vol. 58, no. 2
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Volume LVIII
March - April 1994
No. 2
NCAA Drug Testing Ok'd by High Court
Ruling Reaffirms Privacy Right
by Jean Field
n January 28 the California
QO Supreme Court reaffirmed the
California constitutional right to
privacy, but ruled that the National
Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
could force student athletes to submit to
invasive, often humiliating drug tests.
The ruling in Hill and McKeever v.
NCAA came seven years after the ACLU-
NC filed the case on behalf of Stanford ath-
letes who opposed the random, involuntary
testing. Civil liberties and pro-choice
groups had closely monitored the case
because of its implications for the state
right to privacy, which protects the right of
reproductive choice and issues of lifestyle
and personal autonomy (see sidebar).
"The opinion is obviously a defeat for
student athletes," said ACLU-NC cooperat-
ing attorney Robert Van Nest of Keker,
Brockett and Van Nest, who represented the
Stanford athletes along with Susan
Harriman of the same firm, and ACLU-NC
staff attorneys Ed Chen and Margaret
Crosby. "It's too soon to predict how it will
affect the use of drug testing in general, or
privacy rights in other settings."
Chief Justice Malcolm Lucas wrote
the complex 93-page opinion, which was
followed by a 25-page concurring and
dissenting opinion by Justice Joyce
Kennard and a 74-page dissent by Justice
Stanley Mosk. Although the majority
opinion specifically applies the state
Constitution's privacy clause to private
institutions, it does not require them to
Former Stanford diving team captain Simone LeVant sued the NCAA to stop the
random, inviuntary drug testing of student athletes. Rick Rocamora
meet the strict standards that have been
imposed on governmental invasions of pri-
vacy. Instead of requiring businesses or
other organizations to show a "compelling
interest" for an invasion of privacy, the
court may require only that they show the
invasion is justified by "legitimate inter-
ests" and needs.
Lower standard
In applying that lower standard to the
NCAA drug-testing program, the court
held that the tests did not violate the ath-
letes' "reasonable expectation of priva-
cy,' because sports competition involves
A Review of Our
Legal, Legislative, Educational
Organizing Efforts.
regulation of physical fitness and bodily
condition.
"Tm very disappointed in the deci-
sion," said Simone LeVant, the former
captain of the Stanford Women's Diving
Team who called upon the ACLU-NC in
1987 when she felt her constitutional rights
had been violated by the drug-testing pro-
gram. "The NCAA's monitoring of ath-
lete's urination is degrading, humiliating
and presumes everyone is guilty of using
drugs."
The drug-testing program had not been
used at Stanford since 1988, when the
Santa Clara County Superior Court issued
a permanent injunction blocking its use.
The lower court's decision was upheld in
1990 by the Court of Appeal, which unani-
mously found that the tests were an uncon-
stitutional invasion of privacy. Since the
case went to court, the NCAA has stopped
asking women directly about use of birth-
control pills and has removed some over-
the-counter asthma and cold remedies
from their list of banned substances.
"Tt makes me feel better that there have
been some changes in the program since
the suit,' said Jennifer Hill, a medical stu-
dent at UCLA. Former co-captain of the
Stanford women's soccer team, Hill
became a plaintiff along with football line-
backer Barry McKeever after LeVant
graduated. "But I think there should be
some sort of probable cause before some-
one would be tested for drugs."
Drug education
"Instead of putting so much money
into drug testing, the NCAA should have
started a drug education program," added
LeVant, who is now a paralegal in San
Francisco.
It is unclear how this ruling will affect
drug testing in other settings, or what kinds
of "legitimate interests" will justify inva-
sions of privacy. "This is not a broad-
based approval of drug testing," said Chen.
"The court explicitly differentiated the sit-
uation of athletes from that of employees,
and each case will be evaluated on an indi-
vidual basis. But it could open the door to
invasive procedures in the workplace."
Justice Mosk issued a strong dissent in
the opinion, which accused the court of
setting forth a legal standard that weakens
California's protection for privacy. Hl
2 aclu news
march - april 1994
by Francisco Lobaco
ACLU Legislative Advocate
dominate over policy at the state
Capitol. The high-profile gubernatorial
and state office election campaign will
take center stage, but all 80 Assembly
seats and 20 Senate seats will also be up
for re-election. In addition, the impact of
term limits is taking effect as many long-
time members are ee or we for
different office.
I n 1994, politics will undoubtedly pre-
The ACLU intends to maintain its
leadership role in Sacramento in civil
. We
will seek passage of legislation that both
reforms the Unruh Civil Rights Act and
permits local jurisdictions to enact stronger
civil rights laws than`state law. We will
also actively lobby in opposition to any
efforts to restrict the right to choose an
abortion.
"Tough on crime"
But this election year, perhaps more
than in recent memory, crime-related
issues will dominate the legislative ses-
Legislative Preview
What's on the Agenda in the State Capitol?
The Assembly Pub
expected to t
enforcement po
_ dssue subject to political mani
sion. While crime is always an
recent public and po
Gralidine ir minor drug crimes) where the
Celebrating
Roe v. Wade
Dr. Barbara Staggers (left), Director of the Department of Adolescent Medicine at
Oakland Children's Hospital, spoke about on access to reproductive health care with
a special emphasis on teenagers and women of color.
ver 100 reproductive rights activists
() from throughout California
descended on Sacramento on
January 19 for the Capitol Summit on
Women's Access to Reproductive Health
Care sponsored by the California Coalition
for Reproductive Freedom.
"The wide range of issues covered by
our expert speakers shows how far our
movement has come since the U.S.
Supreme Court first legalized abortion in
1973," said ACLU Legislative Director
Margaret Pefia, Chair of the sponsoring
Coalition. "They also warned of the new
challenges - such as clinic violence and
inclusion of abortion in health care cover-
age under the Clinton plan - that we con-
tinue to face."
Speakers, in addition to Dr. Barbara
Staggers and Ignatius Bau (pictured here)
included Catherine Dodd of the Clinton
Health Care Task Force on National Health
Care Reform; Susan Shinagawa Smith of
the UC San Diego Cancer Center on Breast
Cancer Prevention; and Priscilla J. Smith
from the Center for Reproductive Law and
Policy, on Clinic Violence. Hf
Ignatius Bau, a staff attorney with the
Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights of
San Francisco addressed the need for
health care coverage for undocumented
women and children.
Photos by: Brenda Romney
ety Committee i 1s
is year's crime
; two prior serious or violent
punishment,
The Assembly Public Safety
Committee, which in the past has taken a
strong civil liberties approach to criminal
justice issues and has prevented passage of
many draconian proposals, is expected to
take a more pro-law enforcement position
on this year's bills. We can expect to see
many more anti-civil libertarian bills being
passed out of committee and eventually
reaching the Governor's desk for signature.
Immigration debate
The debate on immigration-related
issues will continue throughout the year.
Many of the anti-immigrant bills from
1993 most likely will be reintroduced,
including those denying undocumented
students the right to an education and pro-
hibiting undocumented persons access to
emergency health care.
