect for his progressive civil rights interpretation of the
Constitution for 16 years as Chief Justice of the United
States Supreme Court.
Conspicuously absent from the small gathering were
those who have been the beneficiaries of Earl Warren's
legacy to society. With the exception of a few local judges,
`minor politicians, and a handful of former associates of
the former governor, there were no signs of those.
segments of the liberal community.
Minorities were very few in number. Civil rights ac-
tivists, representatives of progressive organizations and
others associated with progressive change in society were
not visible. ;
It was a lonely feeling a this writer, for I had expected
to see many of my friends who have been. active in
progressive movements. I thought to myself, `"Have
Americans forgotten already the great contributions Earl
Warren made to society?''
RACIST STATEMENTS
_.For over seven years I have actively campaigned to
extract an apology and expunge the public records of
racist statements that impugn the loyalty of Japanese
Americans from the former Chief Justice. On July 9,.
1974, Earl Warren passed away...the campaign comes to
an end. There has been no public apology nor any
retraction of the damaging statements.
Last December I had the opportunity to meet and
discuss my concerns with Earl Warren when he was
honored by the local American Civil Liberties Union. He
immediately responded that he respected my views and.
concerns and assured me that my requests would be
fulfilled in the near future. I found him to be a warm,
cordial, sensitive individual.
Last month, Earl Warren was invited to speak at
Morehouse College in celebration of the 20th anniversary
of Brown vs. Board of Education (the case on
desegragation). At a dinner with a Japanese-American
professor, Earl Warren privately expressed his regrets
concerning the evacuation.
CONTRADICTIONS
I have my regrets too that he did not make the public
apology or extract the public records; however I am
confident that his role in the evacuation will become
clearer as his.personal files are made public. I have a
strong feeling that the contradictions of "his role as the
chief architect of the evacuation and his strong civil rights
leadership will be apparent in the public records or in his
autobiography.
There is no question in my mind as to the greatness of
this man. I strongly believe that his influence and power
was so great at the apex of anti-Japanese sentiments and
hysteria in 1942 that he was one of the few political
leaders who could have prevented the evacuation. Next to'
the President of the United States who issued Executive
Order 9066, the then eaten Attorney General had
Prostitution laws challenged by ACLU -
the considerable political power and contacts which could
have turned the tide of public opinion in favor of Japanese
- Americans and the concepts of civil liberties. It has been
stated that today's youth is looking for heroes. Earl
_ Warren can easily qualify as a contemporary hero. But let
us always remember that the man is not perfect; that his
impeccable record cannot deny a fact of history, a history
which changed the lives of 110,000 persons and which
may affect all Americans because it violated the rights
fundamental to us all.
EDITOR'S NOTE
Edison Uno will become a member of the ACLU- NC
Board of Directors next month. He has recently been a
member of the San Francisco Chapter Board of Directors
and has been active in grand jury reform. In 1972,
ACLU-NC awarded the Alexander Meiklejohn Civil
Liberties medal to him for his leadership in the repeal of
detention camp legislation.
. Edison has the dubious distinction of being the longest-
interned American citizen during World War-ll in one of
America's concentration camps. He spent a total of
1,647 days in Santa Anita Assembly Center, Arcadia,
California; Granada Relocation Center, Amache,
Colorado; and Crystal City Internment Camp, Crystal
City , Texas.
..Currently, he is a lecturer at San Francisco State
University in the Ethnic Studies Department and is on the
faculty of the California School of Professional
Psychology.
of behavior as criminal when such
behavior , engaged in either alone or
with other consenting adults, does
not in and of itself harm another
Continued from page Le
Last year, there were 279 arrests in which
both parties to the offense were civilians.
In all but three of these incidents, only one
person was arrested. That person was the
woman.
At a press conference to announce the
suit, ACLU-NC General Counsel Paul
Halvonik pointed out the sexist nature of
the enforcement of the statute. Last year,
when the police had female officers pose as
prostitutes to solicit males, public outcry
was loud and immediate, demanding an
end to the practice. Halvonik said that
`*the unfairness of such a situation was
immediately apparent to the public and
press - why should i it be any different for
women ?''
Another signal of the discrimination
involved in the enforcement of the law is
indicated by the fact that of the 113 men
arrested last year, none was taken into
custody. All were issued citations and not
one of them was found guilty by a jury.
