vol. 56, no. 3

aclu news

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Volume LVI

t 5:45 AM on the morning

ol Apa 21) the US.

Supreme Court issued an

extraordinary and unprecedented

order: "No further stays of Robert

Alton Harris's execution shall be

entered except upon order of this

court."

Witnesses were rushed back

into the gas chamber viewing area

by 6:02 AM. "We were on double-

time. There was no question that

there was an attempt to get this

done as soon as possible," said wit-

ness Michael Tuck, a Los Angeles

television reporter.

With a petition for a stay of

execution still pending before the

California Supreme Court, Robert

Harris was strapped into the gas

chamber shortly after 6:00 AM.

"When we called the California

Supreme Court to find out why

they had not notified the Warden

to stop the execution, we were told

it was already too late," said

ACLU-NC attorney Michael

Laurence, one of Harris's defense

counsel.

The cyanide pellets were

dropped at 6:05 AM. At 6:21 AM,

Robert Harris was pronounced

dead by a prison physician. The

State of California had succeeded in com-

mitting the first officially-sanctioned state

killing in 25 years.

As the New York Times stated in its

editorial the following day, "there was a

repugnant rush to kill."

The dawn killing of Robert Harris fol-

may - june 1992

California's Rush to Kill

lowed a night of dramatic attempts to pre-

vent the execution. Two lawsuits - one, a

habeas corpus petition concerning new.

evidence about Robert's brother's culpa-

bility in the murders, and the other, a civil

rights class action suit challenging the use

of the gas chamber as cruel and unusual

__ A Special Report on the Execution, Pages 4 5 __

Ata demonstration on San Francisco's Marina Green two days before the execution, death penalty

foes lay down with 502 tombstones, representing each person who has been executed by the state of

California since 1893. .

No. 3

Two stays in the gas chamber

suit - one issued at 10:15 PM by

ten Ninth Circuit judges and one

issued at 12:08 AM by one other

judge of the Ninth Circuit - were

granted to allow time for the full

appeals court to review the claim

that execution by gas is cruel and

unusual punishment.

At 3:00 AM, the U.S. Supreme

Court lifted both stays in the gas

chamber suit. Within the hour,

Robert Harris was strapped into the

gas chamber.

At 3:45 AM, Ninth Circuit

Court Judge Harry Pregerson

issued a one-day stay to allow

Harris's attorneys to file the gas

chamber suit as a habeas proceed-

ing. Laurence called the prison

frantically trying to reach officials

to let them know that a stay was

about to be issued. Judge

~ Pregerson contacted the prison and

found out that Robert Harris had

already been strapped into the gas

chamber. The Attorney General

kept Harris in the gas chamber

while he attempted to get the stay

of execution vacated by the U.S.

Supreme Court.

Jan Tiura At 4:01 AM, ~Harris was

unstrapped from the chair,

punishment - were argued throughout the removed from the gas chamber and taken

night. back to the holding cell.

A stay issued at 6:25 PM in the habeas

proceeding by a judge of the Ninth Circuit

was lifted by the U.S. Supreme Court at

11:20 PM at the request of Attorney

General Dan Lungren.

At 5:45, the U.S. Supreme Court lifted

Judge Pregerson's stay and issued its final

order. As Court of Appeals Judge John

Noonan wrote in the New York Times,

Continued on page 4

Rodney King Beating - The Verdict and the Aftermath

The Verdict

by Jean Field

n April 29, jurors in Simi Valley,

California acquitted four Los

Angeles police officers of brutally (c)

beating African American motorist

Rodney King. The videotaped incident

had come to symbolize racism and abuse

by law enforcement agencies around the

country, and the verdict dramatically

"underscored the need for renewed efforts

toward police reform.

"We were appalled and very troubled

that any jury could have found those offi-

cers not guilty after watching a videotape

that showed them viciously attacking this

man," said ACLU-NC Executive Director

Dorothy Ehrlich. "Justice clearly has not

been served."

The ACLU affiliates of Northern and

Southern California called on the U.S.

Department of Justice to criminally prose-

cute the Los Angeles Police Department

officers under the federal civil rights laws.

The Bay Area Coalition for Civil Rights

and organizations around the country also

demanded federal prosecution. In a tele-

vised announcement, President Bush

announced that an investigation by the

Justice Department, which apparently had

been dormant, was to resume.

The verdict - from a jury that

included no African Americans - drew

the country's attention to the type of

police abuse that plagues minority com-

munities in cities throughout the U.S. "We

need to channel the outrage from the

Rodney King beating verdict into legisla-

tive action,' said ACLU Police Practices

Project Director John Crew. "Making the

police department publicly and openly

accountable to the community it serves is

the best way to help prevent incidents like

the one in Los

Angeles."

As part of its

continuing effort

to help communi-

"We cannot allow the

suspension of civil

_ State of Emergency

fter the verdict was announced,

A shock and frustration drove indi-

viduals to the streets of cities

around the country. Sections of Los

Angeles erupted in violence, and stores in

Berkeley and San Francisco were dam-

aged. There were also numerous peaceful

demonstrations, from a rally at Glide

Memorial Church,

to nonviolent pro-

tests on the Bay

Bridge, freeways

and city intersec-

of ther ky liberties to become San `r,, Policiens

Gace ye Francisco's method of jee

ACLU has pub dealing with the _ the. violence. in

fille Hue 4 EMCRCISG Of JECCHOM Of arene a 8.

Manual, which expr EeuroSsSton. liberties for other

outlines strategies

and resources for individuals and organi-

zations. The ACLU also is. pushing hard

for the passage of a national police

accountability act (see sidebar).

Bills in Sacramento

Two bills now pending in the state

Legislature would establish more effective

police review procedures throughout

California. SB 1335, introduced by

Senator Art Torres (D-Los Angeles),

Continued on page 2

Californians.

Bay Area cities ordered curfews, and in

San Francisco Mayor Frank Jordan and

Police Chief Richard Hongisto instituted

sweeping emergency police powers, which

were used to pre-empt peaceful demonstra-

tions as well as detain individuals sus-

pected of breaking the law. More than two

hours before the curfew took place May 1,

police officers swept through San

Francisco's' Mission District, arresting

over 400 people, many of whom were

neighborhood residents on their way home

for work or to the store. Due process was

suspended, and many of those arrested

were detained up to 32 hours at a down-

town pier and in Santa Rita jail.

"This was a clear violation of the right

to peacefully assemble, and sets a danger-

ous precedent for the future of free speech

in our city," said ACLU-NC. Executive

Director Dorothy Ehrlich at a special meet-

ing of the San Francisco Board of

Supervisors the following day.

"If someone yells `Fire' in a crowded

theater, you don't arrest everyone in the

theater," said Police Practices Project

Director John Crew. Ehrlich, Crew and

staff attorney Alan Schlosser attended the

meeting to urge the supervisors to end the

curfew and the State of Emergency. "We-

applaud the Board for their courageous

stand in suspending the emergency powers

and denouncing the police actions and the

civil liberties violations that had taken

place over the previous few days," said

Ehrlich.

ACLU Field Director Marcia Gallo

attended a similar session in Berkeley on

May 2, where City Council members also

voted in favor of lifting its curfew.

In Los Angeles, Mayor Tom Bradley

called in the National Guard as well as sol-

diers from the Army base at Fort Ord.

- In an emergency session on May 1, the

state Legislature passed special legislation

that allowed people detained for felonies

Continued on page 2

aclu news

may - june 1992

Alameda Police Officer Cannot

Silence Victim of Abuse

rights plaintiffs from retaliatory law-

suits by the police, the California

Court of Appeal upheld a summary judg-

ment against an Alameda police officer

who brought charges of malicious prosecu-

tion against a man who sued him for police

brutality. The March 18 ruling bars a

police officer from bringing a malicious

prosecution action against a civil rights

plaintiff when the underlying litigation has

been settled.

"The court's decision is an important

I n an important ruling protecting civil

victory in the fight against police abuse,"

said ACLU-NC staff attorney Ann Brick,

who argued the case Villa v. Cole et al.

before the appellate court on March 11.

"The ruling in this case protects victims of

police brutality who settle their claims

from being victimized again by being sued

for malicious Prosecution vindictive

police officers."

In July 1987, 2aeoad A. Seeterlin

and his attorney Rufus Cole brought a

police brutality lawsuit against the City of -

- Alameda and two police officers. The suit

State of Emergency ae

Continued from page |

in the aftermath of the King verdict to be

held for up to seven working days before

arraignment. Normally, an arrestee can be

`held for only 48 hours.

