vol. 46, no. 7
Primary tabs
Volume XLVI
In November 1980, Marlene Penny
received notice of an arrest warrant: she
had not paid a $15.00 fine for failure to .
pay a dog license fee for a dog which she
no longer owned. When Penny, a mother.
of four from Fremont, surrendered her- (c)
self to the police, she was confined in the
Fremont Detention Center, forced to
remove all her clothing except her under-
pants and bra, and was strip searched.
In September 1980, Ramona Scott
was charged with failure to"pay a fine
for not properly leashing her dog and
failing to prove proper registration of a
- car which she had disposed of several
years before. Scott was locked`ina hold-
ing cell at the Oakland police station
and two matrons forced her to remove
all of her clothing, including her under-
wear. Though she told the matrons she
was menstruating, they made her bend
over and put her hands on the floor
while they searched her body cavities.
On August 27, the ACLU-NC filed
lawsuits against the City of Fremont
and the City of Oakland on behalf of
Penny and Scott for damages resulting
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October 1981
Ramona Scott (1.) and Marlene Penny told how they were strip searched by police.
from these unreasonable and unjustifi-
able searches, and challenging the prac-
tice of unconstitutional strip searches
by police.
At a press cern at the ACLU
office on the day of the filing, ACLU-
NC cooperating attomey Donald .W.
_ Brown of the San Francisco law firm of
Brobeck, Phleger and Harrison, said, "The
policy of requiring presumptively inno-
cent arrestees, like Ms. Scott and Ms.
Penny, who are detained under circum-
stances which provide no reasonable
grounds for believing that they are con-
cealing a weapon or contraband, to
submit to.a strip search is both unnec-
essary and unjustifiable.
"Strip searching arrestees without
Dreyfus, Stender to be Honored
Dellums, Speaker at Rights Day
On the ninth annual Bill of Rights
Day, the ACLU-NC Board of Directors
will present the Earl Warren Civil Lib-
erties award to veteran civil rights attor-
ney Benjamin "Barney" Dreyfus and
posthumously to former ACLU Board
member Fay Stender, who died in 1980.
Congressman Ronald V. Dellums will
give the keynote address at the Bill of
Rights Day Celebration which will be
held on December 13 at the Sheraton -
Palace Hote] in San Francisco.
The Bill of Rights Day Celebration is
the culmination of the ACLU-NC's an-
nual fundraising work. The Founda-
tion's entire legal program is virtually
sustained by donors who each year
make tax-deductible contributions and
are recognized in the Commemorative
Booklet issued the day of the celebration.
This year, the fundraising effort has
been enhanced by the Major Donors
Campaign, which has already raised
$80,000. In addition, the Field Commit-
tee will be mobilizing chapter members
to solicit gifts for Bill of Rights Day.
The combined goal of the fundraising
effort is $220,000.
The Board selected Dreyfus and Sten-
der as the award recipients in June.
Each year, the award is presented to a
person or persons who have distin-
guished themselves as champions in the
battle to preserve and expand civil lib-
erties.
Dreyfus, 72, was cited by the Board as
"one of the most respected and beloved
members of the Bay Area bar commu-
nity." A partner in the law firm of Garry,
Dreyfus, McTernan, Brotsky, Stender,
Herndon and Walsh, he is a leading legal
advocate and organizer in support of
the Bill of Rights.
Dreyfus, a founding member of the
National Lawyers Guild, was one of the
few courageous lawyers to wage an un-
remitting battle against the Smith Act.
In his defense of Communist Party
members in Los Angeles, he succeeded,
with others, in convincing the U.S. Su-
preme Court of the Smith Act's uncon-
stitutionality (Yates v. U.S.). a
The McCarthy era which engendered
the Smith Act was also the setting for
the origins of another famous Dreyfus
battle: the preservation of the indepen-
dence of the bar. In the 1950s in Califor-
nia, the Board of Governors of the State
Bar and legislators attempted to impose
oaths of allegiance and loyalty upon
lawyers as a condition of the right to
practice. Dreyfus organized lawyers to
oppose such legislation and action by
the State Bar and succeeded in defeating
every attempt to impose tests of ortho-
doxy upon members of the bar.
According to Dreyfus, "McCarthy-
ism and its offshoots represented a
serious threat to the independence of
the bar-a concept I've always consid-
Benjamin Dreyfus
ered basic to constitutional liberties in
this country. Without a truly indepen-
dent bar, the protection of constitutional
rights and liberties is impossible-it's
a myth."
Over his long career, including 18
arguments before the Supreme Court,
Dreyfus has also obtained significant
victories in the areas of the right to bail,
diminished capacity, the death penalty,
the rights of labor and civil nehts) in the
South.
A long-time active supporter of the
ACLU, Dreyfus served as co-chair of
news
"Strip Search -East | Sue
Michael Miller
the 1980 Bill of Rights Day Tribute
Committee. continued on p. 5
dated charges,"
No. 7
such probable cause constitutes illegal
government conduct," he added.
Brown explained that the suit is also
being filed on behalf of taxpayers in
Oakland and Fremont who object to
their tax monies being used to under-
write this unconstitutional practice.
Claiming that strip searching pretrial
detainees violates both the federal and
state constitutional guarantees of pro-
tection against unreasonable searches,
due process and privacy, the ACLU `is
seeking a permanent injunction to halt
this practice.
At the press conference, both women
spoke of their ordeals as victims of the
police strip search.
Marlene Penny said it was the first
time she had ever been arrested. De-
`tained for her failure to pay a dog
license fee, she said, "At first I didn't
think they were serious when they told
me to take off my clothes for a search.
"T would have understood it more if I
had been arrested on drug- or gun-re-
Penny said, "but I don't
even have a record."
Penny was released from custody on
the same day she was arrested and
found innocent of the charge. She wrote
numerous protest letters to city and
state officials and the ACLU, because "I
thought people should be aware that
this was going on," she said.
Ramona Scott explained that she was
arrested by an Oakland police officer
for failure to appear in response to a
citation for not properly leashing her
dog.
After she was booked, the arresting
officer instructed the two matrons at-
tending Scott that she was a "no-search."
Despite that instruction, and the fact
that the police were informed that Scott's
father was en route to the station house
to post the required $170.00 bail, the
two matrons entered her holding cell
and forced her to remove all her clothing.
Scott said, "I asked them to allow me
to keep my underwear on as I was men-
struating. But they made me remove
- everything and bend over and touch the
ground." The matrons then proceeded
to doa visual search of her body cavities.
"1 was detained for over four hours,
including two hours after my father
came to secure my release," Scott said.
Attorney Brown commented, "In both
instances, the police actions were under-
taken with reckless disregard for the
plaintiffs' constitutional rights. Strip
searches are only allowable when there
is reasonable ground to believe that an
arrestee is concealing a weapon or con-
traband," Brown said.
"Yet despite laws and policies limiting
strip searches, many police departments
still force some people suspected of
minor offenses to submit to a strip.
search. continued on p. 7
aclu news |
october 1981
Investigating Police Abuse
The issue of civilian investigation of
police abuse is still pending in San Fran-
cisco. After several weeks of heated
debate and public testimony this sum-
mer, the Police Commission voted to
hire one civilian investigator, and was
urged by Mayor Feinstein to hold off on
any further decision until the plan has
been in operation for six months. That
six month period will be up in December.
According to ACLU-NC staff coun- .
sel Amitai Schwartz, "It is important
that supporters of the Office of Citizen
Complaints continue to write to the
Mayor and the Supervisors. It is unlikely
that a proposal to the Board of Super-
visors will be made to establish the
office in the near future and the Super-
visors must be aware of widespread sup-
/port for it.
