Press Releases
Morgenthau Leads 62 Former Prosecutors in Call for Better Defense of the Indigent
62 former New York prosecutors joined an amicus brief in support of a suit, now pending before New York’s highest court, which alleges that New York State’s legal services for the poor are constitutionally inadequate.
– 02/05/10
With Corporations’ New Outsize Voice, Can Shareholders Speak?
New policy proposal based on British law shows congressional leaders how to give corporate shareholders a voice in election spending.
– 01/28/10
Coalition Urges New York to End Prison-Based Gerrymandering
Today the Brennan Center for Justice urges New York State Senate and Assembly leaders to end prison-based gerrymandering. In most of New York, people in prison are counted in the Census where they are incarcerated rather than in their home communities. This policy skews the demographic characteristics in both urban and rural locales throughout the state. The campaign being launched today will urge passage of legislation that would use the 2010 Census to count people who are in prison in their home districts rather than the districts where they are incarcerated. Sponsored by Senator Eric Schneiderman and Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, the legislation could affect the redistricting landscape in upcoming elections.
– 01/28/10
Governor Kaine chooses not to restore the right to vote in Virginia
VA Governor Tim Kaine announced today that he will not use his executive powers before leaving office to restore voting rights to 300,000 Virginians who do not have the right to vote because they were once convicted of a crime. Governor Kaine’s decision leaves these citizens without the right to vote even though they have returned to the community and completed all terms of their sentence.
– 01/15/10
Ethics Reform Should Include Open, Public Discussion
The Brennan Center is pleased to see the New York State Legislature committed to passing ethics reform, but the proposal must be subject to public scrutiny.
Authored by: Lawrence Norden
– 01/13/10
Ohio Needs Automatic and On-Line Registration, New Report Shows
New York—A Brennan Center for Justice report, released today, calls attention to the urgent need for automatic and on-line voter registration in Ohio. The report also shows that it is eminently possible to implement voter registration modernization (VRM) in Ohio now.
– 11/06/09
Has the U.S. Honored Agreement on Temporary Foreign Workers? Mexican Government Wants to Know
Today the Brennan Center for Justice and Northwest Workers’ Justice Project urged Labor Secretary Hilda Solis to answer Mexico’s query about the treatment of foreign workers in the U.S..
– 10/27/09
FOIA Lawsuit Seeks Bush-Era DOJ Opinion
The Brennan Center for Justice filed a federal lawsuit to compel release of a long-suppressed Bush-era legal opinion; the opinion in question purportedly acknowledges that a federal law—which requires organizations receiving federal grants for HIV/AIDS work to pledge opposition to prostitution—may be unconstitutional.
– 10/15/09
Large Number of People Who Face Foreclosures Don’t Have a Lawyer
New York - A new in-depth study by the Brennan Center for Justice released Oct. 6, 2009, shows that disturbing numbers of families face foreclosure proceedings without the aid of legal counsel.
– 10/06/09