ACLU-NCA Defends Internet Speech 
Lawsuit against www.DCWatch.com Voluntarily Dismissed
Local website had been sued by former DC official for posting messages about cronyism in DC government
ACLU-NCA Represents West Point Graduate Seeking Discharge as Conscientious Objector 
Senior Chaplains and Army Investigating Officer Agreed Objection Is Sincere
Higher-Ups Improperly Overruled Investigators, Denying the Objector's Rights under Federal Law
Going Half Way Around the World to Defend Free Speech in Washington 
ACLU-NCA Wins Guam Lawsuit Protecting the Right of D.C. Community Activist to Speak Out
Slot Machine Gambling Initiative Sponsor Had Sued Opponent for Comments Made on Guam Radio About Sponsor's Actions in D.C.
Burgin v. District of Columbia 
For class members in the Burgin v. District of Columbia class action, and others who may be interested.

Click here for documents pertaining to this matter.
After Federal Court Says Transgender Discrimination Lawsuit Can Go Forward, Library of Congress Balks Again  
Discrimination on Gender Identity Could Amount to Illegal Sex Discrimination
ACLU Fights Renewed Library of Congress Effort to Prevent Case from Going to Trial
Court of Appeals Rules for ACLU-NCA in Security Clearance Case 
Federal Employees Have Right to Know Enough About Why Their Security Clearance Was Removed to Be Able to Challenge Discharge
Hundreds of Thousands of Federal Workers Gain Protections
Arrested for Dissing the Police 
Complaint Alleges That Woman Was Arrested for Wondering Why So Many Police Were in a Convenience Store
Protecting the Right of Initiative 
ACLU Urges Court to Reverse $622,000 Fine Imposed on Sponsors of DC Ballot Measure

The right of Initiative was added to the D.C. Home Rule Charter so that ordinary citizens could participate directly in making the laws by which they are governed.
Quadriplegic Dies After 4 Days in DC Jail 
ACLU Sues for $50 Million in Damages for Failure to Care for Helpless Young Man
Uncovering Prosecutorial Misconduct 
ACLU Files Brief Urging Court of Appeals to Rule that Freedom of Information Act Applies to Material Improperly Withheld by Prosecutors During Criminal Trials
Unblocking Medical Marijuana Research 
Administrative Judge Rules that Government Should License ACLU Client to Grow Marijuana for Scientific Research
Police Brutality on Inauguration Day 2005 
ACLU Files Three Lawsuits (One Class Action) Covering Journalist, Marchers from Sanctuary Theater and Chemical-Spray Victims Standing where D.C. Police Sent Them
Plaintiffs Include Journalist, Marchers from Sanctuary Theater and Chemical-Spray Victims Standing where D.C. Police Told Them To
The American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area today filed three federal lawsuits against the District of Columbia and D.C. Police officers for falsely arresting and violating the constitutional rights of peaceful demonstrators and bystanders on Inauguration Day, January 20, 2005.
Rumsfeld Case on Torture Gets Revised Complaint by ACLU and Human Rights First  
Holding Those at the Top Responsible: Rumsfeld Case Joined with Those Against Col. Pappas (Abu Ghraib intelligence chief), Gen. Karpinski (Abu Ghraib commander) and Gen Sanchez (ground forces commander in Iraq)

On January 6, 2006, we filed an Amended Complaint, in the consolidated "Torture Cases" in which we represent nine Iraqi and Afghani nationals who were tortured at the hands of U.S. military personnel in Iraq. The complaint contains straightforward depictions of some of the unsavory acts perpetrated against the victims.
Court Rules Maryland Cannot Bar Same-Sex Couples from Marriage Protections 
Maryland Circuit Court Finds Discrimination Violates State Equal Rights Amendment, Cites Supreme Court 1967 Decision in ACLU-NCA Case Challenging Virginia’s Anti-Miscegenation Law
ACLU and Equality Maryland Hail Decision as Significant Step Towards Marriage Fairness in the Free State
Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Brooke Murdock found that denying same-sex couples the ability to marry, and thereby gain the many protections and benefits of marriage, violates the Maryland state constitution's Equal Rights Amendment, which protects against discrimination based on sex. She also found that there is not even a rational basis for denying same-sex couples the ability to marry. Click here for a PDF copy of the court's decision.
Upholding the Separation of Powers 
Senator Graham Can’t Be Judge Graham
Constitution Bars Mixing Executive and Legislative Offices
For the first time in history, the federal courts have enforced the Incompatibility Clause of the Constitution (Art. I, § 6), which provides that “no Person holding any Office under the United States shall be a Member of either House during his Continuance in Office.”

Muslim Firefighters Protected 
D.C. Fire Chief Barred--Again--From Discharging Firefighters for Wearing Beards as Federal Judge Extends Injunction in ACLU Case
Federal Judge Extends Injunction in ACLU Case
In May 2005, the D.C. Fire Department announced that it would discharge any firefighter who had a beard. The Department requires firefighters to take a “fit test" to show that the facemasks they wear form a good seal with their faces. The Department says that facial hair prevents a good fit--but it prohibits bearded firefighters from taking the test to show that they can get a good fit!
Constitution Bars Mixing Congressional and Executive Offices  
ACLU-NCA Urges Court to Preclude U.S. Senator from Serving as Military Judge
Unusual Separation of Powers Issue
In an amicus brief filed October 17, ACLU-NCA urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces to rule that the Constitution prohibits a sitting U.S. Senator from serving as a Colonel in the Air Force Reserves and from sitting as a military judge. The five-member appeals court heard oral argument on Nov. 11, 2005.

Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution provides that "no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of either House [of Congress] during his Continuance in Office."
First Amendment Police Standards Bill Becomes Law 
D.C. Council Listened to Widespread Concerns About Police Actions and Protected Freedom of Speech and Assembly; Bill Became Law without Mayor’s Signature

The D.C. Council has announced that the “First Amendment Rights and Police Practices Act of 2005” became law April 13, 2005, following the required period of review by the U.S. Congress. The law took effect on the eve of the April 15-17 meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and the demonstrations that traditionally accompany them, which have led to police-protester confrontations in recent years. To see a copy of the new law in PDF, click here.
Victory! Supreme Court Decision Striking Down Anti-Sodomy Law Applied in Army Case 
Highest Army Court of Criminal Appeals Rules UCMJ Article 125 Unconstitutional as Applied
Right of Privacy Bars Prosecution When Sodomy Was Consensual and in Locked Barracks Room
The U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals ruled in an unpublished opinion issued per curiam that a male army private could not be convicted of sodomy, as prohibited by Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), when he engaged in consensual conduct with a female private in his locked room in his barracks. The court rejected the Army's claim that because the soldier's two roommates also had keys to the room, the soldier's room was not "private."

Recent ACLU-NCA Legal Actions
The ACLU, Liberty
& the Law
Before the national ACLU was established in 1920, no law—however much it censored speech—was ever struck down as a violation of the First Amendment. When the public hears “ACLU” the two things that most come to mind are lawyers in court and the First Amendment.