vol. 40, no. 6

If there is no "'R" in the upper right

hand corner of your label, it means

that as of April 30 you had not

renewed for 1975 ... Please do it

today . . .and keep the ACLU News on

its way to you each month.

aC

clu?

Qo

news

Volume XXXX

September 1975, San Francisco

Mimority, women police

charge discrimination

At simultaneous press conferences

held last week in several cities around |

the country, the ACLU announced the

filing of a class action lawsuit against

Officials of the Law Enforcement

' Assistance Administration (LEAA) and

the U. S. Attorney General on behalf of

minority and women police officers

throughout the nation.

Two local police officers, as well as

the National Black Police Association

(NBPA) and the _ International

Association of Women Police, are

among the named plaintiffs. Ollie

Glover is a sergeant in the Richmond

Police Department and a co-founder of

the NBPA. Raymond Clark, a

patrolman in the Oakland Police (c)

Department, is information officer for

Region V of the NBPA.

Glover and Clark allege in the suit

that they, along with other members of

the class, have been discriminated

against in employment on grounds of

race by their police departments, which

_receive federal funding from LEAA.

`Since its creation by Congress in

1968, LEAA has awarded more than $1

billion to local police departments. The

legislation creating LEAA and the

agency's own regulations prohibit race

or sex discrimination by any recipient of

LEAA funds. LEAA is also required to

enforce these non-discriminatory

provisions but in fact, it has never

initiated any proceedings to deny,

suspend, or terminate LEAA funding.

Glover, a black policeman in Rich-

mond, has been denied promotion on

the basis of discriminatory and un-

`validated written tests and oral in-

terviews. Although the population of

Richmond is 40 percent black, only 11

percent of the city's police officers are

black and only three blacks have ever

been promoted beyond the rank of.

patrolman. Richmond has _ received

more than $500,000 in LEAA funding.

Clark was suspended from the

Oakland Police Department after

complaining to LEAA about the

discharge of another black officer.

Clark also alleges he has been given

duty assignments which interfere with

his going to law school, and that he has

been discriminated

promotion. Only 12 percent of

Oakland's police officers and only 4

percent of the command officers are

black, while 45 percent of the city's

population is black, the ACLU com-

plaint says. Oakland has received more

Hotel,

against in |

No. 6

ACLU-NC Executive Director David Fishlow announces suit against the Law Enfor-

cement Assistance Administration. Other speakers were (I. tor.): J. Alfred Smith of the

Oakland Coalition Against Racism ; Oakland patrolman Raymond Clark; Fishlow; Rich-

mond Police Sergeant Ollie Glover ; and the Reverend Cecil Williams of Glide Memorial

Church.

than $1 million in LEAA FUNDING.

At the San Francisco press con-

ference at the Del Webb Townehouse

David M. Fishlow commented: `This

lawsuit alone cannot stop race and sex

discrimination in our nation's police

departments but, if successful, it will

stop LEAA funding of such

discrimination. Given police depart-

ment reliance upon LEAA funding, the

NBPA suit will contribute to the

elimination of racially and sexually

discriminatory practices in our police

departments."

Glover and Clark were also present at

_ the conference and they commented on

instances of discrimination ey have

ACLU-NC Executive Director (c)

`Bay Area

experienced in the Richmond and

Oakland police departments. They both

agreed that one of the greatest

problems is use by the departments of

un-validated, non-job related and

subjective testing procedures in

determining eligibility for hiring and

promotion.

Representatives of the NAACP, the

Ministerial Alliance,

Representatives Fortney Stark and

`Ronald Dellums and the Reverend

Cecil Williams also appeared at the

conference and read statements of

support for the ACLU suit. ~ .

The suit was filed in U.S. District

Court for the District of Columbia by

National ACLU Staff Counsel Richard

Larson. -

Police strike raises off-duty gun possession issue

During the first night of the San Francisco police

strike, at least two incidents were reported in which

picketing officers fired their weapons. There were

numerous other reports of violence in conjunction

with the picket lines which did not involve guns, but

did result in the destruction of property allegedly by

the strikin g officers.

