Court Cases

The ACLU of Pennsylvania has filed an amended complaint against the Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board updating a previously filed lawsuit alleging multiple persistent violations of the Pennsylvania Sunshine Act. The lawsuit was originally filed by Rachel Radke, a community advocate who seeks a number of reforms at Allegheny County Jail. The latest filing adds another community advocate for criminal legal reform. The lawsuit alleges that the Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board failed to post public meeting agendas 24 hours in advance of the meeting; unreasonably restricted and ignored public comments; and used closed, executive session meetings to discuss topics that should have been part of public discourse.

The ACLU of Pennsylvania has filed a lawsuit in Berks County regarding two county policies that prohibit individuals from participating in treatment court programs as long as they use medical marijuana to treat their serious medical conditions.

In these cases, the Superior Court ruled that a defendant cannot have probation revoked and a new sentence of probation imposed for nonpayment of fines, costs, or restitution unless the trial court first considers the defendant’s ability to pay and determines that the nonpayment was willful. These decisions, while unpublished, correctly reflect that numerous prior published court decisions prohibit any form of punishment for nonpayment absent the finding of willfulness.

The ACLU of Pennsylvania and the Public Interest Law Center filed a lawsuit in Delaware County when the Board of Elections decided not to count the provisional ballots cast by voters whose mail-in ballots had been previously rejected. Our clients-- three longtime voters in Delaware County -- had submitted mail-in ballots that were deemed defective by county election officials. On Election Day, the voters cast a provisional ballot at their polling place, rather than going to the county seat to "cure" the mail-in ballots. Those provisional ballots were also rejected by the Board of Elections, because the Board believed that it was bound by an unpublished and nonprecedential Commonwealth Court decision. On September 21, 2023, Judge John J. Whelan ruled that the Delaware County Board of Elections had to count the Petitioners' provisional ballots. The courts adopted a commonsense interpretation of the Election Code to conclude that a voter whose attempt to vote by mail was canceled due to an error on the outer return envelope has not “cast” any other ballot in the same election and their provisional ballot must be counted.

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.

The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Pennsylvania, and the law firm Dechert LLP have filed a lawsuit in federal court against the Saucon Valley School District for violating the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The ACLU of Pennsylvania and POWER Interfaith filed an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit brought by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner opposing impeachment proceedings in the state legislature.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania have sent a letter of concern to the Luzerne County Council about the lack of funding and resources in the Office of Public Defender (OPD).

The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Pennsylvania have filed a federal lawsuit to ensure that Pennsylvania mail-in ballots that are missing a handwritten date on the return envelope or dated incorrectly are counted.