Hinkel stated that ``the result of the _
application of the law by San Francisco .
police is a scheme designed to protect
heterosexual men from prosecution and to
punish women for merely agreeing to
engage in sexual intercourse for `money or
other consideration.' "'
_ Besides discriminating against women,
ACLU charges that the enforcement of
647(b) discriminates against unmarried
persons. One of the acts promised and for
which consideration is received by both
parties in the marriage contract is sexual
intercourse. The police, however, only
arrest non-married persons for engaging in
sexual intercourse for consideration.
Hinkel asks the court to declare 647(b)
unconstitutional and to enjoin the police
from enforcing it. She adds that `"`the
police illegally waste vast sums of money
on the law, money which ought to be used
in the protection of citizens from violent
crime.'' She noted that the incidence of
violent crime has increased unabated in
San Francisco over the past years but the
police insist on continuing the expenditure
of time and money on crimes yhich only
they believe to be important.
Penal Code Section 647(b) punsihes a
person for the speech of solicitation, and
ultimately, a private consensual and -
otherwise legal sexual intercourse.
Neither endangers anyone, and last year,
a poll showed that over 50 percent of the
people in San Francisco said that the police
have no business arresting anyone for it.
Biennial
Continued from page 5
One of the major resolutions coming
out of the conference, which was sup-
ported by Northern California, called for
the decriminalization of victimless crimes.
ACLU-NC is the only affiliate in the
nation which is already active in this
effort. The resolution adopted by the
conference delegates is the only sub-
stantive issue which is policy-binding. It
reads :
The ACLU opposes the definition
person, or directly force such person
to act unwillingly in any way.
Examples of behavior that should be
exempt from criminal prohibition.
include, but are not limited to:
gambling ,attempted suicide, sexual
relations, or the introduction of |
substances into one's own body.
Further, the ACLU opposes in-
voluntary institutionalization
and/or treatment of consenting
adults for engaging in such
behavior. Nothing in this policy is to
be construed as placing the ACLU
in opposition to reasonable
regulatory restraints, such as
already exist with respect to the
, production and sale of food, liquor,
cigarettes, penicillin, insulin,
methadone, aspirin, etc., except
that no restraints of any kind should
exist with respect to private sexual
relations between or among con-
senting adults.
Continued on page 8
QD wt NS De me et De
et) Sa One |
~~ ACLUN_1946 ACLUN_1946.MODS ACLUN_1947 ACLUN_1947.MODS ACLUN_1948 ACLUN_1948.MODS ACLUN_1949 ACLUN_1949.MODS ACLUN_1950 ACLUN_1950.MODS ACLUN_1951 ACLUN_1951.MODS ACLUN_1952 ACLUN_1952.MODS ACLUN_1953 ACLUN_1953.MODS ACLUN_1954 ACLUN_1954.MODS ACLUN_1955 ACLUN_1955.MODS ACLUN_1956 ACLUN_1956.MODS ACLUN_1957 ACLUN_1957.MODS ACLUN_1958 ACLUN_1958.MODS ACLUN_1959 ACLUN_1959.MODS ACLUN_1960 ACLUN_1960.MODS ACLUN_1961 ACLUN_1961.MODS ACLUN_1962 ACLUN_1962.MODS ACLUN_1963 ACLUN_1963.MODS ACLUN_1964 ACLUN_1964.MODS ACLUN_1965 ACLUN_1965.MODS ACLUN_1966 ACLUN_1966.MODS ACLUN_1967 ACLUN_1967.MODS ACLUN_1968 ACLUN_1968.MODS ACLUN_1968.batch ACLUN_1969 ACLUN_1969.MODS ACLUN_1969.batch ACLUN_1970 ACLUN_1970.MODS ACLUN_1970.batch ACLUN_1971 ACLUN_1971.MODS ACLUN_1971.batch ACLUN_1972 ACLUN_1972.MODS ACLUN_1972.batch ACLUN_1973 ACLUN_1973.MODS ACLUN_1973.batch ACLUN_1974 ACLUN_1974.MODS ACLUN_1974.batch ACLUN_1975 ACLUN_1975.MODS ACLUN_1976 ACLUN_1976.MODS ACLUN_1977 ACLUN_1977.MODS ACLUN_1978 ACLUN_1978.MODS ACLUN_1979 ACLUN_1979.MODS ACLUN_1980 ACLUN_1980.MODS