In January, Governor Pete Wilson pro-
posed to balance the 1994-95 Budget by
assuming the federal government will
reimburse California $2.3 billion for
alleged education, emergency health and
incarceration costs for the undocumented
population. However, none of this money
is currently authorized by federal law and
it is highly unlikely that it will be forth-
coming. As a result, the state will have to
make up an additional $2.3 billion dollar
deficit through cuts to existing programs
- cuts that will be blamed on immigrants.
Asset forfeiture will again be on the
agenda for.the Legislative Office in 1994.
Despite lobbying by law enforcement last
session, the Legislature refused to renew
the drug asset forfeiture law. Since
January, when the temporary law expired,
a few trial courts have ruled that the old
law - which required conviction before
forfeiture - is no longer in effect either.
Law enforcement lobbyists obviously want
to rectify this situation. The ACLU strong-
ly opposes forfeiture laws, and will cer-
tainly be in opposition.
The 1993 Annual Report enclosed in
this issue of the ACLU News reviews the
Legislative Office's activities during the
past year. For a list of ACLU positions and
actions on specific bills during 1993,
please write to: ACLU News, Suite 460,
1663 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA
94103. @
ATTENTION HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS:
THE HOWARD A. FRIEDMAN FIRST
AMENDMENT EDUCATION PROJECT
INVITES YOU. TO A TEACHERS
CONFERENCE ON
CURRENT CONTROVERSIES
SURROUNDING RELIGION AND
THE SCHOOLS
"FRIDAY, APRIL 22ND
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REGISTRATION, PLEASE CONTACT
MARCIA GALLO
DIRECTOR, HOWARD A. FRIEDMAN
FIRST AMENDMENT PROJECT
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SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103
OR CALL 415/621-2493
aclu news
6 issues a year: January-February, March-April, May-June, July-August,
September -October, and November-December.
Published by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California
Milton Estes, Chairperson
Dorothy Ehrlich, Executive Director
Elaine Elinson, Editor
Lisa Maldonado, Field Page
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aclu news 3
march - april 1994
CDC Must Lift Ban on HIV-Inmates
in Food Jobs
n February 8, ACLU-NC staff
O attorney Matthew Coles argued
before a three-judge panel in the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that HIV-
positive inmates cannot be excluded from
food service jobs at the California Medical
Facility (CMF) in Vacaville.
"There is no realistic risk [of HIV
transmission] of prisoners working in the
food service," Coles told the court.
The ACLU-NC challenged the state's
exclusion of these inmates as a violation of
the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973
(Section 504). The lawsuit, Gates v.
Deukmejian, filed by the ACLU-NC, the
Prison Law Office and attorneys from
McCutchen, Doyle, Brown and Enersen and
Rosen, Bien and Asaro in 1988, charged
that the segregation of HIV-infected
inmates and their exclusion from prison
programs, jobs and education violated the
Rehabilitation Act.
The case was settled in 1990 with a
consent decree. Under the consent decree,
the Department of Corrections implement-
ed a pilot program integrating HIV-posi-
tive inmates into the prison. A court-
appointed mediator and federal magistrate
ruled that the continued exclusion of HIV-
positive inmates from food service jobs
violated the terms of that consent decree.
On May 5, 1993, U.S. District Court
Judge Lawrence K. Karlton affirmed that
ruling. An appeal by the Department of
Corrections necessitated the February
hearing.
At the Court of Appeals hearing, Coles
also argued that "Having a policy that
"In four years of integration of HIV-
infected inmates there has not been a
single incident of violence as a result of
those fears. If you have a good education
program, violence will not result."
- Matthew Coles, ACLU-NC Staff Attorney
excludes HIV-positive inmates from food
service jobs undercuts the Department' s
AIDS education program. "The point of
the education program is to say that HIV is
not easily contracted. Banning inmates
undermines that message,' Coles argued.
Responding to the CDC attorney's
charge that other inmates are frightened of
inmates with HIV and will react violently,
Coles stated, "In four years of integration
of HIV-infected inmates there has not
been a single incident of violence as a
result of those fears. If you have a good
education program, violence will not
result."
Coles also told the court that the
increased incidence of HIV in the prisons
is due to the increase of HIV persons in
the general population - not as a result of
the desegregation program.
A decision is expected from the Court
of Appeals in the next few months. Hf
I uty)
Congratulations on your January-
February issue. Please send me an addi-
tional copy to share as well as another
copy of Myths and Facts Part I. Thanks!
Vic Ulmer
Saratoga
We have received the January-
February 1994 issue of ACLU News. The
article "Myths and Facts" Part II con-
tributes substantial information on the sore
question about immigrants. We deeply
appreciate the information.
Abel Castro
Grass Valley
I recently received a copy of your
ACLU News fact sheet, "Myths and Facts:
The Economic Impact of Immigration in
the United States." I am getting involved
with the Ad-hoc Coalition for Immigrants
Rights of the Central Coast, and would
like more information. Please send me a
copy of the citations used in putting
together this fact sheet. Thanks so much.
Patricia Zavella
Associate Professor
Community Studies Board
University of California, Santa Cruz
Immigration has been a central issue in
American history, and particularly impor-
tant in San Francisco, Throughout our his-
tory, immigrants have arrived in the
United States with few resources and have
eventually become part of the American
mainstream, contributing economically
and culturally to our nation. Legal immi-
gration can and has been absorbed by this
country with great results.
As you know, I am a strong advocate
of human rights. I believe that our country
must maintain its historic tradition of
being a haven for those fleeing state-spon-
sored persecution. Asylum is a necessary
component of American foreign policy as
well as an important international principle
of justice.
I am in favor of reforming the current
system of asylum as long as those persons
with genuine asylum claims are not
forcibly returned to their country to face
torture, oppression or death.
I oppose proposals to allow a single
Immigration and Naturalization Service
("INS") official the power to render sum-
mary exclusion of an asylum claim with-
Our Readers Respond
Confronting Anti-Immigrant Myths
out a right of review or appeal. An INS
official, who may be unfamiliar with the
language, culture, and country conditions
of the asylum applicant, could run the
unacceptable risk of sending back, to cer-
tain persecution, a legitimate candidate for
asylum.
I am in contact with the [Clinton]
Administration regarding my concerns
about their asylum reform proposals
I will keep your views in mind as
Congress debates reform of our nation's
immigration laws.
Nancy Pelosi
Member of Congress
Cons
Why did your piece in the Nov-Dec
ACLU News not deal with the HUGE
problem of illegal (thus criminal) aliens?
Yes, criminals who are here by virtue of
their criminal behavior (crossing U.S. bor-
ders illegally is criminal behavior) and
your piece turns a blind eye to these vast,
uncountable numbers. Surely you don't
mean to condone criminal behavior, do
you?
These criminal aliens are criminal
again when they buy fake ID with which
they then access U. S. services - fraudu-
lently. Your piece does not deal with the
fact that it was never the intent of the
framers of the Constitution, nor of the
national legislature since, to provide citi-
zenship to children of criminal aliens?
