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Discrimination Is Not a Washington Value

The ACLU proudly stands with other advocates of equality in opposing an initiative that would overturn state protections against discrimination for transgender people. Read More »

Historic Ruling: ACLU Lawsuit Against CIA Torture Psychologists Can Proceed

A federal judge in Spokane said that he would allow a lawsuit against the two psychologists who designed and implemented the CIA program to move forward. The ruling is unprecedented for a case seeking to bring accountability for the CIA’s torture program. Read More »
 

ACLU-WA Launches Website on Surveillance Technology

Mar 3, 2016
The ACLU-WA has launched “They Are Watching,” a website providing information about cutting-edge surveillance technologies and the threats they pose to privacy, free speech, and other civil liberties. Read More »
 

Washington woman denied medically necessary health care at Catholic hospital speaks out

A new ACLU report includes a first-hand account by a Washington woman denied medically necessary care at a Catholic hospital. The report finds more than 40 percent of hospital beds in the state are in Catholic facilities that prohibit some essential medical care. Read More »
 

Suit Seeking Lawyers for Children Facing Deportation Goes Forward

A federal court has rejected the government’s request to dismiss a class-action lawsuit seeking legal representation for thousands of children nationwide facing deportation hearings. Read More »
 
Washington Temple of Justice

ACLU Urges WA Supreme Court to Strike Down Death Penalty for Being Arbitrary, Unfair, Racially Biased

Feb 24, 2016
An ACLU brief asserts that the state’s system of capital punishment is fundamentally flawed and must be struck down: Joining in the brief are 56 former and retired judges from around the state and a wide range of other organizations. Read More »
 
Lady Justice

Court Orders State to Stop Violating Rights of People with Mental Illness in Jail

Apr 3, 2015
A federal judge has rebuked the State of Washington and ordered it to provide competency services speedily to people with mental illness in jails. The ruling came in a suit on behalf of incarcerated pre-trial detainees who have sat for weeks and months awaiting court-ordered services. Read More »
 
Photo of hands through prison bars

Lawsuit Challenges Modern-Day Debtors’ Prison

Oct 6, 2015
An ACLU-WA lawsuit says Benton County is violating the Constitution by jailing, threatening to jail, or forcing manual labor on people who are too poor to pay court-imposed debts.  Read More »
 
Kevan Coffey and Margaret Chen

Woman Sues Public Hospital District to Ensure Access to Abortion

Feb 19, 2015
The ACLU of Washington has filed a lawsuit seeking to have Skagit Regional Health comply with Washington’s Reproductive Privacy Act (RPA).  The suit is part of a new statewide effort by the ACLU to ensure that all public hospitals are complying with the RPA. Read More »