In California, state law prohibits the carrying ofa

concealed weapon, or any loaded firearm in a public

place. That same law, however, exempts both on-duty

and off-duty police officers. There was ample evidence

that police officers were carrying their guns on the

picket lines during the strike.

On the second day of the strike, ACLU-NC Staff

SS Joseph Remcho filed a complaint against

~ Chief of Police Donald M. Scott in the San Francisco 0x00B0

County Superior Court. Presiding Judge Robert F.

Drewes issued a temporary restraining order the same

day ordering Scott to regain possession of city-owned _

firearms in the hands of striking officers, and to

_ enforce the state laws barring weapons on the ground

that striking police officers cannot be exempted.

The case, Fishlow v. Scott, is on behalf of taxpayers

who assert that possession of the firearms presents a

great danger to life and property in San Francisco.

Remcho argued that as long as the officers were on (c)

strike, they were beyond the command, authority or

"supervision of the Chief and therefore should not be

exempted from the law.

Beyond the strike situation, the ACLU brief also

Eight new members begin Director terms

At its meeting on June 12, the Board of Directors

elected eight new members, who will take office in

September. They are:

_ J.Youngblood Henderson is an Assistant Professor

of Native American Studies and an attorney with a

special interest in Federal Indian Law, as well as the

civil and cultural rights of Native Americans. He is.a

"member of Rosebud Sioux Tribal Court and is

Chairperson of the Inter-Tribal Council of Harvard

University.

Dale Minami is an attorney active in the Asian Law

Caucus, who is working on a number of cases in-

volving the civil rights of Asian Americans. He has

also handled criminal cases involving political

demonstrations, picketing and leafletting, and is Co-

Chairperson of the Bay Area Community Chapter of

the Japanese American Citizens League.

Carl Jaramillo is Director of Community Services (c)

for Alameda County Central Labor Council - AFL-

CIO. He serves as a liason between United Bay Area

Crusade and the Labor Movement in Alameda County

and serves on the Board of Directors of the Bay Area

Social Planning Council.

Drucilla Ramey is an attorney who, until

recently, was serving as Director of the Chicano

Internship Program for MALDEF. She is an active

member of the ACLU Women's Rights Committee,

California Women's Lawyers Association Steering

Committee, and the National Lawyers Guild.

Jane Bond Moore is a recent graduate from Boalt

Law School, whose legal experience includes advising

continued on page 4

claims that the Chief must promulgate aon

prohibiting the carrying of firearms by off-duty police

officers except when going to or returning from duty,

or at a minimum, regulations delineating the cir-

cumstances under which they may carry weapons

while off-duty.

_ Shortly after Judge Drewes' order was issued,

Remcho commented that "the picket lines are a very

volatile environment and we've already seen violence

related to the strike, that's no place to have the

unregulated possession and use of firearms."

Chief Scott took no action to comply with the

judge's order and Remcho was in the process of

preparing contempt proceedings against him when

the strike ended. The portion of the lawsuit dealing

with possession of firearms by striking officers

therefore became moot.

Remcho plans to pursue the lawsuit with respect to

regulating off-duty use and possession of weapons by

police officers. A hearing on a preliminary injunction

will be scheduled. The hoped for result will be a .

finding by the court that it is a denial of due process

and a threat to the safety of the community for off-

duty officers to be catrying loaded weapons.

In another strike-related action, the ACLU-NC

Board of Directors will decide this week whether the

ACLU should appear amicus in two taxpayer suits

challenging Mayor Alioto's actions in unilaterally

settling the strike. The issues would be whether the

city charter provision granting emergency powers to

' the mayor is overbroad and vague or whether the

mayor abused those emergency powers in this case.

_ aclu news.

Sept. 1975

LEGAL

Police Project asks Supreme Court

to require police self-regulation

One of the chief objectives of the Northern

California Police Practices Project has been to develop

adequate public accountability of police agencies and

police personnel. The problem has been that judicial.

remedies have been wholly insufficient in controlling

widespread abuses of individual rights by police

officers.