"We feel the Mayor's present course
is completely untenable-it is a sad joke.
How can one person possibly deal with
all of the complaints of police abuse in
San Francisco? In fact, the responsibil-
ities of that one person have not even
been defined yet.
"The Mayor's scheme will be reevalu-
ated in December, and the issue will rise
to prominence again at that time,"
Schwartz added.
In August, ACLU-NC Executive Di-
rector Dorothy Ehrlich wrote to all San
Francisco ACLU members and 12,000
other residents encouraging them to
write to Mayor Dianne Feinstein and
the Board of Supervisors President John
Molinari expressing their support for |
civilian investigations of police miscon-
duct. That request brought a flood of
`response, a sampling of which is repro-
duced below. (Letters have been short-
ened significantly. Ed.)
To the ACLU.
Bac. for your letter to us ACLU
members to write to Molinariand Fein-
stein.
This is the first time in eight years that.
I, as a rank and filer, have been asked
for something other than money.
I was, about ten years ago, an active
member of the local chapter's Police
Surveillance Subcommittee. I even wore
anarmband at political rallies. (A lot of
good I could have done.) Let's have
more calls to action.
Paul Ciena
San Francisco
The ACLU has done some truly won- -
derful things in the past and everyone
involved should be very proud of these
: accomplishments. However, the issue of
- police abuse and the establishment of an
Office of Citizens Complaints i isan area
in which I feel your priorities are in-
verted. A great deal of legislation has
been passed to protect the rights of the
accused in this country while the victim
has become a forgotten person.
Your campaign for civilian investiga-
_ tions of police activities is not wanted by
the majority of San Franciscans.
Merl Grossmeyer
San Francisco
To the Supervisors . . .
I am writing to express my strong
support of the establishment of an Office
of Citizens' Complaints, specifically the
legislation drafted by the Bar Associa-
tion of San Francisco.
I received a mailing from the Police
Officers' Association urging me to op-
pose this proposal, which strengthened
my belief that there is an urgent need for
New Board Chair has ACLUNG
Michael Miller
` Drucilla Ramey
Davis Riemer
Davis Riemer, an eleven-year veteran of the Board of Directors, was selected as
the new chairperson of the ACLU-NC at the September Board meeting. Riemer, a
partner in a pension consulting firm, has considerable experience in fundraising
and development and has been active in this year's Major Donors program.
Originally a chapter representative from Oakland, Riemer served as the Treasurer
for two terms and as Chairperson of the Staff Salary and Benefits Committee, which
over a two year period carefully developed ACLU-NC personnel policies.
Riemer takes over from Drucilla Ramey who resigned as Board chair after a ~
three-year term. At the meeting, Ramey was presented with a hand-calligraphed
scroll in appreciation for her leadership, which resolved that "The Board of
Directors of the ACLU of Northern California does hereby recognize, commemo-
rate and celebrate the triumphant three-year term of Drucilla S. Ramey, Chair-
person, a title engendered by your predecessors only retroactively.
- Inscribed plaques and grateful thanks were given to outgoing Board members
Irving Cohen, Bernie Moss, Naomi Lauter, Elizabeth Nelson and Frances Strauss.
Newly elected at-large Board members Bernice Biggs, Gordon Brownell, Eleanor
Friedman, and Oliver Jones began their terms of office, as did new Chapter
UePEesMa Len Karpman and Rose Bonhag.
an Office of Citizens' Complaints. The
letter was so strident and misleading
that it makes it impossible for me to
believe that asystem carried out by the
Police Department itself can work in an
impartial manner.
Warren Saltzman
San Francisco
Chinese for Affirmative Action is
writing to express our great dismay over
the recent letter sent by the S.F. Police
Officers' Association to persuade se-
lected S.F. citizens to oppose the crea-
tion of an Office of Citizens Complaints
as proposed by the Bar Association of
San Francisco.
Chinese for Affirmative Acuion takes
great exception to POA's characteriza-
tion of those individuals and organiza-
tions who support the Office of Citizens
Complaints as "left-wing street activ-
ists." In testimony before the S.F. Board
of Supervisors Select Committee on
Crime and Violence, Chinese for Affir-
mative Action has gone on record to
support the proposed Office of Citizens
Complaints. One can hardly label civil
rights organizations like CAA as "left-.
wing street activists."
Chinese for Affirmative Action be-
lieves that no police officer is above the
law, whether s/he is Chinese, black, His-
panic or white. While it is our belief that
~ an overwhelming majority of police offi-
cers are law-abiding public servants,
there must be an objective system to
investigate those police officers who
may have violated the civil rights of
common citizens in S.F.
Henry Derr, Executive Director
Chinese for Affirmative Action
. and the Response _
Thank you for your letter expressing
your support for some civilian involve-
ment in the Internal Affairs Bureau.
I am convinced at this point that the
recent action of the Police Commission
(The Commission voted in August to -
appoint one civilian investigator whose
specific duties. will be spelled out at
some later date. Ed.) is the best method
of dealing with those problems surround-
ing the investigation of civilians' com-
plaints of misconduct.
Dianne Feinstein
Mayor
Thank you for your letter relative to
the proposal to hire non-police investi-. -
gators in the San Francisco Police De-
partment to replace the Internal Affiars
Bureau.
] appreciate gowns your feelings 1 in
The Citizens Respond -
this matter and receiving your com-
ments, and I will bear them in mind
when this matter is considered further _
by the Select Committee on Crime and
Violence, of which I am the Chair.
John Molinari
President of the Board
Tune In
to the
ACLU
On Wednesday, October 28 civil lib-
erties will have their day on KPFA
radio. The full-day programming, pro-
duced by Ralph Steiner, will feature
several ACLU spokespersons.
12:00 (noon) What It Was Really Like.
Richard Criley, Monterey Chapter
board representative, will join Ralph
Steiner and Frank Wilkinson discussing
the role the FBI played during the
McCarthy era. Criley tells why that era
should be renamed the J. Edgar Hoover
Era:
12:30 The New McCarthyism. ACLU
Field. Committee chair Peter Hagberg
will discuss Reagan's war on terrorism.
Will the 1980s repeat the witch-hunts of
the 1950s? Will draft resisters, union
leaders and anti-nuclear protesters be
harassed and jailed as dupes of the
KGB? Will the Un-American Activities
Committees make a comeback?
1:00 Why Not Outlaw the Klan? San-
ford J. Rosen, chair of the ACLU Legal
Committee, will join others in a debate
about defending the free speech rights
of hate groups. Live discussion and ale
ins at 848-4425.
4:30 Americans Under Watch: Secrecy
and Surveillance Under Reagan. Board
member Steve Mayer will join others in -
a discussion on how the government
wants to spy on us. The discussion will
include how progressive groups from
labor unions to anti-war protesters were
disrupted by government surveillance,
' with prospects for the future. There will
_. be a special focus on the Freedom of
Information Act, why it is important
and who wants to repeal it. Phone-ins at
848-4425.
KPFA 1s a listener-sponsored Pacif-
ica radio station at 94.1 FM. Fora list-
ing of the full Civil Liberties Day pro-
gramming call KPFA and ask fora copy
of their Folio program guide.
aclu news
8 issues a year. monthly except bi-monthly in January-February, june July,
August-September and November-December
Second Class Mail privileges authorized at San Francisco, California
Published by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California
Davis Riemer, Chairperson Dorothy Ehrlich, Executive Director {
Marcia Gallo, Chapter Page ig)
_ ACLU NEWS (USPS 018- 040)
1663 Mission St., 4th floor, San Francisco, California 94103. (415) 621-2488
Membership $20 and up, of which 50 cents is for a subscription to the aclu news
and SO cents is for the national ACLU-bi-monthly pe oe Civil Liberties.