ACLUN_1981 ACLUN_1981.MODS ACLUN_1982 ACLUN_1982.MODS ACLUN_1983 ACLUN_1983.MODS ACLUN_1983.batch ACLUN_1984 ACLUN_1984.MODS ACLUN_1985 ACLUN_1985.MODS ACLUN_1986 ACLUN_1986.MODS ACLUN_1987 ACLUN_1987.MODS ACLUN_1988 ACLUN_1988.MODS ACLUN_1989 ACLUN_1989.MODS ACLUN_1990 ACLUN_1990.MODS ACLUN_1991 ACLUN_1991.MODS ACLUN_1992 ACLUN_1992.MODS ACLUN_1993 ACLUN_1993.MODS ACLUN_1994 ACLUN_1994.MODS ACLUN_1995 ACLUN_1995.MODS ACLUN_1996 ACLUN_1996.MODS ACLUN_1997 ACLUN_1997.MODS ACLUN_1998 ACLUN_1998.MODS ACLUN_1999 ACLUN_1999.MODS ACLUN_ladd ACLUN_ladd.MODS ACLUN_ladd.bags ACLUN_ladd.batch add-tei.sh create-bags.sh create-manuscript-bags.sh create-manuscript-batch.sh fits.log
rat CSS cee
- Impeachment;
- Women's Rights; Rights of Children and
CHAPTERS
Aug. 1974
aclu news 7
San Francisco
Ruth Jacobs, President of the Chapter,
attended the ACLU's Biennial Conference
in Milwaukee from June 13 to 16. She
reported that one of its highlights was the
tribute to Roger Baldwin, one of the
founders of ACLU. At 90, he still was an
active participant at the conference.
Among the topics discussed were:
Victimless Crimes;
Cable TV.
Ms. Jacobs was particularly interested -
in the panel on Cable TV which is one of
the concerns of the San Francisco chapter.
The panel revealed that Cable TV can use
a monitoring device to ascertain what you
are watching ; ; thereby infringing the right
_ of privacy. The panel also informed the
participants of possible abuses of Cable
TV. She urged everyone to be constantly
alert to so called technical advances of this
type.
Representatives of every state in the (c)
union participated and the strength of the
organization was strongly apparent.
As part of its policy to monitor and
watchdog the San Francisco Board of
Supervisors, San Francisco chapter
president Ruth Jacobs criticized Super-
visor Quentin Kopp for his attempt to
interfere with the First Amendment rights
of an avowed Nazi and employee of the
S.F. police department by having her fired
because of her alleged violation of the
residency requirements of her job. Ms.
Jacobs pointed out that the ``ACLU
defends the civil liberties of everybody ,
even those who do. not believe in civil
liberties.'
Chapter Legislative
Chairman Seymour Farber at a recent
Board of Supervisors committee meeting
urged the Supervisors to approve a ~
resolution amending the penal code to
allow for local option in the issuance of
citations for victimless crimes. Mr. Farber
said "`citation arrests in victimless crimes
cases would automatically reduce law
enforcement costs and would also reduce
the opportunities for possible police
harassment.'' Letters were also sent to all
Supervisors urging passage of this
resolution. The resolution, unfortunately,
was not approved.
o SHOULD SCHOOL BE COM-
PULSORY? That's the topic for the Essay
contest open to Senior High school
. students. Assurance has been given that
the San Francisco Unified School District,
Parochial and private schools in the city
will approve the project..our distinguished
judges are: Mr. Herb Gold, author; Mr.
John Wasserman, columnist S.F.
Chronicle and Dr. Zuretti Goosby, former
member of the School Board.
Awards are: $75.00 first prize; $50. 00
second prize and $25.00 for winner's
school library. All entries must be sub-
mitted no later than November 15.
Awards will be made on December 15,
Bill of Rights Day.
Members of the Chapter will participate
in school assemblies, mid September to
promote the contest.
e A Speaker's Bureau verkchon" is
scheduled for Sat. Oct. 19-10 a.m. to 2
~ p.m. All Chapter members who wish to
participate, please call the chapter office to
reserve a place.
e A special program on The Bill of
Rights was presented to the Delancey
Street Foundation in August by members
of the chapter board.
