vol. 37, no. 1

Publication of the

American Civil Liberties Union

of

Northern California

Volume XXXVII

San Francisco, January, 1972

In Spite of Public Support

Street Artists Face Arrest

In "Unspecified" Areas

Photos Courtesy of SF Street Artists Guild

Superior Court Judge Charles Peery

presented San Francisco street artists with (c)

an unhappy Christmas present, when in

mid-December he announced his in-

tention to rule against the ACLU's

contention that the peddler licensing code

is unconstitutional.

The Judge stated that artists were not

protected by the First Amendment since

they are selling goods rather than merely

displaying them. He refused to rule on the

constitutionality of the police practice

which automatically denies licenses

without a hearing.

A switch in tactics kept the artists on

the streets, however, when over 50 of

them marched on Mayor Alioto's office to

present him with petitions of support for

the artists, signed by 20,000 people. The

Mayor declared a two-week ``morator-

ium'? on afrests, expressing the

hope that agreement could be reached

between artists and merchants on some

compromise which the Board of Super-

visors could legislate.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

Some

Good

News...

News `Ban' at

Santa Rita Ended

An agreement allowing newsmen to

interview inmates of the Santa Rita

Rehabilitation Center was formalized on

January 3 when Judge Samuel Conti

signed an order dismissing a suit against

Alameda County Sheriff Frank Madigan

by the ACLU-NC.

The suit was filed last summer on behalf

of Bruce Henderson, 25, a reporter for the

LIVERMORE INDEPENDENT, who

said he had been repeatedly prevented

from interviewing inmates about reports

of abuse and poor conditions at the jail.

Henderson had been investigating rumors

of the mysterious disappearance of cattle

from Santa Rita's livestock herd which is

intended to provide meat to feed inmates.

Public's Right to Know

Legal Director Paul Halvonik, who

represented Henderson, comments, `*We

are delighted that the public's right to

know what is going on inside Santa Rita

has been restored. There has never been a

time when it has been as important as it is

now for the public to be fully informed

about the conditions in its jails and

prisons. Informed public judgments on.

penal conditions are essential if there is to

be fundamental and durable prison

reform."'

Henderson advises that he has requests

for interviews from about a dozen in-

mates, who he will begin seeing im-

mediately.

Jail authorities had arrested Henderson

last Spring for trespassing and illegally

talking with inmates, but a jury cleared

him of the charges this Fall.

Teacher

Credential Granted

Beth Sherril received her California

teaching credential last month, with the

help of correspondence and an appearance

at a hearing on her behalf by ACLU-NC

Staff Counsel Charles Marson. The

Department of Education had withheld

accreditation because of Mrs. Sherril's

arrest for trespassing, disturbing the peace

and resisting arrest in connection with

campus demonstrations while she was a

college student in Berkeley and in Long

Beach.

According to Marson, Mrs. Sherril's

appearance before the Committee of

Credentials persuaded them of the truth of

such support statements of her former

professors as the following: `"`(She is) a

maturing, law-abiding, sensitive and

concerned human being. If she is a danger

to school children, then we ought to go

out of business.''

Welfare Residency

Requirement Stopped

Judge Perluss of the Sacramento

Superior Court has issued a preliminary

injunction against yet another section of

the beleagured Welfare Reform Act of

1971. Robert Carleson, the Director of

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

No. 1

And

Some

Bad

U.S. Supreme Court

Refuses Military

Uniform Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to

decide whether a military regulation

forbidding members of the Air Force from

wearing their uniform to anti-military

rallies is unconstitutional.

The case was handled by ACLU-NC for

three Air Force Reserve members - John

Bright, Charles Williams and Edward

O'Connel - who served their active duty

at Hamilton Air Force Base in Marin

County.

The ACLU-NC contended that the rule

was a blatant infringement of the First

Amendment because it banned wearing

the uniform to anti-military rallies while

allowing the uniform at pro-military

functions.

Justices William O. Douglas and

William J. Brennan Jr. dissented.