Elaine Elinson, Editor
aclu news
october 1981
Roger Baldwin: A Legacy of Liberty
be John de J. Pemberton, Jr.
Roger Baldwin, The New York
Times editorialized during the
week of his death, `Jeaves his heirs
two legacies: more spacious liberty
and the duty to keep fighting for it."
Few of us today have memories
long enough to appreciate how
significantly more spacious is the
liberty we enjoy today as our leg-
acy from Roger. The attention
people pay, that legislators and
public officials pay, that the press
pays, even the attention that courts
pay to the guarantees of the Bill of
Rights, isa phenomenon that was
unknown when Roger formed
ACLU's predecessor, the National
Civil Liberties Bureau, during
World War I. Nothing like that at-
tention was paid to the Bill of
Rights by the Congress that en-
acted the Sedition Act of 1917 or
by those who administered the
World WarI military draft so as to
exemptas conscientious objectors
only members of a `well-recog-
nized religious sect or organiza-
tion." People then were largely in-
different to either the liberty or the
due process implications of Attor-
ney General Palmer's wholesale
-deportment of aliens who were
thought to have non-conformist
views. And what happened to per-
sons suspected of crime would
make even the members of the Bur-
ger court shudder.
It was Roger Baldwin's ACLU
that made the difference, that
turned a whole nation into paying
attention to its central heritage. Of
course, the attention being paid to
the Bill of Rights reflects contro-
versy, not consensus, over the
meaning and value of its guaran- 0x00B0
tees. But the existence of contro-
versy demonstrates thatthosecon- |
troversial views are being heard.
In fact, even in the 1980's ACLU''s
views concerning the meaning
and value of the Bill of Rights con-
Roger Baldwin, founder of the ACLU
tinue to enjoy a creditable mea-
sure of success.
To speak of our organization as
"Roger Baldwin's ACLU" is to rec-
ognize much more than the histor-
ical fact of his having been its
founder. Rarely has one person's
imprint seemed so indelibly
stamped upon the character ofan
organization-even now, more
than thirty years since he retired
-as its Executive Director-as
Roger's has been impressed upon
the ACLU. Roger'senergyanden-
thusiasm, for instance, and his ex-
perimental, non-dogmatic, attitude
toward issues, areamong the best
and most useful characteristics of
ACLU's responses to issues and
crises. .
The most important of Roger's
traits claimed by the Union, of
course, is his commitment to the
rights of his opponents as well as
of his friends, of the wicked as well
as the good. And, one might add,
Roger always knew which groups
he thought were the wicked and
which the good-though, consis-
tent with his non-dogmatic atti-
tude, he changed his mind several
times on such judgments.
I think Roger possessed at least
one trait which he could not be-
queath to his corporate offspring.
He had a keen political pragma-
tism: a shrewd sense of which
causes, and which means to pro-
mote them, were politically pos-
sible and which were not. But like
his child, he never lacked the wil]
to pursue with boundless energy
those that were not, when the only
reason for doing so was that the
cause was right. Roger also sur-
passed his offspring in the quick-
ness of his wit, invariably illumi-
nating the foibles of those, includ-
ing himself, who were driven to
pursue objectives about which he,
as they, was nevertheless deadly
serious. Such virtues of the parent
which failed in the child apart, the
ACLU can be said to be the spit.
ting image of its parent.
Roger was distinctive, too, for
his optimism. "I'm still optimistic
enough to believe that fellows
much younger than Iare going to
keep on fighting," he told The Los
Angeles Ti
view. Butnobody, least ofall Roger,
has ever suggested that there could
be any basis for optimism about
liberty except that there are those
who are going to keep on fighting
for it. Eternal scrapping always
will be liberty's price. Roger was
right that the fighters will keep
coming. The New York Times is
right that the duty to do so is part
of the legacy which: Roger lett.
To Roger's friends, itseemed im-
possible to image a time when we
would be without his constdnt
guidance. We now know, however,
thateven Roger's rugged constitu-
tion clothed aman who was mortal.
But if we accept the duty which _
was Roger's legacy, we can also
know that the inspiration which
his memory leaves, and the traits
of his character with which he en-
dowed the ACLU, will always con-
tinue to be with us.
John de J. Pemberton is a former
national Executive Director of the
ACLU. Currently a Professor of
Law at the University of San Fran-
cisco specializing in employment
discrimination, Pemberton is a
member of the ACLU-NC Legal
C
Roger Baldwin (r.) with his friend and former jailmate Sam Krieger at the
premiere of The Wobblies at Lincoln Center in 1980. Over half a century ago, the
- two spent time together in a New Jersey jail, Baldwin for conscientious objection
and Krieger for being a Wobbly organizer. Krieger, who sparked Baldwin's interest
in the rights of labor, died earlier this year.
Grants Bolster ACLU Foundation
by Michael Miller
ACLU-NC Associate Director
The ACLU Foundation of Northern
California received $55,000 in local
foundation grants this summer to sup-
port abortion rights through litigation
and public education.
The Wallace A. Gerbode Foundation
and the van Loben Sels Foundation
both awarded $15,000 to support the
Foundation's Abortion Rights Project.
The Columbia Foundation granted
another $25,000. Gerbode Foundation
had given $15,000 for the Project last
year.
ACLU-NC Foundation litigation, co-
ordinated by staff counsel Margaret -
Crosby, has challenged the state legisla-
ture's annual cuts in Medi-Cal funding
for abortion for four years. Medi-Cal
funds for abortion have been main-
tained for over 100,000 California
women per year solely because of court
orders and decisions in this litigation. In
1981 there have been two other abortion
rights suits successfully brought by the
ACLU-NC, -
In addition to legal work, public edu-
cation and press relations, under the di-
rection of Public Information Director
Elaine Elinson, are critical components
of the ACLU's work to protect the pri-
vacy rights of women seeking abortions.
For example, Elinson responded to over
150 press calls since the beginning of
_1980 concerning the abortion issue.
The foundation support will allow
the Abortion Rights Project public in- 0x00B0
_formation work to expand, including
the production of several new publica-
~ tions in several languages.
The Project also includes education
and training of ACLU-NC members to
respond to local measures that interfere
with abortion rights, such as the at- _
tempt to impose a local "informed con-
sent" ordinance in Pleasant Hill.
According to ACLU-NC Field Repre-
sentative Marcia Gallo, ACLU mem-
bers are in a strong position to provide
leadership and to educate others in their
own communities about the pro-choice
battle.
According to ACLU-NC Executive
Director Dorothy Ehrlich, "The Moral
Majority, the evangelical new right, and,
their political colleagues have made the
attack on abortion rights their number
one social issue. Consider the noise they
are making around the appointment of
Supreme Court nominee Sandra Day
O'Connor.
"The ACLU in California and nation-
ally has always been a leader in the fight
to secure and now to preserve the consti-
tutional right to choose an abortion. We
must respond to this new politically in-
spired threat by widening our efforts
both in the courts and elsewhere. I am
gratified that these three foundations
share the same commitment to this issue
as the ACLU does. These grants insure
that for the coming year, and beyond,
~ the ACLU can continue and expand our
pro-choice work," Ehrlich said.