`Accordingly, the Project has focused on the creation

of adequate internal mechanisms for regulating police

conduct and reducing police discretion. Significant

gains have been made since the Project started.

These pursuits led to the filing of an amicus brief by

the Project-in the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of

Rizzo v. Goode. The case comes out of Philadelphia

where,

District Court found that constitutional violations of

citizens' rights by Philadelphia police has occured and

would recur with intolerable frequency, and that

police officials were doing nothing about that.

Nevertheless, the court ordered the mildest con-

`ceivable form of relief, requiring only that the

- Department maintain citizen-complaint procedures

that would enable the Department, not the court, to

supervise the officers sufficiently to keep their conduct

lawful. Nevertheless, the Department's appeal to the

Supreme Court denies that police officials have any

such responsibility to control their subordinates'

obedience to constitutional limitations.

The Police Project's brief responds that such

reasoning `"`condones a regime of uncontrolled police

power wholly inconsistent with the rule of law and

with the preservation of constitutional liberties under

the law. Neither Due Process nor the Fourth

Amendment can allow:an unregulated exercise of

police authority." _

If the arguments of the Philadelphia Police

Department were accepted by the Supreme Court, the as

after extended evidentiary hearings, the

decision would undermine the responsibility some

police departments already have assumed for con-

trolling unconstitutional actions by their officers.

Also, such a decision would leave the legal process

powerless to stimulate police self-correction.

``Armed with the most violent and intrusive powers

in civilian society, and organized according to a

paramilitary model that resists external controls,

policemen must be governed effectively by their

superiors if constitutional guarantees are to be

respected at all," the brief points out.

_ There are many reasons why civil lawsuits are

ineffective in controlling police misconduct. Often the

victims are vulnerable, ignorant of their rights, and

without funds to pay a lawyer. Most juries are sym-

pathetic to police defendants and it is almost im-

possible to recover monetary damages from police

defendants even it they are found to be violating the

law or denying civil rights.

Amici argue that the only realistic way of con-

trolling the police is that remedy decided by the trial

court - namely, address the source of the problems

and order the police department to control its own

officers in a manner that is likely to provide sufficient

protection oS the recurrence of constitutional

violations.

They conclude: "There is no war between con-

stitutional liberties and the role of the police in a

democratic society. Rather, police discontrol and the

lawlessness which it spawns are at war with the

Constitution."'

The Project's brief was prepared by Project

Director Amitai Schwartz and ACLU-NC Board

member Anthony Amsterdam. National ACLU and

the Mexican American Legal Defense and

Educational Fund also participated.

You may recall the stories in the news a couple of

months ago when ACLU-NC sued Sacramento County

Sheriff Duane Lowe for collecting files on spectators

at the murder trial of Russell Little and Joseph -

Remiro. Lowe reacted angrily and defended the

security procedures.

Shortly after the trial, the Sheriff called the news

media to his office to observe the destruction of those

files. This picture appeared in the Sacramento Bee.

What the Sheriff did not tell the press is that copies

were made of these cards before they were destroyed.

At least one set is in the possession of the Alameda

County Sheriff. ACLU volunteer attorneys Gus Reich-

bach and Kip Edwards and Staff Counsel Joseph

Remcho are pursuing the case to recover all copies of

the cards. Sheriff Lowe will be deposed later this

month to find out just who does have these md eooe

destroyed files.

Military right to petition Congress S.F. Police sued for denials of

affirmed by Federal Court decision permits to U.S. Labor Party

Federal District Court Judge Robert

F. Peckham virtually voided all Defense

Department regulations limiting First

Amendment activity by military per-

sonnel this month. The ruling came in

Allen v. Monger which involved sailors

aboard the U.S.S. Hancock and U.S.S.

Midway who attempted to circulate

petitions aboard the ships. The

petitions protested orders that the ships

go to South East Asian waters and they

were addressed to Congressmen.