Soledad Trial

Security Petition

Denied Twice

Both the State Court of Appeal and the

State Supreme Court have refused the

ACLU-NC's challenge of the security

procedures being used in the Soledad

Brothers Trial originally filed in

November of 1971. An action in federal

court is being considered.

Those attending the trial have had to

submit to photographing and a thorough

search, including a `"`strip'' search for

women that the ACLU-NC regards as

**Degrading'' and ``Illegal''. Such

general search practices are prohibited by

the Fourth Amendment to the Con-

stitution.

The court has taken the position that,

"`the security regulations in question,

under all of the circumstances, are

reasonable.''

Dr. Poshman Again

Denied Tenure

Judge M. O. Sabraw of the Alameda

Superior Court has ruled that there is no

cause of action in the continued denial of

tenure for Dr. Gene Poschman of Cal State

Hayward. ACLU-NC participated as

Amicus Curiae in the case.

Dr. Poschman has had his tenure denied

since 1968 through a series of 10 review

levels, with favorable faculty committee

recommendations being consistently

overturned by the administration.

In his Amicus brief, cooperating at-

torney Don Maffly stated, ``The

Chancellor and the other college ad-

`ministrators are not free to ignore

mandatory procedural requirements and

to exercise unfettered discretion in an

arbitrary manner without any - judicial

review." :

The court found no evidence to prove

that, ``the decision of the President and

the Chancellor was based on _ con-

stitutionally impermissible grounds."'

Court Told Death Penalty

oe

=

Wo

Sketches by Howard Brodie of the last man to be executed i in California - Aaron Mitchell

- at the moment of death. Details in story below.

BrainSurgery How Cruel is an Execution?

on Prisoners

Protested

Following an outcry from the public

that included an official ACLU-NC

protest, the California Department of

Corrections has decided to delay an ex-

perimental brain surgery plan for violent

prison inmates.

An indication that the idea is not being

dropped completely, however, came from

prison spokesman Walter Barkdull,

Director of Planning and Development,

who stated it, "`hasn't been abandoned.''

"Undeveloped"

A request for federal money for the

surgery program has been turned down by

the state's Council for Criminal Justice,

who described it as, ``a rather un-

developed concept.'? In a reply to an

ACLU-NC protest letter, prison

spokesman Philip Guthrie, Information

Chief, also admits, ``the idea was never

fully developed and reviewed."'

Voluntary?

The ACLU-NC took particular ex-

ceptionto the apparent involuntary nature

of the plan: `"The ACLU opposes and will

challenge any attempt to subject human

beings to nonconsensual `rehabilitative'

operations. Whether the object of the

experiment voluntarily agrees to be

`rehabilitated' in a short-cut fashion is

something we expect prominently to be

discussed. After all, when one is thought

to be functioning so poorly that brain

surgery is in order, his very ability to

consent to an experimental operation

should be thoroughly examined.''

Medical Objection

At a public discussion on the subject,

late in December, charges were leveled by (c)

members of San Francisco's medical

community at another Department of

Correction medical project, the Maximum

- Psychological Diagnostic Unit, set to open

next month at Vacaville. Dr. Philip

Shapiro of the Medical Committee for

Human Rights warned that programs are

`contemplated at the diagnostic center

involving sex-altering hormones and

``negative programming drugs'' such as

anectine, which produces a sensation

of drowning and suffocation.

JAN. 1972

Page 2 actu NEws

. Eyewitness accounts of executions,

which reveal the horrifying psychological

and pysical effects on a human, speak most

strongly to the cruelty of the death

penalty. The following accounts are from

"The Case Against Capital Punish-

ment'', a booklet available for $1.00 from

the Coalition To End The Death Penalty,

593 Market Street, Suite 227, San

Francisco.

Former San Quentin Warden Duffy,

who has seen many gassings, reports that

the prisoner is strapped in a chair, the

chamber is sealed, and the cyanide gas

eggs are dropped into the sulphuric acid.

When the gas reaches the prisoner ``at

first there is extreme evidence of horror,

pain, strangling. The eyes pop, they turn

purple, they drool. It is a horrible sight.''

