We are hard at work in Olympia, collaborating with allies and activists to defend and extend civil liberties and civil rights during this year’s 60-day session. Here are our legislative priorities for 2018.
Solitary confinement —the practice of isolating people in closed cells for 22-24 hours a day, virtually free of human contact, for days to decades—violates this fundamental need for community and connection, causing extreme suffering.
In May, Antonio Sanchez Ochoa was booked into the Yakima County Jail on state criminal charges. A superior court judge set bail, and though his sister had the ability to post the bail money, Yakima County refused to let him out of jail.
Courts have consistently held that when people invite law enforcement into their homes, they have a right to say where those officers can and cannot go.
I’m still devastated by the fact that simply because I’m transgender I was refused coverage for the medical care that my doctor prescribed for me. With the help of the ACLU, we’re bringing a lawsuit against PeaceHealth because no one should be refused care because of who they are.
Every person in America has a right to be free from invasive searches by the government, and that right does not disappear simply because one is accused of a crime.
Confronting the role of structural racism in policing (and elsewhere) must be at the core of our work to save lives and ensure police are there to serve and protect.