With or without its emergency powers,

the San Francisco police department was

bent on stopping all peaceful protests. On

May 8, SFPD police officers broke up a

peaceful demonstration and arrested more

than 500 protesters who were marching to

Duboce Park. Again, many people in the

Market and Duboce street area were

arrested as they left restaurants and stores

or attempted to return home. "It appears

that the police department has abandonded

its own crowd control policies that have

been very effective over the past few

years. It's a dangerous situation, not only

for the First Amendment but for public

safety,' said Crew, who witnessed the

police sweep.

At a packed Board of Supervisors

meeting on May 11, hundreds of people

- many of whom had been arrested and

detained - spoke out against the police

action. Supervisor Jim Gonzalez said of

the mass arrests, "It's a new policy. It's.a

policy of mass arrests whenever the chief

says so, and that's wrong."

Police Chief Richard Hongisto claimed

the arrests were legal and called for a halt

to demonstrations. "This is not a time to

be demonstrating," Hongisto said.

"The courts have consistently recog-

nized that imposing delays in the exercise

of First Amendment, even for a day, is

unacceptable," said Schlosser. "The First

Amendment requires public officials - no

matter what their personalities or political

leanings - to not only permit but protect

the rights of all of us to express our views,

when we feel the need to."

The ACLU switchboard responded to

scores of calls from individuals who had

been detained during the police actions.

Details of arrest procedures and civil liber-

ties violations were recorded, and individ-

_ uals who needed legal representation were

referred to the National Lawyers' Guild.

On May 12, Kim Corsaro, the pub-

lisher of the Bay Times, an lesbiangay

newsweekly in San Francisco announced

that over two thousand copies of the May

7 edition had been removed from news-

racks around the city. The edition had an

uncomplimentary photo collage of Police

Chief Hongisto on the front cover with the

headline "Dick's Cool New Tool: Martial

Law." When it was discovered that it was

three police officers who did the removal

- perhaps at the behest of the Chief -

civil libertarians saw it as a further assault

on the First Amendment.

At its May 14 meeting, the ACLU-NC

Board of Directors passed a resolution

calling for the immediate resignation of

Police Chief Hongisto based on his uncon-

stitutional actions against protests in San

Francisco and calling on the city to hold a

search for a new police chief who would

respect the Constitution.

The Police Commission was also

meeting on the night of May 14, to hold a

special hearing on Chief Hongisto's role

in the theft of the Bay Times. At 3:00 AM

the next morning, they announced that

they had fired Chief Hongisto.

"The firing of Richard Hongisto as

chief is certainly not the end of it," said

Crew. "The ACLU-NC has been

extremely distressed at the two-week fron-

tal assault on the First Amendment in San

Francisco. There are simply too many

unanswered questions that remain that

must be publicly and openly addressed if

the public is to be assured that these kinds

of police actions will never be tolerated

again.'

Some of those issues were addressed

on May 19 in a special hearing called by

Supervisor Roberta Achtenberg, Chair of

the City Services Committee. "I called for

a probe into police procedures used on

May 8 and May | because of the numer-

ous complaints voiced by those who felt

they had been arrested without reason, "

said Achtenberg.

In addition, the ACLU-NC is prepar-

ing a special report on the civil liberties

abuses that took place during the Rodney

King protests. "We cannot allow the sus-

pension of civil liberties to become San

Francisco's method of dealing with the

exercise of freedom of expression," said

Crew.

Stop Police Abuse

Support the Police Accountability Act

crucial bill now pending in

A Congress --H.R. 2972 - targets

police departments that have a pat-

tern and practice of misconduct. The bill

would clarify the Justice Department's

authority to bring civil action to eliminate

abusive police practices. H.R. 2972 would

also empower private citizens to bring

civil action by giving them legal standing

and permitting courts to grant the prevail-

ing plaintiff reasonable attorney's fees and

costs.

In addition, the legislation would pro-

vide criminal penalties whenever a law

enforcement officer subjects any person to

force exceeding that which is reasonably

necessary to carry out a law enforcement

duty.

So far, the only northern California

Representative to sponsor the Police

Accountability Act is Don Edwards, the

author of the bill. Coming on the heels of

the verdict in the police beating of Rodney

King, this one piece of legislation would

provide federal remedies in cases of police

brutality. Every Northern California

Representative should be a co-sponsor of

H.R. 2972.

Private citizens need this legislation so

that they can have legal standing to bring

civil action against the police.

Please write your Representative

TODAY.

We must stop the abuse. The address

for your Representative is:

The Honorable ;

U.S. House of Representatives,

Washington, DC 20515.

charged the officers with assault and bat-

tery, false arrest and violation of

Seeterlin's civil rights during an alterca-

tion that resulted when one of the officers,

Robert R. Villa, attempted to give a

sobriety test to the driver of a car in which

Seeterlin was riding.

Although that suit was settled, Officer

Villa turned around and filed a malicious

prosecution suit in Alameda Superior

Court against Seeterlin and his attorney.

Seeterlin turned to the ACLU-NC for rep-

_ resentation. Seeterlin was represented by

ACLU-NC staff attorneys Brick and

Edward Chen and cooperating attorneys

from the law firm of Howard, Rice,

Nemerovski, Canady, Robertson and Falk.

When Villa's suit was dismissed by the

superior court, he appealed the judgment.

In the unanimous March 18 ruling

upholding the Superior Court judgment,

Court of Appeal Presiding Justice Clinton

White wrote that the police officer's

charge of malicious prosecution has a "ten-

dency to impose a "chilling effect' on the

willingness of ordinary citizens either to

report criminal conduct or to bring poten-

tially valid civil claims to court."

"The filing of malicious prosecution

actions by police officers accused of bru-

tality is a very troubling trend," said Chen.

"Most such suits are thrown out by the

courts as lacking merit, but they neverthe-

less may have their intended effect, deter-

`ring people with legitimate claims from

seeking redress for police misconduct."

This courtroom victory is especially

important as the battle to make police offi-

cers and law' enforcement agencies

accountable for their actions heats up in the

California and: federal legislatures (see

articles this page).

The Verdict ...

Continued from page 1

would make it easier for the a noney

General's office to criminally prosecute

police officers. SB 1949, introduced by

Senator Bill Greene (D-Los Angeles),

would repeal a 1982 law allowing police

officers to file defamation suits against

individuals who -have accused them of

misconduct. The targeted statute has a

chilling effect on the ability of individuals

to speak out against brutality and police

abuse, and stifles the First Amendment

right to complain to the government with-

out fear of reprisal.

"The public outcry surrounding the

Rodney King verdict should have given

these bills added momentum," said Marga-

ret Pefia, ACLU Legislative Director. "But

law enforcement agencies will not surren-

der their closed-door policies easily."

There also is a dangerous proposal cur-

rently in the Legislature which would give

police officers unprecedented immunity

from public scrutiny. AB 2067, sponsored

by Assemblyman Richard Floyd (R-

Gardena), is called the "rogue cop" bill

because it enforces the code of silence in

police departments around the state.

"The rogue cop bill must be defeated,"

said Crew. "Police departments must

become open to the communities they

serve, and not remain unaccountable. Bills

like AB 2067 will ensure that the next

Rodney King incident won't even make it

to the courtroom."

In San Francisco, several Supervisors

are urging the Mayor and Board of

Supervisors to include in the

Memorandum of Understanding with the

Police Department provisions guarantee-

ing openness in the Office of Citizen

Complaints process.

The verdict in the Rodney King beat-

ing case "makes me more determined than

ever to safeguard and strengthen our

police review policies and to assure that a

miscarriage of this dimension will never

occur in our city," said Supervisor Terence

Hallinan.

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a

aclu news

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Published by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California

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Membership $20 and up, of which 50 cents is for a subscription to theaclu news and

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aclu news

may - june 1992 3

Claudio Paintings Return

to Federal Building

n a victory against censor-

I ship, two paintings by Chico

artist Dayton Claudio -

which had been removed at the

behest of government bureaucrats

- were hung once again in the

lobby of the Phillip Burton

Federal Building in San Francisco

after protests from the ACLU.

