Court Cases

The ACLU of PA and the law firm LeVan Stapleton Segal Cochran LLC filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of teacher Andrew Burgess against the Central Bucks School District.

On October 6, 2022, the ACLU of Pennsylvania filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Education on behalf of seven students in Central Bucks School District who allege a culture of discrimination against LGBQ&T students, particularly trans and nonbinary students.

On April 29, 2022, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Harrisburg, alleging that the city violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments by forcing climate activists to navigate a burdensome and expensive permitting process in order to hold a festival and peaceful march. Better Path Coalition, a group of climate activists and organizations from across Pennsylvania, was planning three days of events in Harrisburg in June 2022, including a festival, a march, and a rally at the state capitol. During the permitting process, the group found that the city of Harrisburg imposed what they felt were unconstitutional restrictions on a public gathering. While the ACLU-PA was able to resolve the issues some of the issues, the city of Harrisburg continued to insist that Better Path Coalition cover the cost of traffic control during the events, obtain expensive insurance, agree to indemnify Harrisburg for any damage including that caused by people beyond the coalition’s control, and assorted other conditions beyond their capability. The lawsuit asks the court to order Harrisburg to block the city’s enforcement of its permitting system, including the remaining fees. On February 2, 2024, the case was updated in federal court as the coalition plans a similar event for 2024. On August 19, 2024, the court denied the city's motion to dismiss the case, concluding that Better Path Coalition's claims of unconstitutional restrictions on free speech by the city are plausible.

The ACLU of PA filed a federal lawsuit against Montgomery County and several administrators at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility alleging that the administrators have denied ACLU-PA attorneys and attorneys working with ACLU-PA the right to visit with people detained at the jail.

On March 18, 2021, the ACLU of Pennsylvania and the law firm Offit Kurman P.C. filed a lawsuit in Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas against the Board of Education of the School District of Philadelphia, challenging the board’s new policy limiting the number of speakers.

On March 2, 2021, the ACLU of Pennsylvania filed a federal constitutional lawsuit against Allegheny County Judge Anthony Mariani, on behalf of Abolitionist Law Center and with co-counsel from the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown University Law Center.

On June 5, the ACLU of Pennsylvania concluded that the city had surpassed its legal authority, unless it could produce evidence that would prove a public safety justification for the curfew.