Aaron Mitchell became the second to

last man to be executed in the United

States, on April 12, 1967. A few hours

before his execution, he took off his

clothes and slashed his: wrists with a

hidden razor blade; he stood in the form of

a crucifix, arms outstretched, with blood

dripping to the floor. ``This is the blood of

Jesus Christ, I am the second coming, ''

he cried. He was dragged struggling and

screaming into the chamber and strapped

in the chair, and was still shouting ``I am

Christ'' when the cyanide fumes reached

him."'

The last execution in the United States,

the gassing of Luis Jose Monge in

Colorado in June of 1967, produced this

eyewitness account: oe

"`According to the official execution log

unconsciousness came more than five

minutes after the cyanide splashed down

into the sulphuric acid. And to those of us

who watched, this five minute interlude

seemed interminable. Even after un-

consciousness: is declared officially, the

prisoner's body continues to fight for life.

He coughs and groans. The lips make little

pouting motions resembling the motions

made by a goldfish in his bowl. The head

Strains back and then slowly sinks down to

the chest. And in Monge's case, the

arms, although tightly bound to the chair,

Strained at the straps, and the hands

clawed torturously as if the prisoner were

struggling for air.''

It is controversial how quickly the

prisoner loses consciousness. Some

medical experts believe cyanide poisoning

amounts to slow, agonizing strangulation.

It was reported that Caryl Chessman gave

a prearranged signal six minutes after the

gas reached him.

In the last moments, men often simply

disintegrate. From the chaplain of-San

Quentin we have this account of the

execution of Leanderess Riley:

"At nine-fifty, Associate Warden Rigg

and the doctors came in. I told Leanderess

to say a prayer to himself, if he did not

care to have me pray, and to relax into

God's care. He did not seem to hear me.

When the doctors started to approach his

cell, he made a throaty, gutteral growling

sound. Frantically, at random, he picked

up some of the old legal papers on his table

and began passing them through the bars

to the associate warden, as if they were

appeals or writs.

""A guard unlocked his cell. He pnbped

the bars with both hands and began a long,

shrieking cry. It was a bone chilling

wordless cry. The guards grabbed him,

wrested him violently away from the bars.

The old shirt and trousers were stripped

off. His flailing arms and legs were forced

into the new white shirt and fresh blue

denims. The guards needed-all their

strength to hold him while the doctor

taped the end of the stethoscope in place.

"`The deep-throated cry, alternately

moaning and shrieking, continued.

Leanderess had to be carried to the gas

chamber, fighting, writhing all the way.

As the witnesses watched in horror, the

guards stuffed him into a chair. One guard

threw his weight against the struggling

little Negro while the other jerked the

straps tight. They backed out, slammed

the door on him.

"`Leanderess didn't stop screaming or

struggling. Associate Warden Rigg was

about to signal for the dropping of the gas

pellets when we all saw Riley's small

hands break free from-the straps. He

pulled at the other buckles, was about to

free himself.

"The Associate Warden withheld his

signal. San Quentin had never execute a

man raging wildly around the gas

chamber. He ordered the guards to go in

again and restrap the frenzied man. One of

is Cruel/Unusual

The California Supreme Court heard

oral argument January 6 on the con-

stitutionality of the death penalty, by

Stanford Law Professor Anthony Am-

sterdam, appearing as a cooperating at-

torney for ACLU-NC. The Heanne was in

Los Angeles.

The case involves death row inmate

Robert P. Anderson, who killed a store

clerk in San Diego in 1965.

Unconstitutional

The ACLU has been actively involved

in the campaign to end the use of capital

punishment, preventing any executions

from taking place in the U.S. for the past

four and one-half years. ACLU argues that

the death penalty is clearly prohibited by

the U.S. and California Constitutions

which specify that punishment can not be

"*Cruel and or unusual.''

The brief points out, ``As for cruelty,

no one has ever denied that the death

penalty is severe beyond all human

comprehension. For man deliberately and

needlessly to take life, which he does not

understand and to inflict death, which

leads he knows not where, is an act that

eclipses every other. cruelty humanity can

mete out or bear.''