Although Claudio had a per

mit to display his art, the can

vases were removed from the

lobby March 2, only an hour after

being hung. The General Services

Administration, which oversees

the Federal Building, objected to

the works. One of the paintings,

"Madonna", depicts a partially

nude woman; the other, entitled

"JFK," portrays an _ abstract

American flag and a drawing of

the slain president.

Claudio, an artist and sculptor

who teaches at Butte Community

College in Chico, turned to

California Lawyers for the Arts

(CAL) and the ACLU-NC for

help. Attorneys protested the

move by the GSA, which has

been under fire for similar acts of

censorship in federal buildings in

Sacramento and Los Angeles.

After discussions with ACLU-NC

nd CAL cooperating attorney

Karl Olson, the GSA reversed its

decision.

It's a great victory for anti-

censorship and an important victory for

artists. It sends a message that we can do

artistic work for public buildings without

feeling we have to censor ourselves," said

Claudio. "I was happy to find out that

there are support groups out there. That's

pretty important when you're going up

against the government."

"Censorship of artwork should have

gone out with the Edsel. It's the kind of

thing you might expect in Baghdad, but

not in Baghdad-by-the-Bay," said Olson,

who is a partner at Cooper, White and

Cooper and worked on Claudio's case with

his associate Catherine S. Kanter and

ACLU-NC staff attorney Ann Brick.

Olson added that Claudio's works were

not in fact obscene under the U.S.

Supreme Court's guidelines nor under any

common definition of the word. "The fed-

eral government shouldn't spend time or

taxpayers' money policing art content," he

said.

On March 16, Claudio re-opened the

exhibit of his paintings "Madonna" and

"JFK" at a press conference at the Federal

Building as a public display of a victory

Artist Dayton Claudio and painting "Madonna" at

the Federal Building in San Francisco.

Union Maid Photos

against government censorship. The paint-

ings were on display until April 1.

"Government censorship in any form is

a matter of grave concern in a free and

democratic society," said ACLU-NC staff

attorney Ann Brick. "It is particularly

shocking that it should be attempted here,

at the Federal Building and US.

Courthouse - a building that is the very

embodiment of the federal government.

We are pleased that the GSA has recog-

nized that censorship cannot be tolerated,"

Brick added.

The national ACLU Arts Censorship

Project, based in New York and directed

by Marjorie Heins, offered additional

advice on this issue. The Project was

created in 1991 to combat mounting

threats to artistic freedom from both gov-

ernment and private pressure groups. The

Project engages in precedent-setting First

Amendment litigation and works on

national campaigns and with the ACLU

National Washington Office on federal

legislative issues. The Project offers legal

assistance in censorship cases to individual

artists and organizations.

Governor's Proposed -

Welfare Cuts Threaten

Civil Liberties

by Rita Egri

ACLU Legislative Assistant

Governor Pete Wilson's attempts to

slash welfare payments to poor children

and families continues in the Legislature

and at the polls despite the failure of his

initial budget proposal last month.

Last year, the state of California cut

AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent

Children) grants by 4.4%, and reduced

funding for other: social services vital to

low-income people who are homeless or at

risk of becoming homeless. Early this

year, Wilson proposed reducing aid to

needy children by 25% and raising the cost

of health care for seniors and the disabled.

His budget would have made Medi-Cal too

expensive for thousands of disabled and

older Californians, and denied special aid

for pregnant women.

The Governor's plan seriously restricts the

civil liberties of AFDC recipients. Teen

parents would be forced to live with their

guardians in order to receive AFDC, and

no additional support would be provided

for any children conceived or born while a

family received AFDC.

"These budget cuts would deny low-

income people access to the health care

and family planning services that. could

help them reduce their need for social ser-

vices. It's a Catch-22 situation that could

have tragic consequences for an entire gen-

eration of Californians,' said Margaret

Pefia, ACLU Legislative Director.

Wilson's bill also contained a contro-

versial residency requirement that would

pay newcomers only the amount they

would have received in their home state.

"This interferes with a person's right to

Continued on page 6

The Changing Struggle

For Civil Rights In California

THE RACISM OF "LAW AND ORDER"

WILSON'S WELFARE INITIATIVE

THE RIGHT TO DIE

ATTACKS ON IMMIGRANTS and THE POOR

EDUCATION "CHOICE"

Develop a Northern California Strategy to:

ENSURE REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AFTER CASEY

RESTRUCTURE THE DEBATE OVER THE DEATH PENALTY

COMBAT POLICE MISCONDUCT

Decipher the Nedia's Role in Affecting Public Opinion

Analyze the Successful Passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act

Brainstorm with ACLU Chapter Members on How To:

BUILD MORE EFFECTIVE CHAPTERS

LOBBY AND INFLUENCE THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS

OUTREACH TO NEW MEMBERS AND DIVERSIFY THE MEMBERSHIP

' RAISE AND SPEND CHAPTER FUNDS

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aclu news

may - june 1992

Strong Plea for Clemency

Fell on Deaf Ears

n April 15, constricted by a one-

hour time limit set by Governor

Pete Wilson, attorney Howard

Friedman, Robert's sister Brenda Harris

and three leading mental health profes-

sionals made a powerful plea for the

Governor to "spare the life of Robert

Harris and allow him to spend it in

prison."

Friedman, a partner in the Los Angeles

law firm of Loeb and Loeb, said at a

Sacramento press conference following

the clemency hearing, "Robert Harris

finds himself in a predicament certainly

without parallel among modern democra-

cies. He has indisputable medical and doc-

umentary proof of mental disabilities and

childhood victimization that ordinarily

would compel an impartial jury to impose

a sentence less than death, yet no court is

willing even to consider such evidence."

The plea for clemency was based on

four principal arguments: expert testimony

of mental health professionals that Harris

suffers from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome; evi-

dence of severe child abuse and organic

brain damage; Robert Harris's long-

standing remorse for the crimes; and the

assurances of veteran corrections profes-

sionals that the public could be protected

by confining him to prison for life without

possibility of parole.

In addition to the personal presenta-

tions, attorney Friedman compiled for the

Governor a 4-volume clemency appeal,

with over 2,000 pages of documentation

from medical professionals, law enforce-

ment officials, and hospital and prison

records.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome -

"The preeminent authorities in the

fields of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, child

abuse and organic brain damage urge you

to consider that Robert Harris's moral and

legal culpability was profoundly affected

by unspeakable parental torture and

neglect that not only haunted his life, but

physically touched it every day through

the effects of the deformation of and dam-

age to his developing brain," Friedman

told the Governor. "These health care pro-

fessionals explain how the lifelong impair-

ments inflicted upon Robert when he was

a helpless child left him unable to be in

control and fully responsible for his con-

duct as an adult," Friedman said.

"Every qualified expert with whom we

consulted found the information to be

credible and persuasive. No one ques-

tioned the completeness and reliability of

by FAS and severe child'

unaware of any qualified expe

putes these findings, and

recognized leaditig, a

tionally sup them,"

tion is partic important to the ques-

tion of clemen se neither the jury

nor any court ever considered it. Robert

Harris was born almost 20 years before the

medical profession recognized the perma-

nent debilitating effects of prenatal expo-

sure to alcohol on the developing fetus.

"When Robert was a newborn and a child,

no information existed to alert his teachers

_ and doctors that the pattern of behavioral

_ problems and physical anomalies they

observed was linked to a birth defect,"

explained Friedman. -

Dr. Jones, Professor of Pediatrics and

Chief of the Division of Dysmorphology

and Teratology at U.C. San Diego, Dr.

Mark Mills, Director of the Program of

Psychiatry and the Law at UCLA, and

Kathleen West, Director of the SHIELDS

program in Los Angeles which treats chil-

dren who are born with FAS, also spoke at

the clemency hearing and at the press con-

ference.

Robert's sister Brenda said at the press

Abolitionists led by the Grim Reaper and Lady Justice march against the death

penalty.

Jan Tiura

conference, "I asked Governor Wilson to

spare my brother because we love Robbie

and we don't want him to die. He means

everything to us. He's where he won't hurt

anybody."

Prison officials

Citing letters from Raymond K.

Procunier, former Director of the

California Department of Corrections and

Len Chastain, a 34-year veteran of the

Department, Friedman noted that prison

staff could successfully handle Harris in a

structured setting without threatening oth-

ers. Both corrections professionals, strong

supporters of the death penalty in general,

also agreed that the previously undetected

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome warranted an

executive grant of clemency for Harris;

Remorse

`If Robert Harris is permitted to liv

he will live daily with the

anguish he feels for th S

overnor Wilson, thank you

G for your attention. What you

are about to see are appeals

from some of the state's and the nation's

leading experts in law and medicine urging

you to grant clemency to Robert Harris."