Bequests
to the
ACLU
The defense of civil liberties is a
never-ending task. No one genera-'
tion can secure liberty to all persons
for all times. But each generation
owes the next all the assistance it can
give.
A bequest to the ACLU in your.
will is the finest possible way to-
express your concern that constitu-
tional rights be protected for future
generations. _
Bequests to the ACLU Founda-
tion of Northern California are tax-
exempt and are very simple to add to
an already existing will.
For information on how to make a
bequest to the ACLU Foundation of
Northern California, call or write
Dorothy Ehrlich, Executive Direc-
tor, ACLU Foundation, 1663 Mis-
' sion St., San Fr. ncisco, 94103.
aclu news
a october 1981
Pome the ALCU
The
The day that this issue of the ACLU
News went to press, President Reagan ~
spoke before the International Associa-
tion of Police Chiefs about his plans to
cure the "U.S. crime epidemic." If any-
one of us were feeling complacent about
the strength of the administration's fer-
vor to get tough on criminals-even at
the expense of basic constitutional rights
-now Is the time to shed those illusions.
Not only did Reagan advocate the
harshest proposals of the federal Task
Force on Violent Crime-limitations
on bail, fewer restrictions on police,
diminishing the exclusionary rule-the'
manner of his advocacy is enough to
send shudders down our collective spine.
For Reagan recommended redressing
the "imbalance between the rights of the
accused and the rights of the innocent"
_ -as if there were no presumption of
innocence on the part of the accused.
And Reagan's characterization of the
crime problem as "the jungle... ready
to*take us over," and his non-solutions
as an effort to "hold back that jungle
and restrain the darker impulses of
human nature," is as racist and dehu-
manizing as it is ignorant.
In the following analysis, written be-
fore the Reagan address, ACLU-NC
Executive Director Dorothy Ehrlich
looks beyond the law and order rhetoric
of the administration and warns of the
dangerous climate being set by high
level politicians soapboxing on crime.
This summer | returned to speak toa
group which back in 1978 had issued an
angry dissent to the ACLU's defense of
the Nazis in Skokie, Illinois. It was re-
assuring to find that in 1981, "Skokie"
was no longer on the list of grievances:
in fact, although the ACLU's role in the
controversial free speech case was not -
forgotten, it seemed to be understood,
even appreciated..
What was disconcerting was that al-
though the emotional anger of the late
`70s was no longer directed to the
ACLU's representation of Nazis, it had
only been displaced. In the summer of
1981 some people felt that the ACLU
had let them down again, this time by
defending criminals. After all, as one
participant in the meeting said, the
ACLU really is the "criminals' obeys
isn't it?
Were it an isolated comment, it might
have been ignored. Unfortunately, Pres--
idential Counselor Edwin Meese's new
`label for the ACLU has stuck, and surely
that was Mr. Meese's intent. For label-
ing the ACLU the "criminals' lobby" is a
remark born out of a much larger cam-
paign which seeks to capture the anti-
crime climate for political gain, with
constitutional rights as the ultimate
target. The climate for this campaign
could not be better.
Creating the climate
The California Journal reported in
August that already 600 anti-crime bills
have been introduced in the California
Legislature.
Not since President Nixon began his
"law and order campaign in 1968 has
such a frontal attack against crime been
touted. Crime has become the quintes-
`Criminals' Lobby" Dissents
sential political issue of the '80s.
Thus it was timely for Presidential
Advisor Meese to plant the slogan which
identifies the ACLU as the "criminals".
lobby" early in the campaign. The events
which have followed are directly related (c)
to the "off-the-cuff" remarks he made to
to help the victims of crime sometime."
~ Or Abe Mellinkoff's Chronicle column
which begins "To nobody's surprise, a
few hours after the most recent anti-
crime commission issued a final report,
the American Civil Liberties Union at-
tacked it. This does not mean that the
EST. 1980
=p im ese
ATTY? ET
"Look for the White House Label"
the California Peace Officers last May
in a speech in Sacramento.
Thoughtless response
Although one label cannot discredit
the ACLU, it can trigger thoughtless
responses that seem to bear repeating.
For instance, in August, when the ACLU
issued its criticism of the report from the
Attorney General's Task Force on Vio-
lent Crime, particularly the proposal to
seriously modify the "exclusionary rule" _
(the rule which prohibits the prosecu-
tion from using illegally obtained evi-
dence against a defendant), the ACLU's.
position was automatically chided by a
Sunday San Francisco.Chronicle edi-
torial. The editorial stated, "any modi-
fication of the exclusionary rule goes
too far for the American Civil Liberties
Union, which warns that to abridge it
would risk the loss of important rights
that are the bedrock of our democracy.
_ `Maybe' said former Attorney General .
Bellina sardonic rejoinder, `they ought
organization necessarily favors crimi-
nals, even if it more often than not
comes out that way. Leaders of the
ACLU take a fervently proprietary in-
terest in the Constitution, almost as if
they had written it themselves in Phila-
delphia. It was automatic for them to
oppose a change in the Exclusionary
Rule."
Among those opinion makers and
editorial writers who do not stop to
question the criticism of government
officials, it is all to automatic to brush
aside the ACLU's defense of civil liber-
ties as simply the advocacy of a "erimi- :
nals' lobby."
Fortunately, that lack of analysis
does not prevail throughout the entire
press. The July 20 issue of the New
Yorker magazine provided the follow-
ing lengthy defense of the ACLU's
purpose:
The Administration's. human rights
policy has lately been further clarified
by some remarks by Edwin Meese, the
counselor to the President, in an inter-
view with Meg Greenfield of the Wash-
ington Post, in which he defends an ear-
lier allegation of his that the American
Civil Liberties Union is a "criminals'
lobby." In the interview, he describes
himselfas a strong believer in the Bill of
Rights but goes on to reveal an apparent
serious misconception of what political
rights are and what role they play in our
democracy. Describing the A.C.L.U.
and a few other organizations as being
"opposed to law enforcement" he pro-
poses the establishment of "a compar-
able citizens group that represents the
law-abiding citizens," which would op-
pose the A.C.L.U. "on the basis of the
rights of the law-abiding citizen to be
free from criminal activity." Ina country
that includes a Bill of Rights in its Con-
stitution, however, rights are laws, and
their enforcement is just as much law
enforcement-and just as much in the
interest of the law-abiding citizen-as
`the statutes against murder, burglary,
_assault and other crimes. The difference
is that the Billof Rights was designed to
protect citizens, on the whole, against
the power of the government, whereas
the criminal laws largely protect them
against one another. (It is much easier
for the government to silence a news-
paper or prevent an individual from
speaking than for another individual to
do so.) The protection of the citizens
from the power of government is an
essential part of the idea of democracy,
which places the government under the .
over-all scrutiny and supervision of the
people. On the other hand, the citizens'
need to be "free from criminal activity"
(that is from non-governmental crimti-
nal activity) is not, in the legal sense, a
"right" at all (and thus is nowhere men-
tioned in the Bill of Rights) but, rather,
an essential social good, like fire preven-
tion, or adequate medical care, or the
prevention of famine. Mr. Meese's devo-
tion to what he thinks human rights to
be is no doubt very strong, but his defi-
nition of them is at odds with what the
Constitution defines as rights.
Since such thoughtful comments are
more often the exception, however, law-
makers and other people in power have
failed to respond to the frustrating and
apparently increasing problem of vio-
lent crime, and are sorely in need of a
reasonable excuse. Surely it must be
someone else's fault. The ACLU's critics
seem to have planted the blame on a
combination of "soft-hearted judges"
and "legal technicalities" insisted upon
by the courts and the ACLU.