Deterrent?

In response to a question of the Court,

Amsterdam said that even if the death

penalty could be proved to be a deterrent

(which it has not been), it would not

necessarily follow that it is constitutional.

`*You can make a pretty strong case that

boiling people in oil might have some

deterrent value,'' he said, ``but the

_ government can't use it.''

Regarding capital punishment's

unusualness, "`Capital punishment as it is

used in California, the United States and |

the world today represents the utmost

example of irregular and selective severity

in criminal punishments. An extremely

small sample of the people who commit

murder are executed, while most of those

convicted of such crimes are dealt with by

imprisonment.'

{

Harsh and Oppressive

**Surely our civilization has reached the

point of development where we can

completely abandon a penalty so harsh and

oppressive that it can command public

acceptance only by sporadic, irregular and

exceedingly rare infliction.''

The brief was prepared by volunteer

ACLU attorney Jerome Falk, Ir., who

was appointed attorney for Anderson by

the court, following the death of his prior

attorney.

Professor Amsterdam will also be

making the `cruel and unusual punish-

ment'' argument this month in several

cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

the guards said later he had to cinch the

straps down so tightly the second time that

he `was ashamed of himself.'

`Again the door was closed. Again

Leanderess managed to free his small,

thin-wristed right hand from the straps.

Riggs gave the order to drop the pellets.

Working furiously, Leanderess freed his

left hand. The chest strap came off next.

Still shrieking and moaning, he was

working on the waist strap when the gas

bit him. He put both hands over his face to

hold it away. Then his hands fell, his head

arched back. His eyes remained open. His

heart beat continued to register for two

minujtes, but his shrieking stopped and

his head slowly dropped."'

AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION NEWS

Published by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California

Second Class Mail privileges authorized at San Francisco, California

Howard Jewel, Chairman of the Board

Jay Miller, Executive Director

William Kane, Editor and Public Information Director

593 Market Street, San Francisco, California 94105-433-2750

Membership $10 and up of which $2.50 is the annual subscription fee = acu

News.

New California Law

On Criminal Justice

The following is a final report on prison and parole bills for the 1971 session of the State

Legislature, compiled by the Friends Committee on Legislation.

Appearing

on the list are only those bills which passed all the way through the

Legislature and reached the Governor's desk. The list does not include the bills that died in

committee.

Signed by Governor

Automatic Bail

Denial Hit in

Angela Case

ACLU filed a Friend-of-the Court- brief

with the Federal District Court, protesting

the automatic denial of bail to Angela

Davis. The brief is jointly filed by ACLU

of Northern California and ACLU of

Southern California. The hearing was

held on January 12 before Judge William

Sweigert.

Media Attack

on ACLU

The December issue of COM-

MENTARY magazine contained a

blistering attack on the ACLU for

engaging in one-sided politics. While a

critical analysis of ACLU's work from an

objective outsider observer, could

probably he helpful in encouraging us to

be more self-critical, and aware, the fact is

that the author Joseph W. Bishop, Jr., a -

Yale law professor, is hardly that kind of

critic.

AB 305 (Brathwaite, D., LA) - Permits sale of handiwork by a juvenile hall ward,

with profits to go into juvenile's trust account. Judge Approved an : f

AB 581 (Russell, R., LA) - Provides compensation to needy victims for damages by The ACLU brief points out that a In Le hy oe

iminal ` ir acting General Counsel of the Army,

a criminal. probation department and trial judge have ied bet he H I i

AB 631 (Moorhead, R., LA) - Permits Director of Corrections to transfer prison found the Miss Davis' release on money Lose Crore f re bea uierne

inmates to community correctional centers. bail, will reasonably assure her presence at nae Seu nay 2 ee

- of Corrections course in barbering. Nonetheless, she is still being held in I) : the eee oe nA eee _