Why was there no mention of the greater
context of our local bloated over-popula-
tion problem and the already inadequate
carrying capacity of our local natural
resources? This is particularly urgent here
in California where we do not have
enough water, nor clean air, nor health
care, etc., for our legal population.
Our lifeboat cannot accommodate all
the disadvantaged of the planet, much as
we would like to do so. Our lifeboat is
now over full. Yes, we have already more
residents here than the carrying capacity of
our natural resources. We have water
rationing, toxic air warning days, and mil-
lions of legal residents with inadequate
housing and inadequate health care. So,
we certainly do not need the ACLU stray-
ing from its urgent mission - protecting
Constitutional liberties of legal residents -
to enlist in the criminal alien defense
lobby.
William R. Stewart
San Francisco
The situation, as I see it, is this: the
high level of immigration into the U.S.,
and especially California, is hurting the
standard of living of working and poor
USS. citizens and is harming the environ-
ment. We would be much better off if the
level of immigration was cut to about one-
tenth the current rate.
It is important to keep in mind that the
current level of immigration is much high-
er than in recent history. I went to college
and received a Ph.D. in biochemistry in
1988 from U.C. Davis. Many of the peo-
ple I have been competing with for jobs
are immigrants from other countries. Most
of them were educated in the U.S. An
astounding 28% of all Ph.D.s in science
are granted to immigrants. The employ-
ment situation at the Ph.D level in life sci-
ences is dismal: I personally have been
unable to find full-time employment for
almost 2 years. Is this related to the larger
number of immigrants seeking the same
jobs? Is the Pope Catholic?
When you have high levels of unem-
ployment, you do not invite large numbers
of foreigners in to compete for jobs.
When you have high housing prices, you
do not invite foreigners in to compete for
housing. When there is not enough money
to educate U.S. children, you do not invite
foreigners in to compete for education.
When there is not enough money to keep
poor U.S. citizens on AFDC, you do not
invite foreigners in to receive welfare.
This is common sense.
James Morgan
Sacramento
Please address the issue of the effect
of the growing human population on the
non-human lives of this state. Do trees,
meadow foam, delta smelt, salmon, con-
dors and the hundreds of other life forms
whose populations are rapidly diminish-
ing and will join those that have already
gone extinct in this state have a right to
life in the place and manner they were
living before humans arrived?
Do people have a right to live wherever
they want? If all 5.5 billion people on
earth today wanted to live in California
and proceeded to travel here and claimed
that they could make it here, would that be
permissible if that meant the extinction of
`every other life form here?
There are plenty of other environmental
and human life quality questions that can be
asked. The myths and facts about immigra-
tion series has so far been a stacked series.
John Ost, Jr.
Chico
4 aclu news
march - april 1994
UE ay
atsy Fulcher, a leading woman's
P rights activist and a member of
the ACLU-NC Board of
Directors, died on January 16 from
complications arising from ALS (amy-
otrophic lateral sclerosis) or Lou
Gehrig's Disease at the age of 54.
An activist in the resurgent
women's movement in the 1960's,
Fulcher was a pioneer in developing
affirmative action training programs for
corporate and government managers.
She served as the Western Regional
Director for the National Organization
for Women (NOW) and as co-chair of
the NOW National Task Force on
Minority Women and Women's
Rights. She was a founding member of
Black Women Organized for Action
and the Bay Area Women's Coalition.
As Chair of the Coalition for the
Medical Rights of Women, Fulcher
was a leader in the campaign to
strengthen a woman's right to choose
in California.
In 1975, Fulcher was appointed
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the
California Health and Welfare Agency
where she was responsible for commu-
nity and employee relations. She also
served as special advisor on women's
issues to former San Francisco Mayor
Dianne Feinstein and spoke widely on
women's rights issues. When she fin-
ished her stint with the government in
1977, Fulcher joined Aileen C.
Hernandez and Associates, an urban
Patsy FULCHER
- gy (renewed when necessary by an
consulting firm in San Francisco,
where she was a Senior Associate until
her death.
Fulcher served on the ACLU-NC
Board in the 1980's, strengthening the
organization with her expertise in and
enthusiasm for women's and minority
rights and reproductive freedom. She
was on the Conference Planning
Committee for the 1984 ACLU-NC
Annual Chapter Conference and went
to the national ACLU Biennial
Conference in Denver as an affiliate
delegate in 1985.
Fulcher's boundless energy and
commitment to social justice was
shared with a wide range of organiza-
tions. She served as Vice-Chair of the
Bay Area Black United Fund, and on
the boards of the Sacramento NAACP,
United Way of the Bay Area, and the
Sickle Cell. Anemia Regulations
Advisory Committee among other
groups.
Her colleague and friend Aileen C.
Hernandez, an ACLU-NC Earl Warren
Civil Liberties Award honoree, said of
Fulcher, "In whatever arena she
worked, she did so with enthusiasm,
humor and a seemingly boundless ener-
infusion of Snickers candy bars). She
will be sorely missed by all whose lives
she touched. We have lost her much
too soon."
A special tribute to Patsy Fulcher is
planned for later in the year.
- PRIZES
. First Prize $150.
Second Prize $75.
Third Prize $25.
Suggested length 1,000 words
Entries must be postmarked
Enter the Earl Warren Chapter
STUDENT Essay CONTEST
Open to all Alameda County
High School Students
FOR ESSAY TOPICS AND
MORE INFORMATION, ;
WRITE TO: Essay Contest -
ACLU-NC :
Earl Warren Chapter `
PO Box 1865 ...
| by April 15
Oakland, CA 94604 ~
Field Program
Monthly Meetings
Chapter Meetings
(Chapter meetings are open to all
interested members. Contact the
Chapter activist 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.
Earl Warren (Oakland/Alameda
County) Chapter Meeting: (Usually
second Wednesday) Meet on
Wednesday, April 13 at 7:30 PM in the
basement of the Temescal Branch of the
Oakland Library, 5205 Telegraph
Avenue (use the rear entrance). New
members welcome! The Earl Warren
Chapter is now accepting entries for the
Alameda County High School Essay
Contest. The theme is The First
Amendment in the Schools: Dress
Codes, Prayer and Censorship. Essays
should be 1000 words. First place win-
ner to receive $150, two second place
winners receive $75 and as many as four
third place winners receive $25.
Deadline for entries is April 15. For
more information, call Jim Murphy at
510/787-1472.
Fresno Chapter Meeting: New
members welcome! For information on
date, place and time of meetings, call
Nadya Coleman at 209/229-7178 (days)
or the Chapter Hotline at 209/225-3780.
Lesbian and Gay Rights Chapter
Meeting: (Usually firstThursday)
Meet on Thursday, April 7 at the ACLU
Office, 1663 Mission Street, #460, San
Francisco. Mailings and other activities
start at 6:30 PM. Speakers at 7:00 PM.