Committee.
e The membership committee has
announced plans for neighborhood
meetings starting in October. If you wish
to host such a small meeting, please let us
know.
STILL NEEDED ... A DONATION
OF AN ELECTRIC TYPEWRITER (OF
RECENT VINTAGE) FOR THE
CHAPTER OFFICE. Please contact us if
you have one.
We are now in the midst of alanine
additional events for the coming months.
. If you have a special idea for an event that .
you would like to see become a reality, |
please call or write the chapter office.
Oakland
There being a hiatus in Chapter ac-
tivities now, it's a good time to reflect on
the past and coming years. It has been an
outstanding year for the Oakland Chapter ;
there are many to whom we owe thanks.
One year ago, the need was felt for some -
new goals, some victories, some fun.
Contributions by a number of people
combined to make it a year of great
progress.
Internally, the chapter has tripled its
active Board members, and through the
kindness of Attorneys Harvey Kletz and
Larry Moll, we have our own office.
Meetings run more crisply and are at-
tended by 6 times as many people as last
year. Having instituted a ``revenue
sharing'' program with the affiliate, we
set up the largest budget in Chapter -
history, and then met over 90 percent of
our fund raising needs by mid year. We
now have a financial base, and that
coupled with fund raising experience
should ease the money burden in future
years.
These changes are reflected in our
impact on the area. Perhaps the greatest
has been on the County CORPUS
program. It was ACLU that brought
CORPUS to the attention of the Board of
Supervisors; the chapter has one of the
few active Data Bank and Privacy
Committees in the Bay Area. Primarily
ACLU people succeeded in getting
a Citizens `Advisory Committee to oversee
the computer operations and then placed
ACLU people in 273 of the committee's
seats.
ACLU - Oakland has had a strong
voice in the County pre-trial detention
facility problem. Although far from
finished, our impact at the formative
stages in the County's work will aid
immeasurably in accomplishing our goals.
We have impressed the County with our
concern, our committment, and the
quality of our work.
Through our Education Committee, we
have had several people involved in the
problem of selecting Oakland's School,
Superintendent and have affiliated with
Far West Schools, an exciting opportunity
to educate young people on Civil Liberties.
A very active Women's Rights Com- .
`mittee has increased our concern in that
area and the chapter has filled a number of
speaking engagements.
Successful, ongoing projects begun this
spring include a Court Observer program
for the arraignment process, a challenge to
the County's prostitute quarantine
program, and a "`5 Bay Area County''
Jail Conference.
The Chapter i is a tool for education and
"`preventive'' care of civil liberties. This
coming year we will advance these
programs and others working heavily on
local legislative bodies and the com-
munity. We will take an active stance in
the community, rather than a reactive
stance in court. We need more people of
all skills: Come and help us. The next
meeting will be September 18, 7:30 p.m.
at the Sumitomo Bank, 20th and Franklin
in Oakland.
Yolo
Jerry Bruck's film on I.F. Stone was
successfully used for our annual meeting.
It brought a real message to Yolo County.
In our concern that the Impeachment Bill
of particulars might miss the civil liberties
issues, we sent a letter expressing this
concern to all members of the House
Judiciary Committee. The letter was also
published in two of the local newspapers.
. Favorable responses have been received,
from our own Congressman and from one
member of the Judiciary Committee.
In addition to willingness to consider
individual complaints on civil liberties
violations our capacity to have an effective
education program in the coming year can
be measured by the activity of our
members. Volunteers are sought from our ~
membership for: a speakers bureau,
impeachment activities, jail review
committee, membership activities, free
speech messages on TV and radio, and.
other activities to promote an un-
der standing and the cause of civil liberties.
Stockton
The Stockton Chapter of ACLU will
have an End of Summer Party on Sep-
tember 2nd at the home of Mr. and Mrs.
Thomas McFarland, 11000 East Eight
Mile Road beginning at 2 p.m. Beer, hot
dogs, and salads will be served at a
nominal charge. Proceeds will. be used to
support the Answering Service main-
tained by the Stockton Chapter.