Trial was held in June before Judge

Peckham. The sailors were represented

by ACLU Staff Counsel Joseph

Remcho, ACLU volunteer attorney

David Cobin, and Doron Weinberg of

the National Lawyers Guild.

ee the seamen circulated the -

We're , Moving |

} The ACLU is moving. Our new

address will be 814 Mission Street

(3rd Floor), San Francisco 94103.

Commercial estimates for moving

costs are about $3000. It will cost

another $2000 to install the phones.

ourselves.

volunteers willing to join the ACLU-

NC staff on moving days - Saturday

and Sunday, September 27 and 28.

Lunch will be provided. If you can

help, contact Les Schmidt at the

ACLU office, (415) 781-2597,

Therefore we've decided to move

We could use any able-bodied |

petitions, one of them was disciplined

and then discharged and the others

were warned that they too would be

prosecuted, notwithstanding a federal

statute which prohibits interference

with the right of a person in the military

to communicate with members of

Congress.

The Navy took the position that each

sailor could send a letter to Congress

but that a petition or one letter signed

by several persons was going too far.

Remcho commented, `Judge

Peckham's order is sweeping and

unprecedented. It invalidates the

`Defense Department regulation which

governs dissident activities and bars the

military from enforcing -any prior

restraint on the exercise of First

Amendment rights."

Judge Peckham was principally

concerned with those portions of the

regulations which required military

personnel to submit proposed dissident

communications to their commanding

officers. His order also prohibits the

Defense Department from _pro-

mulgating any new regulations

which would thwart the court's opinion

and reestablish any prior restraints on

First Amendment activity.

While the case only involved the

Navy, Judge Peckham's order is binding

on all the military services. It is the

first. ruling of its kind in that it

establishes an absolute right for all

persons, in any branch of the military,

to petition for redress of grievances.

Every Saturday for the past several

`months, the U.S. Labor Party has held

a political rally at Hallidie Plaza at

Fifth and Market Streets in San

Francisco for-the purpose of informing

the public of the Party's platform and

candidates. At these rallies, speakers

have used a 14-watt bullhorn to be

heard by the 150-200 spectators nor-

mally present.

In San Francisco a permit is required

whenever a bullhorn of greater than 10

watts power is used. However, the

Police Chief is required to issue the

permit if the bullhorn is to be used to

"amplify announcements and other

matters during and as part of public

events.'' Until the last week in July, the

Party was routinely granted the per-

mits.

On July 26, however, a spectator

attacked one of the Party's speakers.

Police were summoned and _ they

arrested the attacker. The following

week, police officials said they would

not issue a permit and an appeal

hearing could not be held until the

Tuesday after the rally.

Following the hearing, the Party w was

informed that further permits would be

denied, relying on a section of the City

Charter which provides that a permit

may be denied if ``it shall appear that

the character of the business or ap-

plicant requesting such permit does not

warrant the issuance thereof."

A civil rights lawsuit was filed by

~ACLU-NC in Federal District Court

and, during a hearing for a temporary

restraining order, counsel for the Chief

of Police acknowledged that the permit

could not be denied because of the

possibility of spectator assaults. A

permit for the following Saturday was

granted and, relying on the police

counsel's representations, the suit was

dismissed.

Permits were granted for the next few

Saturdays, but Party members were

then charged with violating the sound

ordinance. Under threat. of another

lawsuit, however, permits were granted

for each Saturday in August. It was also

agreed that the permits for September

13 and 20 would be denied and that

those denials would be appealed to the

Board of Permit Appeals on September

8. The hearing on that date was can-"

~ celled without explanation however,

and the police said they planned to deny

all further permit applications.

-With that, ACLU-NC_ volunteer

attorneys William Alsup and Linda

~ Shostak filed a motion for a temporary

restraining order in the San Francisco

Superior Court. They argue that the

permit denials, as well as the Police

Code regulations concerning permit

denials, are invalid and violative of the

First Amendment and the due process

- and equal protection clauses of the

Fourteenth Amendment.