AB 693 (Arnett, R., San Mateo) - Repeals authorization for recommitment of wards custody. Bis oD Ce ah ae i

from Youth Authority to Department of Mental Hygiene. According to Legal Director Paul ontans Many. distortions and cee ee

` = LAY Gran din ore ick. leak ll Se : : 2 National ACLU's Executive Director,

x AB 723 (Sieroty, D., LA) ants arrested minors right to telephone calls. Halvonik, ``this categorical denial of pre `Aeooh : i; ; il

AB 1027 (Moorhead, R., LA) - Permits prisoner on work furlough to hold job outside trial release in capital cases clearly un- ee oo 5 a Sie ae

of county and permits 72-hour releases for medical care or for family or dermines the presumption of innocence in SS Oe

busi co COMMENTARY fairly soon. For those

usiness reasons. violation of the Fourteenth Amendment h ; : ite to the Nauonal

AB 1653 (Ketchum, R., Kern) - Authorizes insane prisoners convicted of capital Political Ore

crimes to be taken to Department of Corrections medical facility. Eulvonie pointe cle war Gach

AB 1736 (Moorhead, R., LA) - Provides that prisoners participating in research : : ae

projects may be paroled after completion of project. Be a be nore tuey Welfa re

physically dangerous. : : " : ae State Department of Social Welfare,

AB 2015 (McAlister, D:,Santa Clara) - For a pilot program for the Santa Clara aes c eee Dpee: if the a . Was ordered a refrain from implementing

County Sup't. of Schools to maintain classes in jail. Bie OF 2 apres Cae the so-called ``Emergency Residenc

: : . . unconditional incarceration, then we have c eS y

AB 2091 (Meade, D., Alameda) - Permits defendant to file suggestions for his own gees octane ty meat ad Giieerrained Requirement'' until such time as a full

fehabiltat {op Eee ar ae 8 unishing the political hearing on the issue is held.

AB 2712 (Sieroty, D., LA) - Provides protection for defendants being surrendered b istry we ses ey ae es ; ial Libecti i

bondsmen. Northern California and ACLU of

SB 27 (Grunsky, R., Santa Cruz) - Allows use of tear gas by investigators Southern California, California Rural

regularly employed by district attorneys and Attorney General. S : Legal Assistance and San Francisco

years on probation. dation.

SB 390 (Cologne, R., Riverside) - Permits narcotics addicts in state narcotics The challenged statute requires that

rehabilitation program to be housed and treated in local jails. adult recipients of aid under the Aid-to-

SB 533 (Moscone, D., San Francisco) - Requires deletion from arrest records Families with: Dependent- Children Pro-

arrests made without warrants. ae a gram, who reside in counties where

correctional institution, the right to take state examination to obtain license (c) Ut must have lived in said county for a full

in that skill. : calendar year prior to applying for aid. The

SB 1068 (Nejedly, R., Contra Costa) - Requires that board of supervisors be con- .

Vetoed by Governor

convicted of capital crimes.

sulted on amount to be paid counsel for indigents.

records in Bureau of Criminal Identification and to request corrections.

persons of their constitutionally protected

right to travel freely. They pointed out

that since the U.S. Supreme Court's

residency decision in 1969, similar

statutes of Arizona and Montana have

been invalidated by the U.S. . Supreme

Court and that New York and Con-

necticut statutes of the same sort had been

struck down by lower federal courts in the

AB 92 (MacDonald, D., Ventura) - Provides for cost-of-living adjustments in past few months.

amounts paid by the state to counties under probation subsidy program. The ACLU also charged that the statute

x AB~1181 (Murphy, R., Santa Cruz) - To establish ombudsman for corrections. discriminates against California's -

x AB 1661 (Brathwaite, D., LA) - Permits physician or psychiatrist employed by 10.7 move from county to county in search of

@Vicis Betarpeters, Rony 108

prisoner or his attorney to visit prisoner.

work.