With these words, actor and director Mike

Farrell introduced a 23-minute video plea

for clemency. "All agree," Farrell noted,

"that California's best interests are served

by imposing a sentence of life imprison-

ment without possibility of parole in Mr.

Harris's case."

Defense team member David Hinkley,

who made the video before it was known

if the Governor would hold a clemency

hearing, said that the video was produced

"to present the most compelling, straight-

forward plea for clemency to the

Governor. The issues discussed are Fetal

Alcohol Syndrome, brain damage stem-

ming from severe child abuse, and the

legal reasons why these are factors in con-

sideration of clemency."

After the tape was submitted to the

Governor, the ACLU-NC sent the video

on March 30 via a satellite transmission to

50 TV stations and network bureaus in

California and distributed it widely`to the

print and radio media. "We also wanted

| the public to be aware of the crucial issues

at stake - that the state of California was

Reverend Leon Harris, a Baptist minister,

attested to Robert Harris's remorse for his

crimes. Reverend Smith, emphasizing that

prisoners rarely weep in public because

is considered a sign of weakn

| described how in 1985 Robert broke down -

and wept openly during a prison BADE

class saying, "I wish I knew

could forgive someone like me,"

bert Harris really is. [Had the jury

n] the truth about Robert Harris's life

d the legacy of torture and impairments

he has carried with him, no citizen, no par-

ent, no member of our society would feel

the need now to take his life."

"Robert Harris should not die, and his

brothers and sisters should not be made to

leo Plea for Clemency

preparing to execute an individual who

suffered irreversible brain damage," said

ACLU-NC Executive Director Dorothy

Ehrlich.

Narrated by Farrell, the video included'

interviews with Dr. Kenneth Lyons Jones,

Professor of Pediatrics and Chief of the

Division of

_Dysmorphology and

Teratology at the University of California

at San Diego and Dr. Ann P. Streissguth,

Director of the Fetal Alcohol and Drug

Unit in the Department of Psychology and

Psychiatry at the University of

Washington. Both Jones and Streissguth,

pioneers and leading national experts in

the scientific study of Fetal Alcohol

Syndrome, conclude there is no question

that Harris suffered from FAS and

describe its devastating effects on his

development and subsequent adult behav-

ior.

Dr. Spencer Eth, a professor at the

UCLA School of. Medicine and Acting

Chief of Psychiatry at the West Los

Angeles Veterans Hospital, describes the

long-term effects of child brutalization and

explains why, in this case, they are rele-

vant to whether clemency is appropriate

for an adult survivor of such victimization.

Justice Frank Newman, retired Associate

Justice of the California Supreme Court,

Continued on page and

endure the pain of his death, because of

crimes that were so clearly bound up in his

own victimization," Friedman concluded.

On April 16, at a 6 PM news confer-

ence, Governor Wilson stated, "As great is

my compassion for Robert Harris the

child, I cannot excuse or forgive the

choice made by Robert Harris the man.

Clemency is denied."

In a letter to the Governor the follow-

_ing day, attorney Friedman urged him

reconsider his decision. "I simply cannot

accept the fact that you have deliberately

ignored the compelling medical evidence

we presented and the conclusions which

flow inescapably from that evidence.

"Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, the leading

wholly-preventable cause of mental retar-

dation in our nation today, is no less dey-

astating to an adult than it is to a child,"

Friedman reiterated. "Your decision

ignores the very real and powerful evi-

dence which establishes, without contra-

diction, that by every measurement tool

we have available to us - save chronolog-

ical age and physical stature - Robert

Harris today is a child."

Californ

afte

resumed

" five years by killing a

The use of the gas chamber, an

cruciatingly painful and unneces-

sarily prolonged method of death,

which the ACLU challenged as a

brutal and cruel punishment, com-

- pounds this tragedy.

We are encouraged that several

California's

Rush ...

Continued from page I

"That Court has ... decided that it is intol-

erable for a Federal court to delay an exe--

cution to decide a constitutional question.

Robert Alton Harris was a casualty of this

decision. Was the Constitution too?"

The execution brought an outcry heard

around the world. An editorial in the

London Evening Standard was entitled

"Auschwitz in California', and _ the

London Times editorialized, "By any defi-

nition, gassing a man to death is cruel and

unusual punishment. How can any state

tolerate the gas chamber after the Nazi

Holocaust?" France's Le Monde called the

execution "an obscene spectacle" and the

Vatican's L'Osservatore Romano called it

"perverse justice." The United States "exe-

cutes its criminals in greater numbers than

any country except Iraq and Iran - sad

comparisons," wrote another French news-

paper. `

Anti-death penalty voices were heard

closer to home as well. After weeks of

protests and an all-night vigil at the gates

of San Quentin, abolitionists held an April

21 noon rally at the State Building in San

Francisco. Pat Clark of Death Penalty

Focus said, "We are angry at the state for

killing in our name. But above all, we're

not going to go away." The Oakland

Tribune's April 22 editorial "Vengeance is

done," asked, "Is society any better off

today than it was three days ago? ... Life

imprisonment without parole protects soci-

ety just as well without requiring the state

to commit legalized murder."

In the articles' that follow, the ACLU

News attempts to bring to our readers an in

depth view of the legal challenges to

Robert Harris's execution and the political

challenges to the resumption of the Geatlh

penalty in California.

- The Editor

On the mornin:

ACLU-NC Executive Di

issued the follow

It is a tragedy that the state of

executions

:

1ing of April 21,

Director Dorothy Ehrlich

owing statement:

federal judges in the Ninth Circuit

paid serious attention to these

issues. In the end, justice was not

done.

aclu news

may - june 1992 5

Trying to Save My Client's Life

- by Michael Laurence

Director

ACLU-NC Death Penalty Project

21, the State of California strapped

my client, Robert Harris, into one of

the two chairs in San Quentin's gas cham-

ber. The guards who accompanied Robert

Harris into the chamber left, and the steel

door was closed. My client had prepared

himself the best he could for what was to

happen. But no amount of preparation

could have equipped Robert Harris for the

torture that the State of California was to

inflict on him. For over the next twelve

minutes, the State of California let- Robert

Harris sit in the gas chamber, forcing him

to believe that his death was minutes away

and to acknowledge that even in death his

caretakers could not be trusted to treat him

I n the early morning hours of April

The effort to preve

of many dedicated

tors, investigators and "6

who contributed their skills

energy in a just attempt to

Robert Harris. We know that their

knowledge will be valued and their

voices will continue to be heard as

we work to prevent future state killings.

Unusual Punishment

eath by inhalation of hydrogen

D cyanide gas is the slowest method

of execution currently in use - it

is slower than hanging, firing squad, elec-

trocution, even garroting." This statement

by Dr. Terence B. Allen, a forensic

pathologist who has reviewed several

thousand deaths is one of dozens of dec-

larations in support of the ACLU-NC law-

suit challenging the use of the gas

chamber as cruel and unusual punishment.

The class action civil rights suit,

Fierro v. Gomez was filed by ACLU-NC

attorneys Michael Laurence and Matthew

Coles in U.S. District Court in San

Francisco on Friday, April 17 - just four

days before the state of California was to

use lethal gas to kill a person for the first

time in 25 years. The suit, which asks the

court to declare death by lethal gas to be

cruel and unusual punishment, is sup-

ported by the declarations of numerous

doctors, witnesses to lethal gas executions

including prison officials and journalists,

as well as Holocaust survivors.

Stay of execution

Ina rapid response to the suit, U.S.

District Court Judge Marilyn Hall Patel

-held a rare Saturday night hearing on the

case on April 18. In a packed federal

courtroom, Judge Patel heard arguments

from Laurence about why the state of

California should not "violently and pain-

fully suffocate to death" Robert Harris or

any of the more than 300 condemned

inmates on California's Death Row.

In response to the Attorney General's

- argument that the case was brought too

late, Laurence argued that the case would

not have been ripe had not a plaintiff

faced the gas chamber. This was not the

case for Robert Harris until he was denied

Michael frorence Director of the 'ACLU-N C Death Penalty Project, and ACLU-NC

Executive Director Dorothy Ehrlich at a press conference following the execution.

Nancy Otto

with the dignity and respect due all human

beings.