Business meeting starts at 7:30 PM. For
more information, contact Alissa
Friedman 510/272-9700.
Marin County Chapter Meeting:
(usually third Monday) Meet Monday,
March 21 and April 18 at 7:30 PM,
WestAmerica Bank, 1204 Strawberry
Town and Country Village, Mill Valley.
For more information, contact Richard
Rosenberg at 415/434-2100.
Mid-Peninsula (Palo Alto area)
Chapter Meeting: (Usually fourth
Thursday) Meet Thursday, March 24
and April 28 at 7:30 PM at the California
Federal Bank, El Camino Real, Palo
Alto. For more information, contact
Leah Glenn at 415/329-1327.
Monterey County Chapter
Meeting: (Usually third Tuesday)
Meet Tuesday, March 15 and April 18 at
7:30 PM at the Monterey Library,
Community Room, Pacific and Madison
Streets, Monterey. For more informa-
tion, contact Richard Criley, 408/624-
7562.
Mt. Diablo (Contra Costa County)
Chapter Meeting: (Usually third
Thursday) For more information, call
Hotline at 510/939-ACLU.
North Peninsula (San Mateo area)
Chapter Meeting: (Usually third
Monday) Meet on Monday, March 21
and April 18 at 7:30 PM. at Planned
Parenthood. The Annual Meeting will
be on Sunday, May 15. For more infor-
mation, contact Audrey Guerin at
415/574-4053.
North Valley (Shasta, Siskiyou,
Tehama and Trinity Counties)
Chapter Meeting: For more informa-
tion write to: Tillie Smith, P.O. Box
2503, Redding, CA. 96099.
Redwood (Humboldt County)
Chapter Meeting: (Usually third
Monday) Meet Monday, March 21 and
April 18 at 7:15 PM at the Plaza Grill,
Arcata. Annual Meeting will be in
May, date to be announced. For more
information contact Christina Huskey at
707/444-6595.
Sacramento Valley Chapter
Meeting: (Usually second Wednesday)
Meet on Wednesday, April 13 at 6:00
PM at Shakey's Pizza, 59th and J Streets,
Sacramento. For more information, con-
tact Ruth Ordas, 916/488-9956.
San Francisco Chapter Meeting:
(Usually third Tuesday) Meet on
Tuesday, March 15 and April 19 at 6:45
PM at the ACLU-NC Office, 1663
Mission, #460, San Francisco. For more
information, call the Chapter
Information Line at 415/979-6699. 0x00B0
Santa Clara Valley Chapter
Meeting: (Usually first Tuesday) Meet
on Tuesday, April 5 at the Community
Bank Building, 3rd Floor Conference
Room, corner of Market/St. John Streets,
San Jose. Contact Larry Jensen at
408/244-4570, for further information.
Santa Cruz County Chapter
Meeting: (Usually third Thursday)
Meet on Thursday, March 17 and April
21 at 7:00 PM at the Women's Law and
Mediation Center, 104 Walnut Avenue,
Suite 203, Santa Cruz. Contact Eleanor
Eisenberg at 408/423-8327 for further
information.
Sonoma County Chapter Meeting:
(Usually third Wednesday) Meet on
Wednesday, March 16 and April 20 at
7:30 PM at the Peace and Justice Center,
540 Pacific Avenue, Santa Rosa. Call
Steve Thornton at 707/544-8115 for fur-
ther information. ;
Yolo County Chapter Meeting:
(Usually third Thursday) Meet on
Thursday, March 17 and April 21. For
more information, call Natalie Wormeli
at 916/756-1900 or the Chapter Hotline
at 916/756-ACLU.
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:
Meet on Saturday, March 12, from 10:30
AM to 12:30 PM. Following the meet-
ing, there will be a speaker training on
Youth and the Police. Contact Marcia
Gallo at ACLU-NC 415/621-2493, for
more information.
Student Advisors Planning meet-
ings for the next SAY WHAT!?!3
Student Conference will be on
Saturday March 12, at 2:00 PM.
Contact Marcia Gallo at ACLU-NC
415/621-2493 for more information.
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
TVANNY
Lyenodiaa
SPANNING THE GENERATIONS SSSR
DEAR |OUR 1993 ANNUAE REP OR I
reveals a frightening trend we must confront: an increasing intolerance of the poor and homeless. Twelve
FRIENDS | years of indifference at the highest levels of government to social needs have created a growing population
American Civil Liberties Union
of Northern California
1663 Mission Street
Suite 460
San Francisco
CA 94103
Telephone: 415.621.2493
4 Cover photo: Members
of the Elk Grove High
School Model United
Nations/Junior
Statesmen of America
Club went to court and
won the right to paint a
mural celebrating
Freedom of Expression.
(Photo: Jose Luis Villegas/
Sacramento Bee)
of the dispossessed, and a palpable fear of their presence. In turn, that public impatience fueled
government action that seriously infringes on the civil liberties of the most powerless members of our
communities. Local government actions like the Matrix program, and Propositions J and V in San Francisco
virtually criminalize poverty. These policies are found not only in large urban centers, but, as our report
reflects, are emerging in suburban and rural California as well.
As widespread as it is, the public' intolerance of homeless people pales in comparison to the passionate
desperation that pollsters find the public feels about crime. And no wonder. After decades of politicians
claiming to "get tough on crime," people still feel no safer on the streets. So now politicians pledge to get "even
tougher" under newer, catchier slogans like "Three strikes, you're out." Yet these dangerously pandering
policies could subject a generation of young men, particularly young men of color, to a lifetime of incarceration
at an incredible cost, both human and financial.
Fear creates a host of scapegoats. As California's economic recession continues unabated, leaders in the
highest offices unfairly blame our serious economic woes on immigrants - both legal and undocumented. A
campaign is underway to punish immigrants by depriving them of constitutional rights and excluding them
from our communities.
To defeat this onslaught of ignorance and prejudice, the ACLU must wield the powerful weapon of
education. For underlying many of these policies and much of this public opinion is a lack of understanding of
the meaning of the Bill of Rights and its basic promise to protect minority beliefs and populations. There is no
longer a broad consensus about the power of government: on one hand, people want "government off their
backs;" on the other, they are ready for the government to use draconian measures to sweep the streets of
homeless people and lock young offenders in prison for perhaps the rest of their lives.
Has popular opinion abandoned any notion of justice?
The ACLU of Northern California will not abandon that principle, and as our report reveals, we are
engaged in groundbreaking work to make sure that it still is alive for future generations. We are currently
educating youth about the Bill of Rights through our Howard A. Friedman First Amendment Education Project
and its innovative work in classrooms, school assemblies, and widely attended student conferences and
workshops.
At the same time, we are providing direct advocacy for students seeking to vindicate their rights, and
training them to effectively advocate on their own.
