Federal judge Shira A. Scheindlin ruled today that the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk program violates the United States Constitution. The judge created a court-appointed monitor to oversee reforms to the practice.
A military judge found Bradley Manning guilty of violating the Espionage Act but acquitted him on the more serious charge of “aiding the enemy.” Manning already has pled guilty to some charges, for which he faces up to 20 years in prison.
Today, 23 good government groups sent a letter to the DOJ urging the Attorney General to make public any reports by the Department’s Inspector General regarding the collection of Americans’ telephone records under Section 215 of the Patriot Act.
The New York City Council voted overwhelmingly to pass two bills focused on improving community safety this week, one of which creates an inspector general to oversee the New York City Police Department (NYPD).
The government obtained a secret court order to collect records about all the phone calls of a Verizon subsidiary’s customers over a three-month period.
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon vetoed a measure that would have banned the use of foreign law in the state’s courts. The Brennan Center applauds the governor’s decision and urges other states with similar bans to reject them.
A new report by the Brennan Center and Center for American Progress highlights the unintended consequences of the recent wave of anti-Muslim driven foreign law bans.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that border agents need "reasonable suspicion" to perform an extensive search of electronic devices, such as cellphones, tablets and laptops, of travelers entering the country.
Civil rights lawyers today filed a motion asking a federal court to end the NYPD’s illegal surveillance of American Muslims and establish an independent monitor to review the Department’s counterterrorism efforts.
In response to the increased involvement of the New York City Police Department in collecting counterterrorism intelligence, a new policy proposal issued today by the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law calls for the establishment of an independent inspector general for the department. A Proposal for an NYPD Inspector General outlines the benefits of creating such an office, which would mirror the independent oversight in place for decades at the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Central Intelligence Agency.