I write not about the execution of my -

client at 6:21 AM. Instead, I write about

the twelve minutes that forever changed

California's image in the world - the

1 minutes that Robert Harris

General Dan Lungren kept Robert Harris

strapped in the gas chamber to agonize

over the slowness of his death and to won-

der about his ultimate fate.

In press conferences following the exe-

cution, California law enforcement offi-

cials sought to deflect the blame for this

torture. First, they sought to explain it by

questioning the propriety of Ninth Circuit

Judge Harry Pregerson's right to intrude

on the killing process. Attorney General

Dan Lungren stated that the delay in

removing Robert Harris from the gas

chamber was caused because it was sus-

pected that the life-saving telephone call

was a "prank." He did not even know who

dge Pregerson was. He then "corrected"

himself to say that the several minute

a ley resulted from efforts to determine

~ "prank" telephone call was

by the Judge Pregerson.

of events that morning

arrogance, or sheer

p Daniel Vasquez, the

clemency - the day before the suit was

filed - by Governor Wilson. In addition,

because the gas chamber had not been

used in any state for several decades, it

was not until the gas chamber execution

of Donald Harding in Arizona on April 6

that "real horrors of lethal gas were really

known," said Laurence. Had the challenge

been filed any later, Laurence explained,

then the state would have executed Robert

Harris by an unconstitutional means

before the court had the opportunity to

examine whether the gas chamber was

indeed cruel and unusual punishment. -

In an action later described by Ninth

Circuit Court Judge John Noonan as "cou-

rageous" and a refusal to "commit treason

to the Constitution," Judge Patel issued

from the bench a 10-day Temporary

ing Robert

are less well-

traightforward: "If persons are put to deat

in a manner that is determined to be cruel,

they suffer an injury that can never be

undone, and the Constitution suffers an

injury that can never be repaired." The

stay was reinstated by an order of 10

judges of the Ninth Circuit on April 20 and

finally over-

turned by the

os : : U.S. Supreme

Restraining Order, including a stay of Court by a 7-

Harris's execution, and set a hearing on 2 vote just

the merits of evidence for April 28. Judge hour bene

Patel's order was overturned the follow- the erecquca.

ing day by a 2-1 vote of a three judge The 465

panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of senting US.

Appeals.

: Supreme Court

The dissent, by Judge Noonan, was

justices were

Harry

`Blackmun and

John Paul

Stevens. Stevens

wrote in his dis-

sent, "The barbaric use of

cyanide gas in _ the

Holocaust, the development

of cyanide agents as chemi-

cal weapons, our contempo-

rary understanding of

execution by lethal gas, and

the development of less

cruel methods of execution

all demonstrate that execu-

Quentin, informing prison officials of the

stay of execution. I also immediately

called San Quentin, frantically trying to

get through. I finally reached the legal

affairs secretary at the prison. Prison offi-

cials were aware that Judge Pregerson was

issuing a stay. At 3:53 AM, Robert Harris

said, "I can't move." As minutes ticked

by, Robert Harris could not understand the

reason for the delay. At 3:58 AM, the sul-

furic acid was drained from the killing

apparatus. At 4:01 AM, Robert Harris was

taken from the gas chamber.

The truth of the matter is that Robert

Harris was not kept in the gas chamber to

determine the "legitimacy" of Judge

Pregerson's order. Instead, the truth is that

the Attorney General's Office kept Robert

Harris ready to die while it sought an

order from the U.S. Supreme Court vacat-

ing the stay of execution.

The proof of this allegation is a matter

of public record: it is contained in the

Attorney General's request to the U. S.

Supreme Court to vacate the stay.

In a one paragraph motion to the

Supreme Court, the Attorney General's

office had typed "Mr. Harris is presently

in the gas chamber." That sentence was

crossed out by hand. The Attorney

General's facsimile machine stamped the

time of the correspondence to the U.S.

Supreme Court as 4:06 AM, minutes after

Robert Harris had been removed from the

gas chamber. The implication is obvious:

at the same time the Attorney General's

office was typing its application to lift the

stay to the U.S. Supreme Court, the war-

den kept Robert Harris in the gas chamber.

Later, Governor Pete Wilson would

join in the attacks by charging that, as

Robert Harris's attorney, I was responsible

_ for inflicting this "cruel and unusual" pun-

ishment on my own client by attempting to _

save his life.

Not only has the state of California

resorted to using the same method of kill-

ing used by Nazi Germany, but now its

highest public officials have resorted to

doublespeak and false accusations against -

those who tried to defend Robert Harris

and our constitutional rights.

Minutes before his execution, Robert

Harris thanked his legal defense team in a

telephone conversation with my fellow

defense attorney Charles Sevilla who was

_in another room in the prison. Robert

Harris saw that final stay as an act of God,

that it was a second chance for life - one

that he never had before. I am horrified

that Robert Harris was forced to suffer in

the gas chamber. I have absolutely no

regrets about protecting my client's life.

anide gag.is unnecessarily cruel.

Patel issued an order authorizing he vide-

-otaping of the Harris execution as evi-

dence in the case. The videotape was

made and has been sealed by an order of

the court. The April 28 hearing date was

vacated by Judge Patel, and a new date has

not yet been set.

Although the videotape is still sealed

by the court, media outlets from all over

the country have asked for access to it.

The requests have come from network tel-

evision news, as well as local media out-

lets and the "tabloid TV" shows. Variety

called it "America's most wanted video-

tape."

Brutal form of death

Charging that "this method of execu-

tion is not even acceptable for euthanasia

on animals," attorneys Laurence and Coles

amassed an enormous amount of docu-

mentation on lethal gas.

"The prisoner will experience the ter-

Continued on page 6

aclu news

may - june 1992

"Voices that have been

Silenced"

by Marcia Gallo

Director, Howard A. Friedman First

Amendment Education Project

n March 21, 30 teachers and acti-

vists gathered at San Francisco

`State University to participate in

the first session of a unique ACLU confer-

ence for high school teachers, "Teaching

the First Amendment: Voices That Have

Been Silenced."

"Voices..." is the theme of the 1992

Teachers' Conferences organized and

developed by the Howard A. Friedman

First Amendment Education Project of the

ACLU Foundation of Northern California.

The March meeting, and the second ses-

sion scheduled for September 26, are

designed to celebrate the work being done

by teachers, students, and activists to

increase the information available to high

school students about the people whose

stories are often overlooked: people of

color, women, lesbians and gay men, peo-

ple with disabilities, and others who have

struggled for their rights throughout our

- country's history.

"We have always been an interactive

polyglot," said ACLU National Legal

Director john powell in a powerful and

provocative keynote address defining mul-

ticulturalism and celebrating diversity as a.

fundamental feature of U. S. society. He

_emphasized that "American culture" is a

living, changing thing, and noted that our

challenge is to become "culturally fluent."

Warning that there will always be prej-

udice, powell criticized current approaches

to cultural diversity that are simplistic or

fail to emphasize the importance of learn-

ing about many communities. "The dan-

ger is that the operative way to be

multicultural (today) is to be tolerant.

`Critical engagement is the response we

should give ... we can offer a counter-

vision," he said.

One such vision was offered by

Yvonne Swan of the International Indian

Treaty Council. Swan greeted the group in

the language of her ancestors, and

described the history of resistance by

Native people in the Americas to the

appropriation of their lands and lives. She

detailed the International Indian Treaty

Council's plans to celebrate the survival

of indigenous peoples despite 500 years

of "discovery." From October 1 - 12,

there will be an international tribunal, a

conference, special cultural events,

parades and walks. On October 12 a cere-

mony on Alcatraz Island will feature

Nelson Mandela as an honored guest. The

Council will also mark 18 years of advo-

cacy and agitation on behalf of Native

people around the world in June.

The final speaker of the opening

panel, San Francisco high school teacher

Barbara Blinick challenged the group to

include sexual orientation in the definition

of multiculturalism, and talked about the

silencing of lesbian and gay voices in the

classroom. Blinick gave specific exam-

ples of men and women who are studied

as important literary or historical figures

but unacknowledged as lesbians or gay

men, even when their sexual orientation is

directly relevant to their work. Blinick

discussed the work of San Francisco

Unified School District's Support

Services for Gay/Lesbian Youth, and then

led the group in a discussion of how to

confront homophobia in the classroom.

Her new curriculum, "Lesbian and Gay

Organizing in the 1960s and 1970s," is

included in the 230-page resource binder

distributed to all conference participants.