Santa Clara
The Committee for Open Media is
focusing its attention on radio stations in
the coming months. Free Speech -
Messages are still the committee's
number one project; but, upcoming
~ license renewals for radio stations demand
the attention of this committee and
Chapter volunteers.
Of prime interst is the access Siiieation'
"rediscovered by the Supreme Court in CBS
v. DNC, 1973. The access obligation is
the basic component of the Fairness
Doctrine, first set forty by the FCC in
1949. This doctrine holds that the needs
and interests of the general public can only
- be satisfied by making available conflicting
views held by responsible elements of the
commuity.
The court stated that: ``A broadcaster
neglects that obligation only at the risk of
losing his license." The Committee for
Open Media is monitoring stations and
will challenge license renewals of those
stations not living up to the access
obligation.
Phil Jacklin, chairman and driving force
behind the committee is looking for
volunteers to help monitor stations. |
A ``Voir Dire Forum'' is being held
on Friday, September 20 at the Lincoln
High School Cafetorium in San Jose. Local
attorneys will enact a simulated jury
selection before a local judge, with in-
teresting and provocative pas among
the prospective jurors.
This is the first of a series of public
events being planned by the Santa Clara
Valley Chapter for the coming months.
Chapter Chairman Mike Chatzky wrote
a letter to Santa Clara County Sheriff
urging him not to adopt a proposed plan to
institute psychological and achievement
tests, as well as psychiatric interviews for
unsentenced as well as sentenced inmates.
An unconvicted inmate is presumed
innocent and retains all the rights of
citizenship of-an unincarcerated citizen ;
hence, the proposed program is in
- violation of his constututional rights.
Whether the inmate is being held in the
main jail or at the "`farm'' in Milpitas as a
result of these tests, cannot help but act as
a prejudicial "`message'' to judge and
jury; another factor to be taken into
consideration.
A copy of the letter was also sent to the
County Board of Supervisors.
Mt. Diablo
Mt. Diablo Chapter combined pleasure
with business at its Fourth of July picnic at
Lafayette Reservoir. Softball, chess,
horsehoes, guitar playing, and lots of
chatter ``sandwiched'' a short business
meeting.
ACLU-NC Executive Director ify
Miller and his family joined the picnic
during late afternoon. Jay reported that
"`very mixed expectations'? from the
Court, along with political changes
resulting from ``Watergate,'' indicate we
should be working on civil liberties
legislative packages to present during the
ext year. Jay expressed concern that
impeachment proceedings succeed so that
the American people will feel that they
retain control of their own_ political
destiny.
Broad-based representation by a newly-
elected Chapter Executive Board seems to
_ be assured in that its members come from
eight different towns in this area and hold
occupations including businessman,
musician, cancer-researcher, school
teacher, college student, homemaker, ~
high school student, building contractor, .
college professor, attorney, and com-
munity service worker. A meeting to set
priorities and to plan activities for the
coming year has been scheduled for 8:00
p-m., Monday, August 12th, at the home
of Bob Boyle (address below). All ``new''
~ and ``old'' Board members and other
interested Chapter members are en-
couraged to attend this meeting and/or to
volunteer their names for work on one of
the committees.
At present the Chapter especially needs
someone willing to coordinate follow-up of
the telephone calls that come almost daily
into our answering service. We also need
persons willing to provide liason with
other civic organizations in this area,
someone to keep the press and other media
informed of ACLU activities, and persons
who will serve as ""court watchers'' and
chapter spokespersons to local boards and
commissions. Members are needed now to
work on committees: Membership;
Speakers' Bureau; Legal; Telephone -
Tree ;Schools Liason; Women's Rights;
Civil Liberties Library; Jail and Alter-
Natives to Incarceration; Youth Rights;
Public Education Projects and more!
If you are willing to invest a little of
your time and talents to any civil liberties
projects or activities in the Mt. Diablo
_ region, mail me a note soon, and try to
come to the August 12th meeting: Bob
Boyle, 1040 Upper Happy Valley Road,
Lafayette, 94549, (Phone: 283-8685).
4
AY
Fn
Aug. 1974
: " aclu news
CHAPTERS
Monterey
Chapter President, Pearl Carey, at-
tended the national convention of the
NAACP in New Orleans last month,
where she was attempting to get a
resolution adopted regarding the Hatch
Act. Recently she was fired from her
federally funded job with the Department
of Human Resources because her at-
tendance at the Democratic National
Convention in 1972 was a technical
violation of the Hatch Act.