' AB 2062 (Karabian, D., LA) - Adds two members to the Correctional. Industries "You still got a chance, Louis!...! just filed an appeal stating that

Commission qualified in the field of job placement. bang oma ay et Se ee ee

Courtesy of Puniishers-Hall Syndicate

The Emergency Residency Require-

ment had been enacted as part of

involved violation of specific election laws. the ee oo last ee :

AB 2552 (Moretti, D., LA) - Creates Victim Compensation Commission. . male lee AC OS ee

) minimum standards for local detention facilities. eS ""While each of us on the Democratic

_after five years on parole. This hope proved futile as the merchant residency requirement, we ultimately

specifies qualifications for membership. opposition to any selling on the streets by which would apply to only a very

charge shall receive a certificate of detention. Mayor Alioto then announced an strategy was to give the Governor a

SB 1391 (Way, R., Mariposa) - Permits narcotics addicts to be placed under county interim plan that allows artists to sell in watered-down _ unconstitutional

probation instead of being sent to California Rehabilitation Center. certain areas at certain times: daily in the residency requirement in exchange for

investigator or a law student undertaking practical training.

make

Beginning with January the

response to a recommendation of

the Branch Chapter Committee, to

it easier for

representatives to attend Board

agendas that mid-day meetings

made impossible.

Branch

Gate Park Concourse; weekends inside

Union Square and Sundays on Beach

street across from Ghirardeli Square.

The merchant associations have stated

peddling without a license.

The police department has announced

that they will arrest any artists selling in

places and at times other than those

specified by the Mayor.

pectation that the courts will enjoin

the residency requirement as they did

recently in New York.''

Noted Catherine Jermany, President of

ACLU-NC Board of Directors will meetings. In addition, evening their opposition to the Mayor's plan and the California Welfare Rights

meet in the evening rather than at meetings will make it possible to question his right to ``interfere'' with ee lind Gh

This ch de i letely the full enforcement of the city ordinance against CEE 7 pane ee

noon. is change was made in covet more completely the - (c)Gnce agin "the "Resa he

ministration's insensitivity to the rights of

poor persons has been ~ successfully

challenged in the courts.'

JAN. 1972

acLu news Page 3 |

News from the Chapters]

Oakland |

Support for

Police Chief

The following public statement was

issued by the Oakland Chapter: ``The

board of directors of the Oakland Civil

Liberties Union wishes to express our

support of Police Chief Charles Gain's

stated policy of restricting Oakland

policemen's use of their firearms.

``Further, we believe the opportunity

for citizens in the community to voice

complaints about individual officers is a

progressive stand for responsible conduct

and equitable justice.

Sonoma

SF Sheriff Speaks

The new San Francisco Sheriff Richard

Hongisto spelled out his theories on law

enforcement at the annual meeting of the

Sonoma County Chapter. He stressed that

the two most important factors in society

that create crime are the lack of

distribution of the wealth of the world and

the `hates'' built around physical

characteristics such as skin color,

religion, political belief or some similar

factor. He explained that society likes to

believe that the criminal acts from his own

free will, rather than in response to his

environment, because this frees society

from the blame for criminal behavior. -

San Francisco

Now You See It,

Now You Dont

_ The following series of correspondence

illustrates the effect on questionable

procedures that an expression of ACLU

interest can produce. Thanks to Ron

Sipherd and the SF Chapter's Employment

Rights Committee.

Dear ACLU:

We filed a complaint with the Labor

Commission against XXX Shoe Store

concerning the Polygraph test which is

given to prospective employees. However,

it appears that the Commission will not be

able to intercede, because the employer

did not base the Polygraph test as a

condition of employment or continued

employment. I spoke with the Store

Manager, who related that the Polygraph

testing requirement was issued by the

President of XXX Shoe Corporation and

bears no reflection on hiring procedures.

Bay Area Urban League

Dear XXX Store Manager:

We have been requested to look into

the use of polygraph (lie-detector) tests on

applicants for employment with your

company. As you are no doubt aware,

Section 432.2 of the State Labor Code

prohibits the use of polygraph tests as a

~ condition for employment or the retention

of employment. If you do not use them as a

condition of employment, why do you

give them, and would the refusal of an

applicant to submit to such a test affect his

chance of being hired? What questions do

you ask prospective employees, to whom

are his answers and the operator's analysis

of them given, and what effect do they

have upon his chances of being hired and

his competitive standing with other ap-

plicants? Your answers to these questions

would be most helpful to us in determing

whether a civil-liberties violation has

occurred.