Interactive workshops led by teachers,

for teachers were conducted by David

Christiano, an English teacher at Oakland

Technical High School, and Rick Herbert,

a social studies and history teacher at

New College Park High School in

Pleasant Hill. Their innovative sessions

included the use of films (D. W. Griffiths'

- "Birth of A Nation" and Spike Lee's "Do

The Right Thing') to involve students in

discussions of censorship and strategies

for achieving social change.

Session II of "Teaching the First

Amendment: Voices That Have Been

Silenced" is scheduled for Saturday,

September 26, from 10:00 AM to 3:00

PM at San Francisco State University's

Guest Center. A fee of $10.00 includes

all materials and lunch.

For more information or to register,

please contact Marcia Gallo, 415/621-2493.

Gas Chamber ...

Continued from page 5

ror of air hunger, a sense of strangulation,

and desperate gasping for breath for a

period extending up to several minutes,"

writes Dr. Howard Kornfeld in support of

the claim. A San Francisco physician certi-

fied to treat victims of cyanide poisoning,

Dr. Kornfeld compared death in the gas

chamber to "a simultaneous stroke and

heart attack."

"Tt creates a painful and terrorized state

which is purposeless and needless," stated

Dr. Allen. "It produces prolonged seizures,

incontinence of stool and urine, salivation, (c)

vomiting, retching and writhing, flailing,

twitching of extremities, grimacing, groan-

ing and moaning."

"Tt is medically and scientifically irre-

sponsible to reach a conclusion that prison-

ers become unconscious within seconds of

inhaling poisonous gas," said Dr. Robert

Kirschner, the deputy chief medical exam-

iner of Cook County, Illinois.

Those who have witnessed gas cham-

ber executions give chilling accounts of

the prolonged and torturous impact on the

condemned. The most recent example of

lethal gassing prior to California's execu-

tion, the April 6 execution of Donald

Harding in Arizona, was typically brutal.

"His face was red and contorted as if he

were attempting to fight through tremen-

dous pain," one witness described.

Another observed, "Don's body started

convulsing violently and his arms strained

against the straps. His face and body

turned a deep red and the veins in his tem-

ple and neck began to bulge until I thought

they might explode."

In 1983, Mississippi put Jimmy Lee

Gray to death in that state's gas chamber.

A witness remembers the "chilling sound

of his head desperately smashing against

the pole (behind him). ... He slumped and

lay still for a few moments, then tensed up

and resumed his struggling, again smash-

ing his head against the pole." The cruelty

of Gray's execution led Mississippi to

abandon lethal gas for those condemned

after July 1, 1984.

Three states

Of the 38 jurisdictions authorizing the

death penalty in the United States, only

three - Arizona, California and Maryland

- still mandate execution only by gas.

Arizona, which prior to Harding's execu-

tion had not used the gas chamber since

1976; Maryland has not executed anyone

since 1961.

"This virtual unanimous rejection of

lethal gas as an acceptable method of exe-

cution demonstrates that its proposed use

by California is a violation of the evolving

standards of decency," said Laurence.

"We do not put a stray dog or a labora-

tory rat to death by suffocation," said Dr.

Kent Olson, director of the poison control

center at UC San Francisco.

Holocaust survivors

Declarations from Nazi death camp

survivors stated that they believed execu-

Continued on page 8

U.

ACLU Honors Dellums

S. Representative Ronald V.

Dellums was honored by the

national ACLU Legislative

Office on March 17 with the 1992

Congressional Civil Liberties Award.

Dellums, who represents California's 8th

Congressional District (East Bay), was

awarded for his consistent fight to prevent

claims of national security from eroding

our civil liberties and constitutional

democracy.

Kate Martin, Director of the ACLU

National Security Project, said, "In leading

these fights, Dellums raised his voice with

great eloquence and always reminds me of

the real importance of this issue - the

human meaning of the choice between war

and peace and who gets to make that

choice. Despite the end of the Cold War,

these battles are not over."

Representative Dellums was a member

of the Pike Committee that investigated

abuses of the intelligence agencies in

the1970's and was the author of the

Omnibus Intelligence Control Act of

1974. He authored several comprehensive

alternatives to annual defense authoriza-

tion bills and numerous amendments to

curb or eliminate U.S. covert paramilitary

action. His court challenges include

Dellums v. Smith, a suit to challenge cov-

ert funding of the Nicaraguan contras as a

violation of the Neutrality Act and

Dellums v. Bush, demanding that the con-

_ Stitutional clause which vests Congress

with the power to declare war be observed

by President Bush in his plans to wage

war against Iraq.

On receiving the award, Dellums said,

"TJ am determined to join the ACLU and

other defenders of our civil rights and lib-

erties in the continuing struggle against

militarism and its false claims against our

fundamental constitutional rights."

Governor's Welfare Cuts...

Continued from page 3

travel, and is clearly unconstitutional.

Similar requirements in Pennsylvania,

Connecticut and the District of Columbia

were thrown out by the U.S. Supreme

Court in 1969," Pefia said.

Wilson's welfare initiative

Wilson's welfare package was killed

by the Assembly Human _- Services

Committee and the Senate Health and

Welfare Committee in early April. He now

plans to take it to the voters this fall in the

guise of a "Taxpayers Protection Act

Initiative," which contains most of the

same provisions.

In the meantime, the state Legislature

is considering two Democratic alternatives

on welfare grants. One, SB 1834, proposed

by . Senator Mike Thompson (D-St.

Helena), has already been passed by the

Health and Human Services Committee. It

contains many of the aid cuts and restric-

tions proposed by Wilson, including

AFDC grant cuts of up to 4.5%, the cap on

new children, and lower grants for new

state residents. It also mandates that fami-

lies receiving AFDC for two years enter

into a workfare program or face a 75% cut

in aid. This would go into effect when and

if the controversial GAIN program is fully

_ funded.

Several Democratic committee mem-

bers urged Senator Thompson to remove

the family cap and residency provisions,

and he has agreed to consider that request.

SB 1834 will be heard in the Senate Fiscal

and Budget Review Committee by the end

of May.

Bates alternative

In the Assembly, Tom Bates (D-

Oakland) introduced AB 2646, which

focuses on increasing access to services

and support that can help AFDC recipients

break the cycle of dependency. It increases

job training and educational opportunities

for aid recipients, rewards employers who -

hire parents on welfare, and helps the

working poor remain taxpayers instead of

being forced to rely on public assistance.

AB 2646 does not contain any provisions

for cuts in AFDC grants, and was passed

by the Assembly and is now being

reviewed by Senate committees.

"Assemblymember Bates's proposal

answers the concerns of welfare advocates

throughout the state. It's a sound plan to

make progress in our fight against pov-

erty," said Pefia."On the other hand, SB -

1834 imposes serious limitations on the

constitutional rights of low-income people,

and will only increase the numbers of peo-

ple who are denied access to food, health

care and the opportunity to find employ-

ment. It must be defeated."

The ACLU has joined forces with

Campaign For a Fair Share, a broad-based

coalition working to stop Wilson's welfare

cuts agenda. More than 30 organizations, .

ranging from women's rights groups and

homeless advocates to religious and stu-

dent groups have signed on to this alliance.

The action plan to defeat the Governor's

welfare cuts initiative includes forums, ral-

lies, vigils, and demonstrations around the

state. ACLU-NC members are encouraged

to get involved with the coalition in your

area.

For more information call or write

Campaign for a Fair Share, 926 J.

Street, suite 422, Sacramento, CA

95814, 916/447-0390. In the Bay Area,

call or write SOS, 225 Valencia Street,

San Francisco, CA 94103, 415/252-0705.

aclu news

may - june 1992 7

Donors Celebrate Fundraising Success

n March 16 the ACLU-NC

Foundation celebrated the end of

its four annual fundraising cam-

paigns with a gala dinner for benefactors at -

Monsoon Restaurant. 140 of the ACLU

Founders Circle members (donors of

$1,000 and above) filled the restaurant

with energetic discourse and friendly dis-

cussion, while they enjoyed an elegant

meal prepared by chef Bruce Cost. The

evening also included a provocative pres-

entation from ACLU-NC Police Practices

Project Director John Crew on the work of

the ACLU to implement federal, state and

local changes to stem police abuse.

"Our donors and volunteers are feeling

Development Committee Chair Fran

Strauss introduces the program.