But even our advocacy has not stopped repressive dress codes, which disproportionately target young men
of color. Nor have we prevented illegal police stops and searches of youth, or the astonishing proliferation of
data bases kept by local law enforcement, and shared with other agencies which store records about "potential
gang members," without even an accusation that a law has been broken. Curfews, metal detectors,
surveillance and arbitrary expulsion are the ways that many youth today learn about the principles of the Bill
of Rights. :
Clearly our advocacy must go hand in hand with education if our young people's commitment to the Bill of
Rights is not to wane, as it has for many in government and the general public.
The importance of teaching a new generation to speak out against injustice cannot be underestimated. For
as our presence on campuses becomes more visible, we receive more requests for our legal assistance to
`combat the abuses that students face. Throughout 1993, our representation of students, especially in
protecting their First Amendment rights, grew tremendously.
This year's Annual Report truly reflects that organizational growth. While we remain justly proud of our
respected legal program, not every civil liberties abuse lends itself to litigation. The ACLU's dynamic strategy
relies on a combination of approaches to achieve our goals, which is why we include here accounts of our
public education program, our field organizing and our legislative advocacy as well.
As the climate of fear and intolerance intensifies the challenges before us, your belief in our advocacy and
your support of our program is deeply appreciated. I hope when you read this report, you will let us know
about your questions and concerns.
Thank you for standing with us as the ACLU spans the generations in its unwavering work for justice.
Yours sincerely,
Dorothy Ehrlich, Milton Estes, M.D.
Executive Director Chair, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Executive Committee*: Milton N. Estes, Chair; Joanne Lewis, Vice-Chair; Nancy S. Pemberton, Vice-Chair;
Davis Riemer, Vice-Chair, Margaret M. Russell, Vice-Chair; James B. Blume, Treasurer, Barbara Brenner; Luz Buitrago;
Eleanor Eisenberg; Maria Ontiveros; Frances C. Strauss.
Members of the ACLU-NC Board of Directors: Abby Abinanti, Harry Anisgard, Leonard Bronstein,
David Bunnell, Angelo Butler, Robert P. Capistrano, William Carpmill, Helen Chang, Marna Cohen,
Marlene De Lancie, Kathleen Dooley, Teresa Lynn Friend, Richard Grosboll, Janet Halley, Christina Huskey,
Lawrence R. Jensen, Leonard S. Karpman, Howard W. Lewis, Ethel Long-Scott, Susan Mizner, Charis Moore,
Herbert E. Nelson, David B. Oppenheimer, Rachel Richman, Marcelo Rodriguez, Louise Rothman-Riemer,
Andrew Rudiak, Zona Sage, Alberto Saldamando, Ethan P Schulman, Michelle Welsh, Donna Yamashiro.
General Counsel: Stephen Bomse, Heller, Ehrman, White and McAuliffe.
Frances Beal, Ann Brick, Cheri Bryant, Ed Chen, Matt Coles, John Crew, Margaret C. Crosby, Mila De Guzman,
Rita Egri, Dorothy Ehrlich, Elaine Elinson, Jean Field, Charles Francis, Marcia Gallo, Anne Hietbrink, Sandy Holmes,
Jean Hom, Michele Hurtado, Jan deJong, Michael Laurence, Lisa Levy, Francisco Lobaco, Lisa Maldonado,
Michelle McTamaney, Robert Nakatani, Leah Nestell, Nancy Otto, Margaret Pefia, Alan Schlosser, Zelma Toro,
Denise Wells.
ACLUN_1981.MODS ACLUN_1981.batch ACLUN_1982 ACLUN_1982.MODS ACLUN_1982.batch ACLUN_1983 ACLUN_1983.MODS ACLUN_1984 ACLUN_1984.MODS ACLUN_1984.batch ACLUN_1985 ACLUN_1985.MODS ACLUN_1985.batch ACLUN_1986 ACLUN_1986.MODS ACLUN_1986.batch ACLUN_1987 ACLUN_1987.MODS ACLUN_1987.batch ACLUN_1988 ACLUN_1988.MODS ACLUN_1988.batch ACLUN_1989 ACLUN_1989.MODS ACLUN_1989.batch ACLUN_1990 ACLUN_1990.MODS ACLUN_1990.batch ACLUN_1991 ACLUN_1991.MODS ACLUN_1991.batch ACLUN_1992 ACLUN_1992.MODS ACLUN_1992.batch ACLUN_1993 ACLUN_1993.MODS ACLUN_1993.batch ACLUN_1994 ACLUN_1994.MODS ACLUN_1994.batch ACLUN_1995 ACLUN_1995.MODS ACLUN_1996 ACLUN_1996.MODS ACLUN_1997 ACLUN_1997.MODS ACLUN_1998 ACLUN_1998.MODS ACLUN_1999 ACLUN_1999.MODS ACLUN_ladd ACLUN_ladd.MODS add-tei.sh create-bags.sh create-manuscript-bags.sh create-manuscript-batch.sh fits.log These officers also constitute the ACLU-NC Foundation Board of Governors.
oe
A eurotU-N C ANNUAL REPO R | A. 9 9.3
HIS ANNUAL REPORT,
which describes high-
`lights of our litigation
docket, reveals the broad range
and scope of the issues with
which' we dealt, as well as the
difficulty and complexity of lit-
gating cases before courts that
are Often not receptive to claims of vio-
lations of individual rights. It also
underscores the importance of pursuing
non-litigation approaches in addressing
current civil liberties and civil rights
issues. The new administration in
Washington has certainly brought hope
for positive changes in governmental
policies: New judicial and executive
appointments could mean that we
might not face the same level of consis-
tent hostility toward civil liberties and
civil rights from the federal govern-
ment. Obviously, any major changes in
the judiciary will take time to have an
impact on our litigation.
Though we cannot describe every
one of our current 70 cases, we sum-
marize here our work in our priority
areas. The current priority areas are
Reproductive Rights, Racial and
Language Minorities, Immigrant and
Refugee Rights, Lesbian
Thanksgiving, we filed a federal lawsuit
against San Franciscos Matrix Program
-which literally criminalizes home-
lessness-to remind the city that civil
liberties cannot be denied to its poorest
and most vulnerable residents.
The ACLU-NC Legal Department is
staffed by five attorneys: Ann Brick,
Edward Chen, Matthew Coles,
Margaret Crosby and Alan Schlosser.
Alan Schlosser currently serves as
Managing Attorney. In addition, the
Legal Department includes the Death
Penalty Project, directed by Michael
Laurence and assisted by Anne
Heitbrink, and the Police Practices
Project, directed by John Crew. The staff
attorneys are ably assisted by Frances
Beal and Leah Nestell.
The Legal Department also oversees
the work of the Complaint Desk, which
was supervised by Lisa Maldonado. The
Desk, staffed by a dozen volunteer
counselors, receives more than 200
calls and letters each week from people
who feel their rights have been violated.