ACLU

JAN. 1972

Page 4 acLu News

Dear ACLU:

This is to advise you the XXX Shoes

does not require that anyone submit to a

polygraph examination.

President

Dear Bay Area Urban League:

Attached is a copy of a letter we

received today from the President of XXX

Shoes. We don't plan to take any further

action on this matter since it seems there

is a good chance that the Store Manager

will now stop trying to give polygraph

tests. If you disagree, or if he continues to

"*request'' applicants to take these tests,

we would like to hear from you.

ACLU

Santa Clara Valley

Vanishing

Corporate Policy

Following a conference with Joyce Sogg

of the Santa Clara Valley Chapter, Sears

Roebuck and Company decided that a

married, female head-of-household was

not such a bad credit risk after all.

Santa Cruz

Divorce Papers

Victory

Santa Cruz County Clerk' Tom Keeley

has announced that individuals may now

receive and file their own divorce papers.

This statement represents a victory for

the Santa Cruz Chapter of ACLU-NC,

which has been attempting for more than a

year to reverse a practice of the Santa Cruz

County Superior Court. The County

claimed that persons acting on their own

behalf were coming to Court with in-

complete papers, and asking clerks in the

County Clerk's office for legal advice.

Officialdom'sanswer to this problem was

to discontinue making the forms available

to anyone except attorneys, contrary to

the intent of the 1970 Family Law Act.

Following a discussion between At-

torney Stephen Erlick, member of the

Chapter Board of Directors, and Superior

Court Judge Charles Franich on the

ACLU's opposition to such a policy, it

was reversed. Now persons may file the

forms ``in propia persona'', and as im-

portant, receive the forms directly from

the County Clerk's office. Chapter Board

members Stan Stevens and Hugh

Johnston also worked on the case.

Santa Clara Valley

Angela Davis

A request has been sent to Judge Scott

that the Chapter be allowed a delegate as

observer at the Angela Davis Trial. This

delegate would also function as a

representative of the Belgian League for

the Rights of Man, Brussels, who have

asked that ACLU observe on their behalf.

Stockton

Annual Meeting

Asmb. Willie Brown will be the featured

speaker at the annual membership dinner

meeting, to be held February 10. Location

will be Johnny Hom's Restaurant, 1563

E. Fremont, with cocktails at 6:30 and

dinner at 7:30. Tickets may be obtained

for $5 by calling Frances Francois in the

evening at 463-3873.

ACLU Calls Wiretap

"Invasion of Privacy"

The ACLU has challenged the government's invasion of a citizen's right of privacy by

``wiretap'' merely because the person has been arrested. A joint friend-of-the-court brief

was filed on Jan. 11 with the California Supreme Court by the ACLU of Northern -

California and the ACLU of Southern California.

The case involves the admissiblity of evidence obtained by the San Bernardino County

Sheriff's office by recording a private conversation between Thomas Halpin and his wife

without either's consent.

Abortion Law

Challenged

Participating in the challenge to

California's. Therapeutic Abortion Act of -

1967, the ACLU affiliates of Southern and

Northern California filed a joint friend-of-

the-court brief with the Western Center

on Law and Poverty contending that the

abortion laws discriminate against the

poor and the non-white.

In 1969, as noted in the brief, the

California Supreme Court struck down the

state's earlier abortion law, pointing out

"that the critical issue was not whether

the right to have an abortion existed but

rather, if the state had a compelling in-

terest in the regulation of abortion as to

invoke the police powers of the state.''

Favors Rich

Nevertheless, the brief continued, the

present laws "`not only restrict women's

exercise of the right to choose whether to

bear children, but create a situation which

permits more affluent women to obtain

abortions easily while leaving poor women

to bear the unwanted child or run the risk

of seeking an illegal abortion.''