Union Maid Photos

a well deserved pleasure in their accom-

plishments," said Development Chair Fran

Strauss. "They were able to raise more in

donations this fiscal year than in the last,

even though many of us had worried that

the economic recession would take its toll.

Instead, once again the ACLU found that

our loyal supporters are really there for

us.

"Our donors make the ACLU a priority

because they understand the seriousness of

the threats to civil liberties today," she

added.

Each of the campaigns was successful,

with final totals for each higher than last

year. The Major Gifts Campaign raised a

total of $594,000, which included a

$35,000 challenge gift from a generous

anonymous donor. The Bill of Rights

Campaign raised $116,000; the Lawyers

Council Campaign $47,000; and the

Physicians Committee for Reproductive

Rights $35,000. Combined with founda-

tion grants, income from membership dues

and funds shared from the national ACLU

direct mail appeals, a total of $1,355,000

was raised to support the combined

ACLU/ACLU_ Foundation budget of

$1,939,000. (Additional funds were

received from court-awarded attorneys

fees, charitable bequests and interest.)

"Without this generous support, the

ACLU could not maintain its efforts here

in Northern California to protect the guar-

antees contained in the Bill of Rights,"

said Development Director Cheri Bryant.

"T want to express my gratitude and my

admiration for everyone who participated

in our fundraising efforts this year,"

Strauss stressed. "It literally takes the com-

bined work of our staff and hundreds of

volunteers, all dedicated to supporting the

ACLU, to make this success possible.

Thank you!"

ACLU-NC Board Chair Milton Estes (center) with Sari Staver and Ron Wilmot.

Union Maid Photos

Development Committee (I.-r.) Fran Strauss, Chair; Zona Sage, John Rutherford,

Milton Estes, Julius Young, Nancy Pemberton, Margaret Russell, Davis Riemer,

Marlene De Lancie. (Not pictured: H. Lee Halterman, Dick Grosboll)

Dick Grosboll

ACLU-NC Board member David Balabanian with David Kalish and Amy Kalish

(r.-1).

Union Maid Photos

Development Committee member Nancy Pemberton with Tom Layton, Director of

the Gerbode Foundation and Al Baum (I-r.)

Union Maid Photos

Attorney Makes Unique

Grant to ACLU

rominent East Bay attorney Brad

Seligman has crafted an innovative

means of providing - substantial

financial support for the ACLU-NC

Foundation. Seligman, currently counsel to

the Oakland law firm of Saperstein,

Mayeda, Larkin and Goldstein, structured

the settlement of a large class action law

suit to provide for payments to the ACLU-

NC, the Employment Law Center, and the

Legal Aid Society of Alameda County of

those funds remaining in the settlement

fund after all qualified claimants have been

paid. Payments to the three organizations

have so far totaled nearly $300,000.

The settlement stems from a suit, Mest

v. The Federated Group, filed several

years ago on behalf of thousands of job

applicants to and employees of a corpora-

tion that owns and operates some 40 retail

stores throughout California. The suit chal-

lenged Federated's use of polygraph exams

in their hiring and promotion decisions.

The plaintiffs charged that the exams vio-

lated Labor Code provisions prohibiting

employers from requiring job applicants to

take such tests. Federated argued in

defense that its nearly 12,000 polygraph

tests over a four-year period were not

improper because no _ applicant or

employee was compelled to take them.

Seligman, then partner in the firm of

Saperstein, Seligman, and Mayeda, was

lead counsel for the plaintiffs. He was

assisted by Mari Mayeda and Jocelyn

Larkin.

As.a result of extensive legal work,

Federated agreed to settle the case for

$12.1 million - the largest settlement of

its kind in the nation. The settlement

agreement called for the funds to be dis-

tributed to individuals who could show

that they had been hurt in some way by

Federated's use of polygraph exams.

Those funds remaining after compensation

of all qualified individuals would be paid

out equally to the ACLU-NC, and the two

other organizations. This unique settle-

ment agreement has so far netted each

organization $95,000 from the settlement

fund. :

"All three organizations have done a

lot of work on privacy rights issues, " said

Seligman. "I can't think of any organiza-

tions in northern California that have done

more. "

Seligman, a long-time supporter of

ACLU-NC, is a_ nationally-renowned .

expert in class action employment litiga-

tion. He is lead counsel in Soroka v.

Target Stores, a major employee privacy

case now pending before the California

Supreme Court. At issue before the high

court is the Court of Appeals decision bar-

ring Target Stores from giving psychologi-

cal tests with religious and sexual

questions to job applicants and confirming

that certain provisions of the Labor Code0x2122

' prohibit discrimination by private employ-

ers on the basis of sexual orientation. The

ACLU-NC is amicus in the case. Seligman

is also lead counsel in the highly-visible

class action suit against Lucky Stores

which alleges a pattern and practice of

gender discrimination by Lucky in

employment decisions.

aclu news

may - june 1992

ro

and march with us!

Otto at 415/621-2493.

Tom Reilly at 510/528-7832.

N

Join the ACLU-NC Contingent

in the

Lesbian/Gay Freedom Day Parade

Sunday, June 28

Assemble at 10:00 AM at Embarcadero 2, first floor in front of Cinnabon's.

The march will go from Justin Herman Plaza at the foot of Market Street

(near the Ferry Building) to Civic Center Plaza. Look for the ACLU banner

All ACLU members are invited to march. We also need volunteers to

serve as contingent monitors. Call Tom Reilly at 510/528-7832 or Nancy

The ACLU-NC Lesbian and Gay Rights Chapter will staff a booth in

Civic Center Plaza to distribute ACLU literature, sell T-shirts and promote

membership in the ACLU. All ACLU members are encouraged to drop by

the booth and say hello. Anyone interested in staffing the booth should call

~

SJ

Lesbian/Gay Rights Chapter

Gay Rights Chapter, please check to

see that the 3-letter code "CNG" is

printed above your name on the ACLU

News mailing label.

If not, please notify the ACLU-NC

Membership Department.

If you are an ACLU member in north-

erm California and would like to join the

I f you are a member of the Lesbian/

Lesbian/Gay Rights Chapter, call or write

ACLU-NC Membership Department

1663 Mission Street, Suite 460

San Francisco, CA 94103

telephone: 415/621-2493.

Please mention your membership num-

ber located on the ACLU News mailing

label.

Harris Video ...

Continued from page 2

underscores the importance of clemency in

light of the disturbing fact that neither the

sentencing jury nor the state Supreme

Court was aware of this compelling evi-

dence when they condemned Harris to

death.

Here are some

I believe it would be

father] when his father was twice incarcer-

ated for having committed acts of sexual

perversion upon his two eldest daughters.

Testimony from family members and other

eyewitnesses bears out these notations

from official records, consistently attesting

that Robert Harris was singled out by his

father for especially brutal treatment.

Family members recount how all 9 sib-

lings were often called into the living

room and told by

their father, as he

loaded a gun, that

of the highlights: they had 30 seconds

Dr. Kenneth L. both a tragedy and to hide, then he

Jones: - [After 0x00B0 0x00B0 0x00B0 would kill any child

describing in grea JQllure of the Justice te couatina

detail the physical

and medical evi-

dence that con-

_ vinced him _ that

Robert Harris suf-

fered from FAS] I

think that the fact

that Robert has FAS

is extremely rele-

vant to the

Governor's decision

with respect to

clemency because I

think that individu-

als with FAS really

do not understand

the consequences of

their actions. I think

they really do not

understand the consequences of right and

wrong. Individuals with FAS have a very

serious defect in development of their

brain. This is something which is beyond

their control. It's not something they have

any say over. It's due to the fact that unfor-

tunately their mother drank from a very

early stage in their development. That

alcohol affected very seriously the devel-

opment of their brain.

Dr. Ann Streissguth: Because [people

with FAS] are brain-damaged and because

they don't really see the world in the same

way that we do, they often interpret situa-

tions differently. There may be a circum-

stance where they feel as though they are

trapped or cornered and they have a ten-

dency to lash out without thinking about

_ what would happen, rather than a planned,

vengeful kind of violence.

Mike Farrell: Robert Harris was res-

cued from these [brutal beatings from his

system if Mr. Harris __0x00B0-

were executed when

neither the jury and

judge nor any other

adjudicative

authority, sought to

objectively evaluate

the new evidence.