Advised by the staff attorneys and law
students who clerk for the ACLU-NC
during the year, these lay counselors
screen requests for assistance and often
speech, freedom of the :
press, book and film
censorship, locker
searches and other
school-related prob-
lems. In addition, as
school administrators ~~
try to deal with the problems of drugs,
gangs and student safety, they often
come up with solutions without regard
to the students' civil liberties. Among
these are proposed or recently enacted
policies imposing dress codes, sugges-
tions for random student searches
(including proposals for the use of
metal detectors at schools or at school-
sponsored activities), and attempts to
control drug, alcohol and tobacco use
and
ze
_ by mandating "24-Hour Non-Use" poli-
cies for students wishing to participate
in extra-curricular activities. Closely
related to these issues, and an area of
continuing concern, is the problem of
police interrogation of students on
school premises.
In most cases, our response to
inquiries from students or their parents
involves an investigation of the facts
`and, if appropriate, a letter to the
responsible authorities. Quite often, a
letter is sufficient to
tion in May. When the Court of Appeal
denied the school officials' request for a
stay of the injunction, the defendants
dropped their appeal. As the school
term began in September, the Model
U.N. Club members painted their
mural and, in so many dimensions,
brought the lesson of the First
Amendment to Elk Grove High.
The courage of the Elk Grove stu-
dents was brought to national attention
when the ACLU Arts Censorship
Project bestowed a 1993 "Censor of the
Year" award on the school officials who
had attempted to ban the mural.
Dress Codes
The ACLU-NC has supported stu-
dents in challenging dress codes that
included a hat ban in Salinas to condom
jewelry in Tracy and to winning a junior
high school girl in Manteca the right to
wear a T-shirt
proclaiming | Whena Clovis
Gay Rights, AIDS, resolve the problem.In "Real +~Women elementary school refused
Student Rights, Police more serious cases, Love Jesus." to allow 5-year-old Derrek
Practices and the Death where no accommoda- Often, a Casebolt to enroll in
Penalty. tion could be reached, phone call from kindergarten unless he cut
Our focus on these we have filed suit. the ACLU is his hair, the ACLU filed
priority areas is coupled
with the need to react to
particular civil liberties
crises and emergencies.
For example, the protest
in the streets of San
Francisco after the
Rodney King verdict in
April 1992 resulted in
the Mayors unprece-
dented declaration of a
State of Emergency, and
the mass arrests of more
than 1,000 demonstra-
tors. the ACLU
responded by issuing a
35-page report that crit-
icized the Citys use of
the State of Emergency
to impose a de facto
moratorium on demon-
strations in San
Francisco during the
critical days immediate-
ly after the verdict.
Subsequently, we filed a
class action lawsuit on behalf of 396
demonstrators who were arrested on
May 8, 1992 (Brown v. Jordan). This led
to one of our major victories this year: a
settlement with the City that includes
monetary damages and the destruction
of the protesters' arrest records.
Another crisis occurred in August of
this year, when a Death Row inmate,
David Mason, relinquished all of his
appeals and "volunteered" to be execut-
ed. Though Mr. Mason refused to allow
the ACLU to be involved in represent-
ing him, the occurrence of another gas
chamber execution in California rapidly
brought our pending suit challenging
lethal gas (Fierro v. Gomez) back onto
the judicial calendar. Although we lost a
motion to try the suit prior to the
scheduled execution, the trial did begin
several weeks after Mason was killed. If
we are successful with this litigation,
David Mason may be the last person
executed by lethal gas in California.
Also, as cities began to use police
and punishment to deal with the social
problems of poverty and homelessness,
we found ourselves challenging these
abusive practices. On the eve of
provide the advocacy needed to resolve
particular grievances.
We share the accomplishments of
our legal program with more than 100
dedicated lawyers who donate their ser-
vices to the ACLU-NC as cooperating
attorneys. Two-thirds of our cases this
year were handled by cooperating attor-
neys working with staff counsel.
Without their expertise and advocacy,
the ACLU-NC would not be able to
address many pressing civil liberties
issues. A list of the 1993 `cooperating
attorneys and firms is on page 12.
Student Rights
ITH THE ADVENT OF THE
Howard A. Friedman
First Amendment
Education Project,
questions involving student rights have
assumed even more importance in our
work. As a result of the Project's out-
reach to students and teachers, we
receive more questions from students,
teachers and parents about freedom of
When high school
students in Tulare cre-
ated a video-drama
highlighting the prob-
lem of teen pregnancy,
school authorities
ordered the students to
remove all' profanity
from the dialogue of
the - student-written
production. The ACLU
filed suit (Lopez v.
Tulare Joint Union High
School District Board of
Trustees) in superior
court and obtained a
preliminary injunction
enabling the students
to show the film and to
enter it in a competi-
tion where it won first
prize in its category.
However, when the
case came before a different superior
court judge on the parties' cross-
motions for summary judgment, he
ruled that the school administrators
were within their rights in censoring the
film. The case is currently on appeal.
In April, we filed suit in Sacramento
County Superior Court on behalf of
eight members of the Elk Grove High
School Model U.N./Junior Statesmen of
America Club whose mural celebrating
freedom of expression was censored by
school officials. The school district
would not allow the students to paint
their proposed design of a burning
American flag with the text of the First
Amendment showing through the
flames and a citation to the US.
Supreme Court case of Texas v, Johnson,
which upheld constitutional protection
for flag burning.
The students, noting that all of the
other clubs were able to put up their
murals - including some with poten-
tially controversial topics - challenged
the principal' decision. The ACLU rep-
resented the students in the case of
Markgraf v. Elk Grove Unified School
District, and won a preliminary injunc-
enough to solve aut
the problem,
but in = one
(Photo: Bryan Chan/
Clovis Independent )
unique instance
we filed suit on behalf of a kindergarten
student who was not allowed to attend
school unless he cut his hair. Five-year
old Derrek Casebolt was barred from
entering kindergarten at Pinedale
Elementary School in Clovis because of
his long hair, even though he offered to
wear a rubber band or other hair-fas-
tening device to keep the hair away
from his face. The principal insisted that
Derrek comply with school regulations,
which mandate short hair for boys, or
be prohibited from attending Pinedale.
No similar hair length restrictions are
imposed on girls. -
In February, the ACLU filed Casebolt
v, Clovis Unified School District on behalf
of Derrek and several other male stu-
dents charging that the school district'
policy constitutes gender discrimina-
tion in violation of federal and state
constitutional and statutory provisions.
In the arena of student discipline, we
have received a significant number of
calls from around northern California
raising questions about student expul-
sions. In most cases, these calls involve
factual disputes, which are best handled
by individual lawyers rather than by
ACLU representation, since we do not
have the resources either at the staff or
chapter level to take on such cases.
However, we continue to monitor this
area and to work with other public
interest lawyers and advocates in devel-
oping strategies to deal with the overuse
of suspension and expulsion by admin-
istrators and the disproportionate
impact of school discipline on minority
students.