Now returned from the convention,
Mrs. Carey is happy to inform us that her'
resolution was adopted intact and reads as
follows:
`"Whereas a citizen's right to
participate in all phases of the
political process is necessary to have
an active and meaningful role in his
government and whereas many
black persons are employees of the
Federal Government and are
hindered. from participating in the
total political process by the
restrictions of the Hatch Act,
therefore be it resolved that the
Congress be urged to amend the
_ Hatch: Act to allow persons covered
thereby to be delegates to political
conventions, be members of
political clubs, distribute campaign
literature, buttons and badges, sign
nominating petitions and take an
_active paft in partisan political
campaigns.''
The resolution was accepted
unanimously by 3,150 delegates at the
NAACP National Convention on July 5,
1974, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Santa Cruz
The end of summer will see the Santa
Cruz Chapter finishing up a year of
``trying to get it together'' and suc-
ceeding quite well! The Chapter has re-
organized and had two successful fund-
raisers handled by Elizabeth Moore and
Alan Muttersbach. Committee and
e @
Biennial
Continued from page 6
Some other areas which were studied at
the conference and on which non-binding
resolutions were offered included: science
and civil liberties, children and_ civil
liberties, prisoners' rights, rights of the
poor and health care rights. |
Besides the policy questions, the
conference was extremely beneficial in
terms of providing an opportunity for
ACLUers from all over the country to
discuss common problems, to hear ex-
perts' ideas, and to merely get to know
many of the people that are normally only
voices on a telephone from some other -
State.
Northern California contributed much
to the conference by providing several of
the expert speakers for the various panels.
Legal Director Charles Marson spoke on
privacy and legislative activity; Victimless
Crimes Project Director participated in
the sexual freedom panel; and, Amitai
Schyartz, Director of the Police Practices -
Project, spoke on police abuses. Also,
_ Executive Director Jay Miller was on the
committee which planned and executed
the conference. -
inidivudal work include affirmative action,
discrimination in unemployment, locker
shake-downs, and most important of all,
the present case of the mid-wives which
may set a precedent.
After several years of being de-funct,
the Chapter has really come back strong
and we feel this is a good time to celebrate
our ``revival'', The August meeting will
be at Cabrillo College on Wednesday, the
21st. Speaker will be Don Holland of the
Santa Cruz City Police; time is 8:00.
Room 508. Members are urged to become
active by joining any of our on-going
committees. For more information, call
Bernice Belton at 476-4685 or Jane
Fessenden at 423-5357.
Sonoma
The Sonoma Chapter has won a case
_ that has gained nationwide attention and
triggered a major debate on the issue of
separation of church and state.
Superior Court Judge Joseph P.
Murphy, ruling on a suit filed by Sonoma
County ACLU legal representative Martin
Spiegel, said the Cotati-Rohnert Park
school district was wrong in allowing a
song containing the word ``God'' to be
sung daily by kindergarteners at Waldo
Rohnert School.
Murphy said a 1962 decision of the U.S.
Supreme Court ``squarely held that the
inclusion of a classroom prayer composed
by state officials in a daily program for
public shools violated the First. Amend-
ment's prohibition against the making of a
law `respecting an establishment of
religion'."'
He also said the song in question was
twice held unconstitutional by high
courts, including one case in which the
word ``God'' was deleted from the prayer.
The school district pursued the use of
the song-prayer in spite of advice from the
Sonoma County Counsel's office not to do
so. One school official was quoted after the (c)
decision with saying he was surprised and
added, ``I thought Judge Murphy was a
fairly religious man and that he'd stand up
in what he thinks is right and not let
previous court decisions sway him.''
Judge Murphy - put the issue in per-
spective in his ruling. ``We must never
forget that the ideal of religious freedom
was one of the impelling forces in this
country's early history, and particularly
in the formal setting of the classroom, any
governmental intrusion must be
resisted.'' : :
The judge, in his decision, noted that
his ruling ``will likely irritate'' some
people. On that point he was quite correct.
A petition drive supporting the use of
the prayer in the school was started, and
allegedly gained 1400 or more signatures.
