News & Commentary

  

From the Institute of Justice report, Policing for Profit:

SAN DIEGO – The American Civil Liberties Union today demanded a federal investigation into allegations of rampant abuse of individuals, including U.S. citizens and legal residents, by Customs and Border Protection agents at ports of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border.

ALBUQUERQUE, NM – Today, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico sent letters to county jails throughout the State of New Mexico, discouraging them from routinely strip searching arrestees without reasonable suspicion that they possess contraband. Despite  a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that broadened strip search authority under the federal Constitution, the ACLU asserts that the New Mexico State Constitution would altogether prohibit routine, suspicionless strip searches. “Our State Constitution holds our law enforcement officials to higher standards,” said ACLU of New Mexico Executive Director Peter Simonson. “In New Mexico, we know that subjecting people to routine strip searches without reasonable suspicion is wrong. It is humiliating, degrading and dehumanizing.” New Mexico courts have consistently interpreted Article II, Section 10 of the New Mexico State Constitution (our state constitutional equivalent to the Fourth Amendment) to guarantee a ‘broad right’ to be ‘free from unwarranted governmental intrusion.’ Legal analysis of the state constitution has led ACLU of New Mexico attorneys to conclude that New Mexico courts would likely find suspicionless strip searches of people arrested for minor offenses unreasonable. The case that prompted the Supreme Court ruling involved a man named Albert Florence, who was arrested in 2005 due to a police computer error that showed he failed to pay a fine he had already taken care of. Though innocent, Florence was held for six days and strip searched twice, made to squat naked and cough as jail officials examined his body. Throughout the country, an estimated 700,000 individuals are sent to jail for relatively minor infractions every year. Often people are found to be innocent of charges or the court drops the charges against them. “This is something that could happen to anybody,” said ACLU of New Mexico Managing Attorney Laura Schauer Ives. “For something as small as forgetting to pay a traffic fine, you could find yourself standing naked before a government employee. We want to make sure that jail officials understand that this is unacceptable in New Mexico.” In its letter, the ACLU of New Mexico declares its commitment to ensuring that the Supreme Court’s recent ruling does not give rise to gratuitous use of strip searches and violations under the New Mexico constitution in New Mexico’s jails.

Watch Crossing the line at the border on PBS. See more from Need To Know. WARNING: Watching this video will take you to an outside website with a privacy policy that differs from ACLU of New Mexico. A copy of PBS's privacy policy can be read here.   TAKE ACTION SIGN THE PETITION: Demand Respect for Life from the U.S. Border Patrol.          

John C. Bienvenu Over the vigorous dissent of four justices, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last week that the U.S. Constitution does not prohibit jails from routinely strip searching inmates, even if people are booked into facilities for minor offenses and officials have

ROSWELL, NM—Today, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico filed a lawsuit against the City of Roswell, NM, alleging that police officers repeatedly violated the First Amendment free speech rights of two local street preachers, Joshua and Jeremy De Los Santos. Joshua and Jeremy are brothers and members of the Old Paths Baptist Church in Roswell, where Joshua is the pastor. Both believe they have a duty to boldly preach the Gospel in public, and both regularly do so in publicly owned spaces. However, the Roswell Police Department (RPD) has arrested both brothers multiple times for expressing their sincerely held religious beliefs in public, as is their right under the First Amendment.

Gary C. Mitchell, ACLU-NM Board President At a time when unemployment is high and families are struggling, Representative Steve Pearce (NM-2) picks a callous moment to create unnecessary hurdles for Americans to obtain ne

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6unSfZUqbo&NR=1