Metal Detectors
Concerns about the growing level of
violence in California schools has
prompted some school officials to con-
sider the use of metal detectors at
schools and school-sponsored func-
Ae le N euro
AN NU AE
Ree RP OCR 21-929 3
o
a POLITICIANS CLAMORED TO
project their fight against
crime to the top of the state'
agenda, the ACLU-NC Police
Practices Project worked in
conjunction with other
Departments to ensure that
individual rights are not lost in
the current zeal for law
enforcement
efforts. The
Field
Committee
police
practices as
the priority
issue, and the
Project helped
provide the resources and
expertise to aid in the Chapters'
community activism. In
addition, the Project's focus on
anti-panhandling ordinances
and police sweeps of the
homeless have helped to raise
public awareness about the civil
liberties problems inherent in
these measures.
Rights of Demonstrators
The preliminary settlement
reached in Brown v. Jordan,
challenging the San Francisco
Police Department's sweep of
hundreds of individuals
protesting the acquittal of the
Los Angeles police officers in the
2
beating of Rodney King,
reinforces the Project' efforts to
ensure the city follows crowd
control procedures that
safeguard basic civil liberties.
(See section on Demonstrators.)
The Project continues to
advocate compliance with and
strengthening of the San
Francisco Police Department's
crowd control manual, .
developed with input from the
Project.
Intelligence Gathering
Police practices were again front-
page news in San Francisco with
the discovery of illegal
surveillance of political
organizations and individuals.
Just one week after the Police
Practices Project wrote to the
San Francisco Police
Commission regarding its failure
to adequately monitor police
intelligence-gathering activities,
a newspaper reported that San
Francisco police, along with
other law enforcement agencies
and the Anti-Defamation League,
infiltrated and monitored local
organizations. The Project
released a 46-page report on the
Police Commission' failure to
adequately respond to this
discovery and its refusal to fully
investigate the ongoing abuses of
police intelligence gathering.
Civilian Review
In conjunction with the Field
Department, Project Director
John Crew met with members
from ACLU-NC chapters, from
Eureka to Monterey, and helped
them take steps toward estab
lishing effective civilian review in
their communities.
In San Jose, the Project
worked with local coalitions to
press for a system of civilian
review, and used Public Records
Act requests to gain information
for a 28-page report, "A
Campaign of Deception - San
Jose's Case Against Civilian
Review." The City Council
implemented an auditor system
rather than full-fledged citizen
review process, but the coalition
continues to monitor the system
and work for more effective
civilian oversight.
The Project' efforts sparked
renewed community activism
centered on the issue of police
oversight in Stockton.
Targeting Indigent People
San Francisco continued its
assault on the constitutional
rights of homeless people
through the Matrix program, in
which police officers targeted
offenses like sleeping in public
parks, lodging anywhere on
public property, and blocking
sidewalks. In conjunction with a
lawsuit against this program (see
section on Homeless), the Police
Practices Project has worked to
educate city officials the public,
media and activists about this
campaign of intimidation and
harassment. Project Director
John Crew has investigated the
costs and effects of the Matrix
program and testified at public
hearings.
The Project continues to
monitor the implementation of
San Francisco' Proposition J,
the so-called aggressive panhan-
dling law passed by the voters in
November 1992. During the
first half of 1993, the law result-
ed in few arrests and no prose-
cutions despite an expensive
undercover program that divert-
ed scarce police resources. In
late 1993, efforts to prosecute a
handful of "aggressive panhan-
dlers" failed when Municipal
Court judges consistently ruled
that Proposition J was legally
flawed.
Other cities, spurred by San
Francisco' crackdown on pan-
handlers and the homeless, are
attempting to adopt similar
laws. John Crew has worked in
Berkeley to counter proposed
anti-loitering and panhandling
laws, and is monitoring efforts
in several communities through-
out northern California.
tions. In 1992 Attorney General Dan
Lungren issued a formal Opinion essen-
tially giving the green light to the use of
metal detectors in schools.
The Legislative Committee consid-
ered the issue in view of the competing
interests in preserving student safety
while at the same time protecting stu-
dents' rights to be free of unreasonable
searches. After careful study, the
Legislative Committee concluded that
school metal detectors result in a sub-
stantial invasion of students' privacy
rights and the danger of unequal
enforcement. The Committee also
agreed that there is a striking absence of
reliable evidence showing that metal
detectors are, in fact, effective in keep-
ing weapons out of schools.
Accordingly, it concluded that the
ACLU should oppose the use of metal
detectors in schools in favor of both
long- and short-term alternatives that
are more likely to address the root caus-
es of violence in the schools. These
include encouraging the development
of conflict resolution programs and
non-violence curricula, the expansion
of leadership, drug education, cultural
diversity, peer counseling, and student
employment programs, making travel
routes to and from school safe, and
using volunteers to monitor school halls
and campus grounds.
Reproductive Rights
Teenagers
E HAVE . SUCCESSFULLY
protected young wom-
en' right to reproduc-
tive choice by blocking
burdensome state legislation. In
American Academy of Pediatrics v.
Lungren, the ACLU and the National
Center for Youth Law represent several
distinguished organizations of medical
professionals serving California's young
people in challenging the constitution-
ality of a 1987 law that would require
teenagers to obtain parental or judicial
consent to terminate an unplanned
pregnancy. The so-called parental con-
sent law removes abortion from the
many types of necessary medical care,
including all pregnancy-related ser-
vices, that minors may obtain on their
own informed consent. The law has
never taken effect because of court
orders issued in the case.
During six years of litigation, the
State has failed to justify the law' seri-
ous invasion of young
women's reproductive deci-
sions. In 1992, following a
month-long trial, the San
Francisco Superior Court
ruled that the statute vio-
lates the California
Constitutions guarantees
of privacy and equality.
The court issued a per-
manent injunction
barring the State
from enforcing
the law. The
court agreed
with our
argu-
ments
that
the
California Constitution protects repro-
ductive privacy more comprehensively
than the United States Constitution.
The court made detailed factual
findings based on extensive expert testi-
mony that the law does not benefit
young women, and interferes with
access to health care.
The State appealed the Superior
Court decision. The briefing is com-
plete and the case is awaiting argument
in the Court of Appeal.
Prosecutions of pregnant women
We have also
worked to
pro-
tect reproductive rights in the criminal
justice system - an increasingly impor-
tant arena. A new and troubling devel-
opment is the District Attorney's
attempted use of the states murder
statute to prosecute women for alleged
substance abuse during pregnancy.
In People v. Jaurigue, we successfully
represented a woman who was charged
with murder on the theory that she had
killed her fetus by ingesting cocaine
during her pregnancy.
The ACLU argued in the local Justice
Court in Hollister that California's fetal
homicide law was intended to protect
pregnant women against violent assault
by third parties, not to prosecute them
for prenatal conduct. The California
Legislature, following the enlightened
consensus of expert opinion, has recog-
nized that prosecution of women for
alleged substance abuse during preg-
nancy would deter women from access
to prenatal care, and thus be counter-
productive to the states objective of fos-
tering the birth of healthy infants. In
addition, we argued that the prosecu-
tors novel interpretation of the law, if
adopted, would render it unconstitu-
tional as a violation of due process and
privacy rights.