The current laws require that an

abortion be performed in an accredited

hospital and be approved in advance by a

committee of the hospitals' medical staff. -

Approval can only be granted if the

pregnancy resulted from rape or incest, or

if its continuance is deemed likely to

gravely impair the physical or mental

health of the mother.

This set of laws, the brief charged,

""denies women the fundamental rights of

privacy and to choose whether or not to

bear children.''

The ban on performance in a doctor's

office and other constraints, the brief

added, deny physicians ``the right to

practice their profession in accordance

with their best judgment and belief.''

To demonstrate the discriminatory

~ effect of the abortion act, the brief cited

numerous statistical, sociological and

medical studies showing that abortions are

more readily accessible for more affluent

women than for the poor.

Marin

Annual Meeting

The annual membership meeting of the

Marin ACLU Chapter will be on Friday,

January 21, at 8 p.m. in the Mill Valley

Recreation Center, 180 Camino Alto,

Mill Valley.

Among the speakers will be Jay Miller,

talking on ``Civil Liberties Today: Where

Do We Go'', and Eason Monroe,

Executive Director of ACLU of Southern

California, telling the story of his long

battle against the state's loyalty oath,

""My 20-year Sabbatical''. .

Officers for 1972 will be elected. The

meeting is open to the public.

San Francisco

Legislative

Members interested in helping wat-

chdog legislation in San Francisco contact

Peter Alcantara at 626-6381. Primary job

will be to function as observers at the

Board of Supervisors' meetings.

`refused to reveal what

The ACLU brief points out, ``This

eavesdropping violates both federal and

state statutory prohibitions, hence the

evidence is clearly the product of unlawful

search and seizure prohibited by the |

Fourth Amendment to the Consituttion."'

The state claims the right of ``cen-

sorship and control over communications

with those incarcerated in jails and

prisons'', including Mr. Halpin's pre-

trial detention in this category. From this

assettion of power, the lower court

reached the conclusion that' ``neither an

incarcerated prisoner or the recipient of a

call from him has reasonable expectation

of privacy."'

Warrant needed

However, ACLU explains: ``Congress,

in the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe

Streets Act of 1967, expressly provided

that no state official may intercept a wire

communication unless he complies with a

statutory warrant procedure. The

California legislature has consistently

refused to adopt search warrant legislation

authorizing eavesdropping.'

The brief also provides an analysis of the

costs and results of the use of wiretapping

by federal and state officials throughout

the U.S., leading to the conclusion that it

has been of "`little value to law en-

forcement.'' It points out that while

wiretapping is usually justified by the state

as sound precaution against crimes of

violence such as homicide and kidnapping,

its use, especially at the state level,

normally results in the apprehension of a

few small-time bookmakers.

The ACLU strongly questions the gross

invasion of privacy implicit in wiretapping

in all situations, but particularly when its

use is limited to the lower priority vic-

timless crimes of gambling, narcotics and

prostitution.

The brief was prepared by ACLU-NC's

Legal Director Paul Halvonik and ACLU-

SC's Legislative Director Coleman Blease.

Complaint Lacks

7 "Specificity"

Sacramento ACLU-NC Cooperating

attorney Lawrence Karlton has again

argued the case of George Choung on an

appeal by the State of the Federal District

Court ruling. District Court Judge

McBride had held that Choung was denied

due process because of the lack of

specificity in the complaint.

Choung had been arrested in 1968 on a

complaint by the Sacramento High School

principal that he had refused to leave the

campus as ordered. Penal Code Section

602.9 was cited, which prohibits any

person from entering school grounds,

with an unlawful purpose, if his presence

_ interfered with the peaceful conduct of the

school, and if he remained after being

asked to leave by the chief administrative

official. Choung was convicted of con-

tributing to the delinquency of minors.

Violation Kept Secret

The reason Choung had gone to the

campus was to help forestall violence in a

class walk-out protest over discriminatory

teaching methods. The State, however,

`unlawful

business'? Choung was to be accused ot

pursuing until the close of its case at the

trial. ;

S