Sinister message
The sinister mesage that keeps being
repeated is not simply that the ALCU is
the criminals' lobby. but that the prin-
ciples it is lobbying to preserve are the
obstacles which stand in the way of gov-
ernment plans to reach (or over-reach)
out to solve the problems of crime in the
streets. Those "legal technicalities,"
those "obstacles" posed by the ACLU,
and enforced by the courts, are nothing |
less than the constitutional right to be
presumed innocent; the right to a fair
trial; the right to counsel; the right to be
protected from unreasonable searches
and cruel or unusual punishment. Not
continued on p. 7
~
Bill of Rights Day
Fay Stender served on the Board of
Directors of the ACLU-NC from 1974 |
until $980. A resolution by the ACLU-
NC Board at the time of her death stated
that "in that capacity, and in her other
endeavors on.a multitude of projects,
she was a guiding force and a deter-
mined advocate of the causes she em-
wey
Fay Stender
"Fay was a forceful voice for affirma-
tive action, the rights of women, of pris-
oners, and of other oppressed peoples.
Never taking a position for granted, Fay
challenged her colleagues on religious
freedom questions, and reminded us
always to practice our civil hberties
principles both inside and outside the
organization," the Board resolution
stated.
While on the ACLU-NC Board, Sten-
der was a moving force behind the for-
mation of the Women's Rights Commit-
-tee-a group which addressed issues
relating to equal rights for women but
which also had a great impact on the
work of the organization as a whole. As
Bernie Bergeson, a fellow Board mem-
ber of Stender's recalls, "The Commit-
tee began to involve people from other
organizations, from the community, and
from the ACLU's own staff. At that
time, there was a perceptible shift in
participation not just in the Committee,
but in the ACLU itself-away from a
lawyer-dominated hierarchy and toward-
a wider and more representative cross-
section of people interested in civil
rights and civil liberties."
Congressman Ron Dellums, who will
deliver the keynote address of the Bill of
Rights Day program, represents the
northern California Eighth Congres-
sional District. Dellums, who is cur-
rently Vice-Chair of the Congressional
Black Caucus, is one of a handful of
representatives. who was given a 100 per
continued from p. 1
cent rating on civil liberties voting by
the national ACLU publication Civil
Liberties Alert.
An active supporter of the ACLU,
Dellums has spoken at .several ACLU
chapter events in his congressional dis- -
trict. According to ACLU Washington
lobbyist David Landau, "As a member
of the House Armed Services Commit-
tee, Dellums is a strong and vocal oppo-
nent of the draft and registration.
"In addition, he is one of our most
important allies in working onthe House
floor onevery major civil liberties issue."
"This year's Bill of Rights Day Cele-
bration will have a uniquely local flavor.
By honoring two attorneys who have
had a great impact on the shape of civil
liberties in California and a keynote
speaker who makes our voices heard in
the nation's capitol, we will be celebrat-
ing not only the anniversary of the Bill
of Rights but also the role that the
Congressman Ronald V. Dellums
ACLU of Northern California has played
in defending it," said Bernie Moss, chair-
person of the 1981 Bill of Rights Day
program committee.
Other members of the committee are
Irv Cohen, Angela Blackwell, Caryl
Mezey and Fran Strauss. The commit-
tee is also planning music and entertain-
ment for the celebration.
The Bill of Rights Day Celebration
will be held at the Sheraton Palace
Hotel in San Francisco, December 13
from 4 to 6 PM. Tickets for the event are
$7.00 and are available from the ACLU |
office. For further information call Mar-
lene De Lancie at (415) 621-2488.
Bill of Rights Day Celebration
I want to honor those who protect the Bill of Rights.
Please send me
I am enclosing a check for $
Name
tickets at $7.00 each.
Addess
City
Zip. = Phone
Please make checks payable to ACLU-NC Foundation and mail to Bill of Rights
Day, 1663 Mission St., S.F., CA 94103. Please enclose a stamped, self-addressed
envelope.
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aclu news
october 1981
Voting Rights Act in Danger
"Members of Congress must hear our
united message," said ACLU-NC Exec-
utive Director Dorothy Ehrlich, "that
there is no justification to abandon the
1965 Voting Rights Act. We are mobiliz-
ing ACLU resources to insure the exten-
sion of the single most effective piece of
civil rights legislation passed during the
last two decades."
Ehrlich was speaking at a September
10 press conference organized by the
Mexican American Legal Defense and
Education Fund (MALDEF) to show
widespread support for the extension of
the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and to
encourage individuals to write to Con-
gress advocating extension.
Other participants in the press confer-
ence were Vilma Martinez of MALDEF,
Robert Harris of the National Bar Asso-
ciation, Mark Aronson of the S.F. Law-
yers Committee for Urban Affairs, Jack
Crowly of the California Labor Federa- .
tion AFL-CIO and Henry Derr of Chi-
nese for Affirmative Action.
A joint statement by the participants -
noted, "The Act stands as a symbol of .
our commitment to addressing one of
the nation's most disgraceful problems:
the systematic denial of the right to vote
because of race or language minority
membership.
"The Voting Rights Act is much more
than a symbol. It has outlawed devices
used to deprive minority citizens of their
right to vote, such as literacy tests, and
poll taxes. It has outlawed intimidation
and harassment of voters, tactics which ~
are unfortunately still used to discourage
minorities from registering and voting
for the candidates of their choice."
On July 31, the Judiciary Committee
of the House of Reprsentatives voted to
_report out a bill (HR 3112) extending
the Voting Rights Act. This was an im-
portant step in the process of the exten-
sion of the act before August 6, 1982
when key provisions of the act expire.
On September 9, the U.S. Commis-
sion on Civil Rights called for a ten-year
extension of the law. Arthur Fleming,
chair of the commission, said, "The Vot-
ing Rights Act and its amendments con-.
stitute a major effort to fulfill the most
basic right in our nation: the right to
yore Opposition
While this very strong bill was re-
ported out of the House Judiciary Com-
mittee by a vote of 23 to I, this vote did
not reflect the intense feelings of Repub-
licans Henry Hyde of Illinois and Cald-
well Butler of Virginia who expressed a
desire to further amend HR 3112 onthe
floor of the House.
Additional opposition comes from
the Senate, most notably from Strom
Thurmond. When he was named Chair
of the Senate Judiciary Committee,
Thurmond stated that an extension of -
the act was not necessary and he vowed
to get rid of it.
President Reagan has not yet articu-
lated his position on the act, but has
asked for a report and recommenda-
tions by Attorney General William
French Smith by October I.
Provisions
The bill passed by the House Judi-
ciary Committee has three main sec-
tions: extension of the pre-clearance
provisions, with a new "bail out" pro-
cedure, until 1982; modification of the
present standard of proof in voting dis-
crimination cases to allow victims of
discrimination to prove that a voting
practice resulted in the denial or abridge-
ment of the right to vote-as opposed to
having to prove that it was intentional,
and extension of the language assis- |
tance provisions of the act until 1982.
The new bail-out provisions enable
Jurisdictions with a genuine record of
non-discrimination in voting to be re-
lieved of the pre-clearance section.
Under the present law, all jurisdictions
become eligible to. apply for bail-out at
the same time. As amended, the act
would allow individual counties or states
to apply for bail-out on their own
record when the provisions go into
effect in 1984.
The joint statement noted that "Bilin-
gual elections have enabled countless
numbers of non-English speaking U.S.
citizens to vote, many for the ier time
in their lives."