-Justice Frank Newman

Spencer

Eth: You have to

imagine what it's

like to be a child

who's been abused

by a parent. That is

like being a terrorist

hostage, at the

mercy of somebody

upon whom you are

completely depen-

dent for your very

existence. It is prob-

ably the most toxic

condition imagin-

able for a young

person to live

through. And many

young children do

not survive. The consequences of child

abuse can be irreversible.

Justice Frank Newman: Eleven years

ago, as a California Supreme Court

Justice, I signed the majority opinion

affirming the death sentence of Robert

Alton Harris. I learn now that the jury and

the judge who sentenced him, and also our

court, when affirming the sentence, had no

access to substantial evidence that he suf-

fers from FAS, from organic brain damage

caused by head injuries, and from post-

traumatic stress disorder caused by brutal

abuse from his parents and others.

This newly found evidence appears to

have been rejected on recent appeal mostly

on procedural grounds. I believe it would

be both a tragedy and failure of the justice

system if Mr. Harris were executed when

neither the jury and judge nor any other

adjudicative authority, sought to objec-

tively evaluate the new evidence.

Chapter Meetings

(Chapter meetings are open to all inter-

ested members. Contact the chapter acti-

vist listed for your area.)

B-A-R-K (Berkeley-Albany-Richmond-

Kensington) Chapter Meeting: (Usually

fourth Thursday) Volunteers needed for

the chapter hotline - call Florence

Piliavin at 510/848-5195 for further

- details. For more information, time and

address of meetings, contact Julie Houk,

510/848-4752.

(Oakland/Alameda

Earl Warren

County) Chapter Meeting: (Usually

second Wednesday) Meet on

Wednesday, June 10. Chapter Hotline,

510/534-ACLU is now available 24

hours; volunteers are needed to staff the

hotline. For time and address of meet-

ings, please call Irv Kermish, 510/836-

4036 or Abe Feinberg, 510/451-1122.

Fresno Chapter Meeting: (Usually third

Monday) Meet on June 15 at at 6:30 PM

at San Joaquin Law School. New mem-

bers always welcome! For more informa-

tion, call Nadya Coleman at 209/229-

7178 (days) or A.J. Kruth at 209/432-

1483 (evenings).

Lesbian and Gay Rights Chapter

Meeting: (Usually first Thursday) Meet

on Thursday, June 4 at the ACLU Office,

1663 Mission, #460, San Francisco at

7:00 PM. The Lesbian and Gay Rights

Chapter will be participants in the

Lesbian and Gay Freedom Parade on

June 28 - please join us. For more infor-

mation, contact Tom Reilly, 510/528-

7832.

Marin County Chapter Meeting: (Third

Monday) Meet Monday, June 15 at 7:30

PM, Westamerica Bank, East Blithedale

and Sunnyside Avenues, Mill Valley. The

Marin County Chapter will have its

Annual Meeting on Sunday, June 7 at the

Unitarian Church, 240 Channing Way,

San Rafael. For more information, con-

tact Harvey Dinerstein, 415/381-6129.

Mid-Peninsula (Palo Alto area)

Chapter Meeting: (Usually last

Thursday) Meet Thursday, May 28 and

June 25 at 7:30 PM at the California

Federal Bank, El Camino Real, Palo Alto.

There will be a featured speaker at each

meeting. New members welcome! For

more information, contact Harry

Anisgard, 415/856-9186 or call the

Chapter Hotline at 415/328-0732.

Monterey County Chapter Meeting:

(Usually first Tuesday) Meet on

Tuesday, June 2 at 7:30 PM at the

Monterey Library, Community Room,

Pacific and Madison Streets, Monterey.

For more information, contact Richard

Criley, 408/624-7562.

Mt. Diablo (Contra Costa County)

Chapter Meeting: (Usually fourth

Thursday) For more information, call the

hotline at 510/215-8465.

North Peninsula (San Mateo area)

Chapter Meeting: (Usually third

Monday) Meet on Monday, June 15 7:30

PM at the Unitarian Church, 300 E. Santa

Inez Street, San Mateo. Note: The North

Pen Chapter has a new Hotline num-

ber: 579-1789. For more information,

contact Audrey Guerin at 415/574-4053.

North Valley (Shasta, Siskiyou,

Tehema, and _ Trinity Counties)

Chapter Meeting: (Usually third

Wednesday) Meet on Wednesday, June

17 at 6:30 PM at Harry Restaurant,

Redding. For more information contact

interim Chairperson Tillie Smith at 916/

549-3998.

Field Program

Monthly Meetings

_ information, call the Chapter Information

_ for additional information.

Redwood (Humboldt County) Chapter

Meeting: (Usually third Monday) The

Redwood Chapter held its first Annual

Meeting on May 1 at the Unitarian

Fellowship Church, Bayside. For more

information contact Christina Huskey at

707/444-6595.

Sacramento Valley Chapter Meeting:

(Usually second Wednesday) Location of

June 15 meeting to be advised. For more

information, contact Ruth Ordas, 916/

488-9956

San Francisco Chapter Meeting: (Usu-

ally third Tuesday) Meet on Tuesday, June

16 at 7:00 PM. at ACLU office, 1663

Mission, 460, San Francisco. For more

Line at 415/979-6699.

Santa Clara Valley Chapter Meeting:

(Usually first Tuesday) Meet on Tuesday,

June 2 at 7:00 PM at the Community

Bank Building, 3rd Floor Conference

Room, corner of Market/St. John Streets,

San Jose. Annual Meeting on Tuesday,

May 26 at 7:00 PM at the Los Gatos

Unitarian Fellowship, 15980 Blossom Hill

Road, Los Gatos. A special program is

being planned. Contact John Cox 408/

226-7421, for further information.

Santa Cruz. County Chapter Meeting:

(Usually third Tuesday) Meet on Tuesday,

June 16. Chapter will continue to work on

combating Hate Crimes. Contact Simba

Kenyatta, 408/476-4873 for further infor-

mation.

Sonoma County Chapter Meeting:

(Usually third Wednesday) Meet

Wednesday, June 17 at 7:30 PM at the

Peace and Justice Center, 540 Pacific

Avenue, Santa Rosa. The Sonoma

County Chapter will be have Pro-Choice

tables at two local events: the Health and

Harmony Fair at the Sonoma County

Fairgrounds on June 13 and 14 from

10:00 AM to 7:00 PM. and Celebrate

Sonoma at the Luther Burbank Center on

June 20 and 21 from 11:00 AM to 6:00-

PM. There will be a Banned Film

Festival in July. Call Steve Thornton at

707/544-8115 for further information.

Yolo County Chapter Meeting: (Third

Thursday of the month) Meet on

Thursday, June 18. For more information,

contact Alan Brownstein at 916/752-2586.

Field Action Meetings

(All meetings except those noted will be

held at the ACLU-NC Office, 1663

Mission Street, #460, San Francisco.)

Student Outreach Committee: (Usually .

third Saturday) Meet on Saturday, June 20

from 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM. Contact

Marcia Gallo, at ACLU-NC 415/621-2493,

Civil Rights Committee: (Fourth Saturday)

Meet on Saturday, June 27 from 10:00 AM

to 11:30 AM. RSVP to Nancy Otto at the

ACLU-NC 415/621-2493.

First Amendment Committee: (Fourth

Saturday) Meet on Saturday, June 27 from

12:00 PM to 1:30 PM. RSVP to Nancy Otto

at the ACLU-NC 415/621-2493.

Pro-Choice Action Campaign: Speakers

Training to prepare for response to U.S.

Supreme Court decision in Planned

Parenthood v. Casey, on July 25, at the

Firehouse, Fort Mason Center, San

Francisco. Contact Nancy Otto at. the

ACLU-NC 415/621-2493. .

Gas Chamber...

Continued from page 6

tion by cyanide gas - which the Nazis

called Zyklon B - was inhumane and .

raised painful memories of the extermina-

tion of the Jews during World War II.

Gloria Lyons, a Holocaust survivor who

submitted a declaration in support of the

lawsuit, wrote, "As a person who saw the

daily horror of mass extermination by gas,

I know that execution by gas is torture and

it can never be anything less."

Another Dachau survivor recalled the Nazi

death camps, "Scratch marks from peo-

ple's fingernails were visible on the walls

and on the pile bodies," he wrote in his

declaration. "I know that the gas chambers

caused a merciless and painful death."

"Use of lethal gas constitutes the

unnecessary infliction of pain and torture,"

Laurence asserted. "The state of California

must be prevented from any further utiliza-

tion of this barbarism."