Although we did not prevail in the
Justice Court, the San Benito Superior
Court overturned the lower court rul-
ing, and held that a woman could not
be prosecuted under the feticide statute
based on her conduct during her preg-
nancy. The Attorney General unsuccess-
fully sought review in the Court of
Appeal. All charges against the woman
were dismissed.
In People v. Jones, the Siskiyou
County District Attorney filed murder
charges against a woman, arguing that
her alleged substance abuse while preg-
nant caused the death of her prema-
turely born infant. We joined the Public
Defender as co-counsel and again were
successful in persuading the court that
the State's murder statute did not apply.
The charges against the woman were
dismissed by the Siskiyou County
Justice Court.
These are but the latest in a series of
criminal prosecutions brought against
women throughout the country stem-
ming from prenatal substance abuse.
These misguided attempts to treat sub-
stance abuse during pregnancy as a
problem that can be solved through the
criminal justice system have so far been
totally unsuccessful.
role in the pro-choice
reproductive rights.
(Photo: Ann Rushing)
4 Teenagers play an active
movement, protesting laws
which would deny them
(c)
Ae | UN
ASN NU AE
R ER OUR 4
1590x00B090x00B0 3
Controlling women's behavior
In addition to attempting to prose-
cute women for their conduct during
pregnancy, we have also encountered
other attempts by the state to control
the actions of pregnant women. For
example, Santa Cruz
County officials
Vallejo High School (R) | obtained a temporary
graduate Teresa Esguerra' | conservatorship order
is on the ACLU-NC for a _ schizophrenic
oe Advisory pregnant woman and
committee, had her confined in a
locked mental health
facility against her wish-
(Photo: Courtesy Esguerra)
es. It was clear from the record that no
conservatorship would have been
imposed had the woman not been preg-
nant. The order was based solely on her
decision not to seek prenatal care,
because she feared hospital authorities
would take her child away once it was
born. There was no evidence that the
woman was unable to provide herself
with food, shelter or clothing, although
such a showing is required before a
conservator can be appointed.
At the request of the Public
Defender, we became co-counsel in the
case and filed a writ of habeas corpus
Cn re McSweeney) asking the court to
free the woman from her confinement
and conservatorship. We argued th
because the woman was able to provi
for her own food, shelter and bir
she was not "gravely disabled" a
accordingly, the imposition a at
rary conservatorship was not
rized by the relevant statutes.
After we filed our brief, the C
reconsidered its position and offe
drop the proceedings and lift the
servatorship if the woman ob
more permanent shelter and agr
see an obstetrician. Because the C
agreed to our clients desire th.
identity of the obstetrician not b
closed to the County or the hospit
had initiated the conservatorship
ceedings, she accepted the offer
now free.
Access to clinics
We have also responded to le
tive efforts to protect access to
ductive health services. The ACL
urged state and local governme
accommodate fundamental righ
reproductive choice and freedo
expression with a minimum sacri
either value. We have opposed
broad legislative proposals that
suppressed speech excessively, su
total bans on targeted residential p
ing. We are currently formulating
cy on clinic access laws that go be'
preventing physical obstruction to pla
ing restrictions on demonstrations out-
side health care facilities. We believe
that the ACLU has an important role to __
play in articulating both the fundamen-
tal rights of reproductive choice and
freedom of expression.
Legal analysis
Attorneys Margaret Crosby and Ann
Brick are often called upon to speak to
the media, and to legal, medical and
community organizations about the
legal status of reproductive rights in
California and the nation. This year, the
focus was on the federal clinic access
bill and several appropriations mea-
sures to provide funding for abortion.
Crosby serves as a consultant to
lawyers in other states about state con-
stitutional litigation and is part of the
Affiliate Advisory Task Force to the
National ACLU Reproductive Freedom
Project. As legal counsel to the
California Coalition for Reproductive
Freedom, Crosby regularly provides
constitutional analysis of potential legis-
lation and responds to inquiries and
problems experienced by health profes-
sionals and clinics.
Ce ee ees
Demonstrator
N A SETTLE-
MENT THAT
indicates
the consti
tutional right to
take part in
peacern|
demonstra-
tions without
fear of arrest,
the City of San
tember: of the VSA dis layed antiwar
banners while they passed
police, their banners were ripped from
their hands, and they were ultimately
issued letters permanently barring them
from returning to the Presidio.
The ACLU claims that the actions of
the military police were targeted against
the political viewpoint being expressed
by the VSA members, and that the First
Amendment prohibits this viewpoint
discrimination even on a military base.
The lawsuit seeks damages as well as
injunctive relief.
In another suit stemming from the
Gulf War, Lamperti v. California, the
ACLU is representing three antiwar pro-
testors who were beaten by California
Highway Patrol officers during two sep-
arate nonviolent demonstrations against
the Persian Gulf War. In one of the
demonstrations, two of the protestors
were engaging in a sit-in on the side of
the roadway on the Bay Bridge,
and suffered serious physi-
cal injuries when they
were. cttuck by
batons. The suit
seeks damages
from the individ-
ual officers as
well as against
CHP. superviso-
ty officials for
failing to provide
adequate training
and supervision.
In. addition, the suit,
pending in
homeless people of
process and unlawfully
The ACLU went to a federal appeals
court in December to defend the free
speech rights of poor people in the case
of Blair v. Shanahan. The suit was origi-
nally filed on behalf of a formerly
homeless man who was arrested several
times as he asked people walking along
San Francisco streets for money so that
he could survive while seeking employ-
ment. The ACLU argued that seeking
charity is protected speech under the
First Amendment and that the San
Francisco police violated the man's con-
stitutional rights when they arrested
him under the California begging law.
In 1991, the US. District Court
ruled that the statute is unconstitution-
al because it criminalizes speech. The
court ruled that peaceful solicitation of
funds from members of the public is
protected. The City of San Francisco
and the state appealed. _
ACLU-NC CONTINUES ITS
rts to educate and inform
ernment agencies and
anizations about the rights
HIV as well as halt various
practices that needlessly
confidentiality. The enact-
Americans with Disabilities
rovides federal protection
itive individuals, is an
ep forward in the fight
mination. In addition, the
mtinues to litigate some of
questions emerging in the
e of the epidemic.
of those
e been encouraging signs
t of HIV-infected prisoners
prisons is improving as a
CLU-NC. litigation and
lic awareness.
ttlement and consent
ted in the class-action
Deukmejian, filed by the
ehalf of HIV-infected
1e California Medical
aville, called for a pilot
ed to segregate only
ho pose a significant
others. Additionally, it
the prison improve
ms, jobs and facilities
inmates.
nt of Corrections
that the pilot pro-
those inmai
risk of infec
mandated
to open housing
| allowed prison
risk of infec-
inmates refused medical treatment to
protest CMF' failure to provide quality
medical care after two well-respected
prison physicians resigned. The ACLU
asked the magistrate to investigate these
charges, and community organizations
joined in the protest. Assemblyman
John Burton conducted hearings to
expose the inmates' plight. In response,
CMF hired an experienced AIDS physi-
A Ek USN euroC
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