The statement added that since bilin-
gual elections were first enacted in 1975,
the cost of providing them has decreased
dramatically. For example, in the 1980
general election in Los Angeles, where
over 45,000 voters requested Spanish (c)
language materials, the cost of provid-
ing bilingual assistance was only 1.9%
of the total election costs.
Ehrlich said, "We feel these three pro-
visions are vital to insuring the effective-
ness of the Voting Rights Act and the
future of minority parcipalion in our
demons
"We encourage all ACLU members
to write to their representatives in Con-
gress to urge support for the extension
of the act."
The next hurdle for the Voting Rights
Act is passage on the House floor.
House floor action on HR 3112 and
Senate hearings on the bill could come
as early as October.
All members of Congress need to hear
from constituents now. Call or write.
your members of Congress urging exten-
sion of the Voting Rights Act.
Hon. Senator Cranston/ Hayakawa
New Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Telephone: (202) 224-3121
Hon. Member of Congress
House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515 |
Telephone: (202) 224-3121
ante
aclu news
october 1981
Medi-Cal Abortion Funding - = | :
Unraveling the State's Response
In the normal course of state govern-
ment, it is the duty of the Legislature to
make laws, of the courts to determine
whether those laws are constitutional,
and of the executive branch to carry out
those laws, if they are indeed constitu-
tional. Events this summer surrounding
_ the issue of Medi-Cal funding for abor-
tion underscore the importance of that
separation of powers as the basis for our
system of government. Margaret Crosby,
chief counsel in the litigation to. main-
tain Medi-Cal abortion funding, ex-
plores the present conflict among the
branches of state government on the
issue of public funding for abortion.
The responses of state government of-
ficials to the ACLU-NC's current case
seeking to maintain Medi-Cal funding
for abortion, bears. out the fact that
abortion is one of the most politically
charged and divisive issues in America
today.
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a-vociferous supporter of anti-choice
legislation: But Deukmejian has advised -
the appeal court that he is no longer
. representing the state officials in the:
abortion funding litigation-a clear sig-
nal that the executive branch and the
Attorney General's office disagree about
the appropriate response of the govern-
ment towards legislative defiance of a
state Supreme Court decision.
Defendants' response
In response to an order from the
Court of Appeal, requiring the state to
file a formal response to the lawsuit, the .
three state officials adopted three sep-
arate approaches:
Treasurer Unruh, maintaining the
least controversial position, failed to
submit any brief at all.
Controller Cory filed a pleading which
acknowledges that the 1981 Budget Act
restrictions are unconstitutional under
the state Supreme Court ruling of March
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EDI-CAL ABORTIONS /
a decision of the Supreme Court; yet in
the political arena-before the Legisla-_
ture-Myers has consistently opposed
any restrictions on Medi-Cal financing
of abortion. The apparent inconsistency
of her positions before the courts and
the Legislature may be reconciled by
assuming that the brief filed on her be-
half reflects not a true statement of her
views on abortions for the poor, but
rather an attempt to placate the Legisla-
ture (with power over the Health Serv-
ices Department budget) in its ongoing
feud with the judiciary.
Head-on collision
None of the official positions is suffi-
`ciently aggressive for some anti-choice
legislators, who are aiming for a head-
on collision-and constitutional crisis-
with the state Supreme Court. On Sep-
tember 15, in the waning hours of the
1981 legislative session, the state Senate
enacted Senate Resolution No. 27, which
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The ACLU and four other public in-
terest organizations filed suit against
state Controller Kenneth Cory, Trea-
surer Jesse Unruh and Health Services
Director Beverlee Myers on July 16.
The suit came in response to the Legis-
Jature's enactment of Budget Act limita-
tions on public funding for abortion, in
defiance of the California Supreme
Court's ruling that such restrictions vio-
late the privacy guarantee of the state
Constitution. The high court has or-
dered the state to continue to fund Medi-
Cal subsidization of abortion until the
Court of Appeal issues a final ruling in
the case. (The case will be heard by the
Court of Appeal on October 27.) .
For months after the case was filed,
the state officials named as defendants
neither defended the challenged restric-
tions nor opposed the ACLU's request
for a stay of the legislation. This silence.
contrasted sharply with the government's
aggressive defense of abortion funding
cuts in prior years, mounted by state
Attorney General George Deukmejian,
1981, and agrees to obey any court order
maintaining Medi-Cal coverage of abor-
tion. (Cory, whois currently locked ina
dispute over payment of court-ordered
attorney's fees to a successful lawyer ina
separate public interest case, then used
his brief as a vehicle to explain his oppo-
sition to counsel fees, and stated that he
will refuse to obey any future court order
awarding the ACLU attorneys' fees in
the abortion litigation.)
Health Services Director Myers filed
a brief which denounces the California
Supreme Court decision maintaining
Medi-Cal funding for abortion as "judi-
cial legislation" with "flawed logic." She
reasserts the view, adopted by the U.S.
`Supreme Court but repudiated by the
California Supreme Court, that the
poverty which creates a barrier to indi-
-gent women's access to abortion Is not
the government's problem.
The curious aspect of Myers' position
is that her brief must be viewed only asa
political document, as the state Court of
Appeal is entirely powerless to overrule
asserts the legislative prerogative over
fiscal affairs, and resolves to "protect
the people of the State of California
from levy and use of their taxes without
legislative representation" by directing
the Attorney General to: initiate legal
action to halt state funded abortions in
the 1981 fiscal year; stop the state offi-
cials from complying with the Supreme
Court stay which maintains Medi-Cal
funding for abortion; and recover and
return all funds expended on state funded
abortions in the 1981 fiscal year (empha-
sis added, Ed.).
Since the Assembly failed to pass Sen-
ate Resolution No. 27 before adjourn-
"ment (the measure awaits final action in
the Assembly Rules Committee in Jan-
-uary, 1982), its binding force is unclear.
Presumably, however, the Attorney
General could represent the California
Senate in any litigation seeking to re-
instate the funding ban.
Several recent court decisions indi-
cate that Deukmejian may not ethically
take a position in the abortion litigation
antagonistic to the Governor and his
former clients, Cory, Unruhand Myers.
Deukmejian, however, has publicly ex- -
pressed his willingness to represent his
former colleagues in the Legislature,
and, with elections on the horizon, to
attack the state Supreme Court and
align himself visibly with the anti-choice
forces.
Regardless of who our opponents
turn out to be, however, the ACLU is
prepared to defend any such action and
continue the challenge to any attempts
to hinder or diminish the right to repro-
ductive freedom.
~ Police'
Harassment of
Sacramento
March `Excessive'
-Judge
A Sacramento judge denied the
ACLU's request for a preliminary in-
Junction against the Sacramento police
following their harassment and surveil-
lance of an anti-racism march (ACLU
News, Aug-Sept 1981), but left the door
open for further action in the case.
On September 21, Judge Horace E.
Cecchettini ruled in the case of the
International Comittee Against Racism
(INCA R) v. Sacramento that the plain-
tiffs "have not shown that there is an
imminent threat of harm or that there is
a likelihood of repetition of the offend-
ing conduct [by the police]." The ACLU
had sought.a preliminary injunction
after the Sacramento police used an
array of intimidating tactics-including
the videotaping of marchers and by-
standers, individual mug shots of dem-
onstrators, and requiring all partici-
pants in the march to undergo search by
metal detector-against marchers last
November.
However, the judge also stated, "The
declarations filed by Plaintiffs make it
clear that much of the conduct was ex-
cessive, particularly the use of metal de-
tectors and inordinate photographing."