Numerous letters came in to Sonoma
County newspapers, most supporting the |
use of the prayer in the school. In July, the
school board was debating whether to
accept the decision as is, whether to see if
the song-prayer could be used for other
purposes, such as in music programs, or
whether to see if the state might take up
the legal challenge. The state comes into
the case because the prayer is in a state- -
approved textbook.
Chapter Chairman Bernard Sugarman
tried to put the issue in perspective for
those complaining about the decision by
pointing out that the issue was strictly
separation of church and state and not an
attempt to suppress religion. He indicated
that the decision was an important device
in retaining the right to expression of
diverse religious viewpoints.
The story got TV, radio and newspaper
play in the Bay ..Area, with attorney
Spiegel doing a good job of telling
ACLU's side. The case also drew national
- attention, with letters being sent to
Sonoma County newspapers by people in
the midwest and eastern US.
The Chapter's annual picnic was held
Sunday, July 7, and ended just prior to a
slightly unseasonal rainstorm. Picnic
chairman Mel Hildreth, chairpersons
June Swan and Lynn Young, and many
many others did a fine job in putting on
the picnic for about 250 ACLUers. Many
_ thanks to the artists who provided us with
`their works for the art auction - our main
source of revenue for local activities.
A unique feature this year was the
auctioning off of the services of a string
quartet composed of young Sonoma
County residents. . 7
A jazz group and string quartet also
entertained the picnickers throughout the
afternoon. Main speaker was attorney
Spiegel, who explored the role of civil
liberties as a framework for individual -
growth.
In the future-
Next ACLU Board meeting is ten-
tatively scheduled Thursday, September
19 at the Bank of Sonoma County, at
8:00 p.m. A preview of a slide show on
the Stanford jail experiment, which clearly
showed the problems facing both jailed
and jailers, is being arranged for showing.
Public is welcome.
Other programs, including films or
guest speakers, are currently being studied :
for the fall and winter.
ACLU will distribute to public high
schools in the county in the fall copies of
the book ``Law in the School,'' put out by
the state attorney general's office. It's a
good guide for teachers, administrators
and students, and ACLU hopes to en-
courage its use. It also might be utilized
for- social science classes.
Copies at $2 can be obtained from athe
State of California Department of Justice,
Office of the Attorney General, 600 State
Building, Los Angeles 90012.
Fresno
On the evening of September 4, the
Chapter will hold a social evening - and
fund raiser. There will be hamburgers and
trimmings and beer for your refreshment.
Also, swimming, dancing and a speaker
from the affiliate who will talk about
current civil liberties issues, will be
provided.
Food, location and. speech will be
donated and all the proceeds will go
toward supporting local civil liberties.
Admission will be $3 per person or a new
membership. Chapter members will
receive details soon. Plan to attend.
people may prefer a free government; but
or want of public spirit, they are unequal
if they will not fight for it when it is directly (c)
attacked; if they can be deluded by the
artifices used to cheat them out of it; if, by
they can be induced to lay their liberties
inetitutions-in all these cases they are more
or less unfit for liberty; and though it may
be for their good to have had it even for
a short time, they are unlikely to enjoy it.
FREEDOM SERIES
if from indolence or carelessness, or cowardice -
PARCHMENT POSTERS
These handsomely scripted quotations ate printed on
to the exertions necessary for preserving it; yellowed parchment-like paper and are suitable for framing.
The messages are as timely today as they were when
written, perhaps more so. These words by John Stuart Mill
ECs seem as if they were written about our political times.
The lasting wisdom of such illuminaries as Thomas Jef- |
momentary discouragement, or temporary ferson, Charles Sumner, Abraham Lincoln, Clarence Darrow,
panic, or a fit of enthusiasm for an individual, Patrick Henry, Langston Hughes, Frederick Douglas, Adlai
Stevenson and W. L. Harrison are presented on other sheets.
The posters measure 12-1/2 x 21-1/2 and cost $2.00 + tax
at the feet of a great man,or trust him with each, There are 12 posters in the set. You may order them
powers which enable him to subvert their single or the whole set.
Send your check or money order to:
ACLU - Freedom Series
593 Market St., Suite 227
San Francisco, Ca. 94105
The series is also available directly from the printer,
Graphic Arts of Marin, 2670 Bridgeway, Sausalito, Ca.,
94965.