News & Commentary

After a year dominated by the pandemic and the presidential election, we look ahead to what the ACLU of Pennsylvania expects to see and hopes to achieve in the state legislature during the 2021-2022 session.

The ACLU of Pennsylvania saw a number of successes in the area of school policing in 2020, despite this unprecedented and unexpected year.

It was an American presidential election like no other. And of course, the drama extended far beyond Election Day.

The past four years have been a horrifying look into what can happen when we elect leaders who have nothing but animus towards people who are part of our families, communities, and this country.

Police violence is, of course, nothing new. But with the advent of cell phone cameras and social media, horrifying incidents of police violence have never been more accessible to the public.

Once it became clear that the COVID-19 pandemic was a public health crisis in the United States in early March, our work quickly pivoted to decarceration efforts to prevent Pennsylvania jails and prisons from becoming COVID hotspots.

The following statement can be attributed to Vic Walczak, legal director at ACLU of Pennsylvania:The shooting of any individual is tragic, but it does not give police license to run roughshod over peoples’ constitutional rights in their effort to arrest the suspect. Now, a day after the terrible shooting of the police officer, it is highly unlikely the McKeesport police can justify continuing the search methods we witnessed yesterday. Warrantless, non-consensual entries into peoples’ homes, suspicionless vehicle stops and searches of motorists’ cars and trunks, and checkpoint stops cannot be justified under the fourth amendment to the U.S. Constitution or Article I, section 7 of the Pennsylvania Constitution. The people of McKeesport should know that they have a right to say no to these searches, but they also should understand that they should not interfere in police operations even if it’s clearly illegal and unconstitutional. The fix for unconstitutional searches lies after the fact, in a court of law. If the police try to search your home or your car without a warrant, state clearly that you do not consent but that you will not interfere in their actions if they insist on acting unconstitutionally. To prevent or minimize harm to yourself or your family, get out of the way and talk to a lawyer later about whether you can sue for the violation. 

By all rational measurements, the 2020 election was a success. Voters turned out in numbers not seen in 100 years. They did their part and had their say, despite efforts by powerful people to make voting more difficult – efforts that were aimed particularly at people of color.

ICE’s cruelty knows no bounds: they refused to agree to even this short respite for our medically-vulnerable clients. So we were forced to seek emergency relief from the court.