According to. ACLU staff counsel
Alan Schlosser, "It is very important
that the judge characterized the police
conduct as `excessive.' We are obviously
not alone in our opinion that the police
tactics used against the demonstrators
are in violation of the right to free
expression."
Schlosser and ACLU cooperating at-
torney Mark Merin are now gathering
evidence for the trial. There has been no
date set yet for the trial.
The ACLU is seeking an order that
will prohibit the Sacramento police from
employing such tactics in the future as
well as a ruling that the International
Committee Against Racism does not
have to pay the $700 bill for police serv-
-ices for the demonstration which they
were charged by the city, and damages.
Criminals' Lobby Dissent cninedomns
surprisingly, each of these fundamental
rights is currently under serious attack
in the California legislature and in
Congress.
The attack goes beyond the issue of
defendants' rights and the traditional
principles we ascribe to the criminal jus-
tice system. The officials who call the
ACLU the criminals' lobby potentially
have a much longer enemies list.
Report on Terrorism
California Attorney General George
Deukmeyjian has added to his law en-
forcement campaign an issue which he
claims is "one of the greatest challenges
to lawenforcement... the identification
of individuals and groups which foment
hate and political unrest." The reason
for this concern, according to the Attor-
ney General's Annual Report on Terror-'
ism is the fact that "during 1980 there
was a Significant increase in the activi-
ties of domestic extremist groups in the |
form of rallies and demonstrations."
The President has his own version of
criminal activities. He has singled out
the air traffic controllers as criminals
because they went on strike.and for that
activity they are being criminally pros-
ecuted.
Add to that list the 19 versions of the
H.L.A. (the so-called Human Life
Amendment) currently before Congress
which provide that a doctor ora patient
who determines that a pregnancy should
. be terminated would be prosecuted as a
criminal even if the life of the mother
were at stake.
`The list alsosincludes the view es-
poused by the leaders of the Moral
Majority that homosexuality is a crimi-
nal act, and the death penalty would be
an appropriate punishment.
Finally, if complacency is setting in, it
often takes the kind of very local story
about strip searching in the Fremont
and Oakland jails (see page 1) to reaf-
firm our belief in the necessity of laws
against unreasonable searches.
The ACLU is well-prepared for this
unpopular battle for it has learned to
adhere to its principles, even when its
clients, or its purpose, run counter to a
given Administration's policy or the
most recent public-opinion polls. The
ACLU has become accustomed to rec-
ognizing the danger of attempts to dis-
credit the organization by using a de-
rogatory label that sticks. We under-
stand that Mr. Meese speaks for an
administration which could make crim-
inal the exercise of constitutional rights
and could make suspect the groups
which are in the forefront of advocating
for those rights. oe
When state or federal officials begin
to identify those who dissent as a "law
enforcement" problem or those who
strike as "criminals" the ACLU's pur-
poses become sharply defined. Perhaps
it was good fortune to have Mr. Meese
provide us with an early warning. It isa
reminder which has stuck.
Marin Marchers Paid Back
The City of San Rafael has reim-
bursed the Citizens Party of Marin $120
-a fee the City had demanded from the
Party "for additional police services"
when the group sponsored a peaceful
march and rally to protest U.S. involve-
ment in the war in El Salvador in April.
' The City paid the money-back only
able to the City for $100,000; post a $500
deposit to ensure proper cleaning and
_ pay $120 for additional police protec-
tion. :
The Party appeared before the City
Council several times to protest the new
requirements and to seek a waiver of the
fees. They noted that the fees had been
after ACLU-NC staff counsel Margaret
Crosby filed a claim on behalf of the
Citizens Party to the City Treasurer
protesting the charge.
"The collection of $120 for the exer-
cise of constitutional rights by members
of the Citizens Party was unauthorized
by any statute and constituted a viola-
tion of the First Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution and Article I, Section 2 of
the California Constitution," Crosby
wrote in the claim.
The Citizens Party had contacted the
ACLU-NC in April prior to the planned
' demonstration. Party representative
Alan Barnett explained to Crosby that
they had signed a contract with the City
authorizing use of a park for the rally,
and had paid a $20 fee for the use of the
public area.
Subsequently, however, the City
voided the agreement and issued a new
contract which granted the use of the
park on the condition that the Party
obtain a liability insurance policy pay-
waived in the past for other groups plan-
ning rallies, such. as the Kiwanis and the
French-Canadian students. The Party's
attempts were unsuccessful, however,
and they turned to the ACLU..
While Crosby was investigating the
case and contacting City officials, the
Citizens Party, under protest, paid the
$120 fee in order that their rally not be
cancelled, as the rally and demonstra-
tion were important to the Citizens
Party.members.
The rally did proceed, but so did the
pursuit of the Citizens Party members'
First Amendment rights. On July 20,
Crosby filed a formal complaint against
the City of San Rafael citing as damage
`and injury "Payment of $120 for the
exercise of constitutional rights."
In August, five months after the dem-
onstration, the City of San Rafael ac-
knowledged the claim. The insurance
premiums and cleaning deposit were re-
turned and the City reimbursed the Citi-'
zens Party the $120 fee for police services.
aclu news
october 1981
Unjust Fire Searches Halted
When Joseph Kramas was cited for
refusing to allow a warrantless fire
inspection of his electronics equipment
firm in Concord, he sought the help of
the ACLU in challenging the Contra
Costa ordinance which allowed fire de-
partment officials to enter premises with-
outa warrant. _
Asa result of the challenge, prepared
by ACLU-NC cooperating attorney
`Steven Brick of the San Francisco law (c)
firm of Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe,
not only has the criminal complaint
against Kramas been dismissed, but the
Contra Costa District Attorney has
agreed that there will be no further
prosecutions under the statute (Uniform
Fire Code Section 1.209) based on a
property owner's refusing to permit a
warrantless fire inspection.
ae
a
as
(c)
fire inspectors had asked him to volun-
tarily submit to an inspection of his
premises in the 60s and '70s he had
always complied. "My cooperation
changed," he said, "when in-1973 the
inspections become compulsory.".
Kramas claimed that because of his
refusal to allow entry to fire inspectors
without a warrant, he was harassed by
officials who inspected the plant on un-
necessarily numerous occasions and
once filed a false report that there were
hazardous materials when there were
none.
In March 1981, Kramas was cited for
refusing to comply with a search under
the new ordinance which authorized
non-consensual routine fire inspections
without warrants.
"T faced a possible fine or imprison-
"Calm down. Just a routine fire inspection.'
Instead, the county will amend the
section to comply with federal and state
constitutional guarantees against war-
rantless searches.
Kramas, the president of Sigmanet-
ics, Inc., said, "I agree in principle with
the idea that a prevented fire is better
than an extinguished fire, but I am
appalled and frightened by the series of
events over the past ten years that has
led up to the present powers the fire
inspectors use to abuse human rights."
Kramas told the ACLU that when
Strip
_ "We hope that these suits will put an
end to this unconstitutional practice in
this area," Brown concluded.
ACLU-NC cooperating attorney
Donald Brown
ACLU-NC Execiittive Director Dor-
othy Ehrlich told the press conference
that the ACLU has challenged the prac-
tice of strip search in many areas around -
the country, including the famous case
against the Chicago Police Department
ment for refusing to have my Fourth
Amendment rights abridged," Kramas
said. ee
In a letter to the District Attorney,
Brick pointed out that the ordinance
was "clearly unconstitutional under the
Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Consti-
tution and Article I, Section 13 of the
California Constitution."
