Press Releases

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ACLU and Law Firm Wilson Sonsini Ask Department of Justice to Investigate Lack of Access to Counsel in Louisiana Jails

NEW ORLEANS — The ACLU of Louisiana and the law firm Wilson Sonsini sent a letter today to the Department of Justice calling for an investigation into the lack of access to counsel within Louisiana’s prison system.

ACLU and ACLU of Louisiana Warn East Baton Rouge Schools About Multiple Civil Rights Violations During ‘Day of Hope’ Event

BATON ROUGE — In a letter to the East Baton Rouge School System, the ACLU expressed alarm about an event during which students were subjected to religious proselytizing, and female students were given instruction in sexual abstinence and told hey should practice forgiveness of sexual abusers.

ACLU of Louisiana and Coalition Partners Conduct Legal Rights Initiative at Louisiana’s Immigration Detention Centers

NEW ORLEANS — On the heels of the ACLU’s new research study about barriers to legal representation in ICE detention centers, the organization launched a legal rights initiative designed to provide noncitizens with knowledge of their legal rights so they can exercise them when unlawfully detained.
Issue Areas: Immigrants' Rights

ACLU of Louisiana Defeats Summary Judgment Motion in Lawsuit Against St. Tammany Parish Deputies Who Choked a Black Woman Over Alleged Minor Traffic Violation

NEW ORLEANS — On July 26, 2022, the Honorable Wendy B. Vitter of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana denied the bulk of the Motion for Summary Judgment of two St. Tammany’s Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies in a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by Teliah Perkins.

ACLU of Louisiana Issues Statement After New Orleans City Council Reverses Surveillance Ban, Expands Use of Racist Technologies

NEW ORLEANS — The ACLU of Louisiana issued the following statement regarding the New Orleans City Council’s passage of an ordinance that reverses a 2020 ban on the New Orleans Police Department’s (NOPD) use of facial recognition technology.

Supreme Court Issues Devastating Decision Overturning Roe v. Wade

NEW ORLEANS – The Supreme Court issued a shameful ruling today overturning Roe v. Wade — the landmark decision recognizing the constitutional right to abortion nearly 50 years ago.

ACLU Report Finds Incarcerated Workers Earn Between $0.02 and $0.40 Per Hour in Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS — Incarcerated workers in Louisiana prisons earn between $0.02 and $0.40 an hour providing vital public service and prison maintenance services, according to a comprehensive nationwide report released by the national American Civil Liberties Union.
Issue Areas: Mass Incarceration

ACLU of Louisiana Statement on Department of Justice Investigation Into Louisiana State Police

NEW ORLEANS — One year after the ACLU of Louisiana called for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to launch a pattern-or-practice investigation into misconduct by the Louisiana State Police (LSP), the Justice Department has announced it will launch a civil rights investigation. 

ACLU of Louisiana, Congressman Troy Carter Hail Federal Court Ruling Ordering Legislature to Draw New Congressional Map with Two Majority-Black Districts

NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge in Robinson v. Ardoin ruled in favor of Black voters challenging Louisiana’s newly enacted congressional map as a violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.