The complaint against Kramas: was
dismissed and the agreement to cease
warrantless inspections was reached
with the District Attorney in August.
SEdCCH ouniceens b
for strip searching 190 female arrestees.
That case, Doe v. Chicago, was settled
last year.
Ehrlich noted, "The tremendous pub-
licity surrounding these cases shows
that even in these times when a `law and
order' mentality seems the order of the
_ day-there can and should be public
outrage at unconstitutional police prac-
tices.
"The fact that these two women were
subjected to humiliating and degrading
strip searches after being arrested for
very minor offenses underscores the
importance of ACLU's work to con-
stantly remind police and other public
officials of their responsibility to abide
by legal and constitutional principles in
their treatment of suspects and arres-
tees," Ehrlich added.
The suits are seeking compensatory
and punitive damages for both Penny
and Scott, as. well as preliminary and
permanent injunctions to prohibit the
police from continuing the practice of
strip search.
. No hearing date has yet been set by
- the court.
aclu news
october 1981
1981 ACLU Conference
With the Marin Headlands providing
the scenery, ACLU members and sup-
porters generated the spirit of the 1981
ACLU-NC Conference, held October 9-4
at the Pt. Bonita Outdoor Center. The
focus of the conference was reproduc-
tive freedom. This year's conference was
the first to present a program aimed at
providing information and inspiration to
members organizing an affiliate-wide
campaign for reproductive rights.
Guest speakers included poet and
author Alice Walker, international health
care activist Dr. Helen Rodriguez-Trias,
director of the National Committee
Against Repressive Legislation Esther Herst, and staff counsel for the
ACLU's national Reproductive Rights Project Suzanne Lynn.
Workshop leaders shared organizing skills needed in developing
Conference organizers Field Representative Marcia Gallo and
Rodriguez-Trias and Howard Matson from the Monterey Chapter. Field Committee chair Peter Hagberg.
media to coalition building.
A spirited rally led by Eva Jefferson Paterson closed the weekend's
activities-and launched the new reproductive rights campaign for Oe
ACLU of Northern California.
Eva Paterson leads the rally.
effective membership action-from advocacy techniques to using local
B-A-K
BOARD MEETING: October 22,
8:00 p.m. Contact: Joe Dorst, 415/
654-4163.
Earl Warren
BOARD MEETINGS (third Wed-
nesday each month): October 21-
November 18;7:30 p.m. Guest speak-
er October 21: new ACLU-NC Chair-
person David Riemer. Sumitomo
Bank, 20th and Franklin, Oakland.
Contact: Barbara Littwin, 415/452-
4726.
UPCOMING: Special public forum
on reproductive rights. Contact: Rose
Bonhag, 415/658-7977 or Beth Nel-
son, 415/428-6638.
Gay Rights
ANNUAL MEETING: Sunday, Oc-
tober 25, 2:00 p.m. Wine and Cheese
Party with Guest Speaker Mary Dun-
lap on "The Family Protection Act."
243 Hartford, San Francisco. Con-
tact: Bill Ingersoll, 415/348-8342.
Marin
BOARD MEETINGS (third Mon-
day each month): October 19-No-
vember 16; 8:00 p.m. Fidelity Sav-
ings, Throckmorton Street, Mill Val-
ley. Contact: Len Karpman, 415]
383-5328.
Suzanne Lynn (1), Anne Jennings, chair of Pro-Choice
Task Force and ACLU volunteer Doug Warner.
ACLU lobbyist Beth Meador, pianist "par excellence,' and
Executive Director Dorothy Ehrlich at post-midnight sing-a-long.
Chapter Calendar
Mid-Peninsula
GENERAL MEETING: Thursday,
October 29, 8:00 p.m. Guest Speaker
Beth Meador, ACLU-NC Legislative
Advocate. Palo Alto Community
Center, 1305 Littlefield Road, Palo
Alto. Contact: Harry Anisgard, 415/
856-9186.
BOARD MEETING: Thursday, No-
vember 19, 8:00 p.m. All Saints Epis-
copal Church, 555 Waverly, Palo
Alto. Contact: Harry Anisgard, 415/
856-9186.
Monterey
ANNUAL CELEBRATION: Sun-
day, November !-1:30 p.m. to 5:00
p.m. Dinner and Presentation of
Ralph Atkinson Civil Liberties
Award for 1981 to HELEN AVA
PAULING. Contact: Richard Criley,
408/624-7562.
BOARD MEETINGS (last Tuesday
each month): October 27--Novem-
ber 24; 7:30 p.m. Monterey Public
Library. Contact: Richard Criley,
408/624-7562.
North Pen
BOARD MEETINGS (third Mon-
day each month): October 19-No-
vember 16; 8:00 p.m. Allstate Savings
Loan, South Grant and Concar
Drive, San Mateo. Contact: Richard
Keyes, 415/367-8800.
Sacramento
GENERAL MEETING and POT-
LUCK DINNER: Friday, October
23; No Host Bar, 6:00 p.m.; Dinner,
7:00 p.m. North Dining Hall, CSUS.
Guest Speaker Former Congressman
John E. Moss on "Secret Govern-
ment and the Attack on Freedom of
Information." Donation $5.00 in ad-
vance, $6.00 at the door. Contact:
Myra Schimke, 916/487-5336, or Pat
MacDonald, 916/455-4259.
GARAGESALE: Saturday, Novem-
ber 7 (Rain Date November 14)-
3518 Ronk Way, Sacramento; ca//
916/455-9005 to have donations
picked up.
San. Francisco
BOARD MEETINGS (last Tuesday
each month): October 27--November
24; 1663 Mission Street, San Fran-
cisco. Contact: 415/621-2488 (ACLU-
NC office).
Santa Clara
BOARD MEETINGS (first Tuesday
each month): November 3-Decem-
ber 1; 7:30 p.m. Community Bank
Building, San Jose. Contact: Vic Ul-
mer, 408 | 379-4431.
Santa Cruz
ANNUAL MEETING: Wednesday,
November 4, 6:00 p.m. Dinner, Board
elections, entertainment, movie.
Telling Sing-a-gram
"On to Apple Pie Day."
Louden Nelson Center, Santa Cruz.
Contact: Blanche Greenberg, 408/
476-8653.
BOARD MEETINGS (second Wed-
nesday each month): October 14-
November I1, 8:00 p.m., Louden
Nelson Center, Santa Cruz. Contact:
Bruce Cooperstein, 408/429-2150.
FUNDRAISING EVENT: Sunday,
November 22. Contact: Blanche
Greenberg, 408/476-8653 for more
information.
Sonoma
BOARD MEETINGS (third Thurs-
day each month): October 15-No-
vember 19; 7:30 p.m. Center for Em-
ployment Training, 3753 Santa Rosa
Avenue, Santa Rosa. Contact: Wayne
Gibb, 707/523-1155.
Stockton
Public Forum on Pro-Choice Issues:
Wednesday, November 18, 7:30 p.m.
Madison School Auditorium, 2939
_ Mission Road. Contact: ACLU, 209/
' 462-1884.
Yolo County
BOARD MEETINGS (third Thurs-
day each month): October 15-No-
, vember 19; 7:30 p.m. Contact: Larry
Garrett, 916/427-4990.
UPCOMING: Organizing meeting
for ACLU Yolo County Chapter aux-
iliary at Martin Luther King School
of Law, UC Davis. Contact: Ernie
Faitos, 916/758-7830.
CONFERENCE PHOTOS BY MICHAEL MILLER