They will ask the court to order the

Chief of Police to issue permits until a

hearing on a preliminary injunction can

be held.

| LEGISLATIVE

aclu news

Sept. 1975

- ACLU opposes sentencing bills, pushes privacy

By Bhi earner Legislative Representative

and

Charles Marson, Legal Director

THE MANDATORY SENTENCE

The pervasive nature and apparent growth of crime

in California - especially violent crime - un- (c)

derstandably creates citizen demand for the

Legislature to do something. Unfortunately, desperate

for something with which to respond to such

. demands, legislators often seize on the first proffered

panacea as the solution, without analyzing: (1)

whether the solution will create significant harm and

injustice to persons directly or incidentally affected by

the measure; and (2) whether the measure seized upon

-as the solution will result in a reduction of crime.

The "get tough'' theme is a familiar one, but the

specific "`get tough" vehicles tend to come in waves as

different solutions achieve their own vogueishness. In

the past ``get tough'' has taken the form of more death

sentences, statutory presumptions, and mandatory

minimum prison time served. This year's `"`get tough"'

vehicle has been the mandatory sentence - its -

popularity being propagated in both Sacramento and

_in Washington (on the national level, of course, the

chief propagator has been Gerald Ford).

Several legislators have come forward in this session

of the California Legislature with mandatory sentence

bills which include mandatory sentence provisions -

prohibiting the granting of probation in any form to

persons convicted of specific crimes. Senator Dennis

Carpenter's SB 237 would create mandatory sentences

for those convicted of burglary; Senator Alan Rob-

' bins' SB 268 would create mandatory sentences for

those twice convicted of selling heroin; Senator

Robbins' SB 574 would create mandatory sentences

for those twice convicted of rape; and SB 278 by

Senator George Deukmejian would create mandatory

sentences for those convicted of a series of crimes, if

such crimes were committed while armed or using a

- firearm. In the Assembly similar mandatory sentence

measures have been carried by Assemblymen Waddie

Deddeh and Daniel Boatwright.

Existing law already provides that in cases involving

specified crimes such as murder, kidnapping and

aggravated rape, no probation shall be granted

"except in unusual circumstances where the interests

of justice demand it". But, claim the proponents of

mandatory sentences, this hasn't stopped judges from

_ being "`soft on criminals,'' and so probation must be

precluded altogether. The other conclusion - that

creating a presumption of no probation has no effect

in stopping the commission of violent crime - does

not seem to have occurred to the proponents of

mandatory sentences.

Essentially, proponents of the mandatory sentence

insist that there exists a cause and effect between the

apprehension of there being probation possibly

available, and the decision as to whether to commit a

crime or not. In terms of sex-related and addict-

Davis police make concessions on juvenile records

After numerous complaints from

given to the schools and that the records

related crimes the positing of such rational weighing

of cause and effect seems questionable logic - but

logic in the face of public demand and political hay-

undergoes` strange permutations.

From the standpoint of the ACLU, mandatory

sentences pose an unacceptable solution to the crime

problem. The Legislature in enacting such iegislation

is presuming omniscience - that in no case, now, or

in the future, is probation ever an appropriate and

viable sentencing alternative, and whether such

probation includes or does not include probation with

jail, or probation with abrogation of civil liberties.

Thus, even an extremely elderly person convicted of

assault with a deadly weapon, in need of nursing home

care and with few days to live, would not be eligible for

probation; nor would a person afflicted with a fatal

disease, or in need of regular medical treatment such

as kidney dialysis be eligible.

From the civil liberties perspective, due process

does not end upon conviction. The proper site for the

determination of sentence is at the trial court, not in

Sacramento. The convicted person is entitled to due

process even after conviction, and essential fairness

requires that the convicted person be sentenced based

on the facts and circumstances of the case submitted

to the court, and based on his or her own merit or lack

of merit.

Mandatory sentences, therefore, represent just

another facet of depersonalization by an overreaching

government - of legislative machinery applying -

superficial solutions to problems of real ye and

complexity.

At this point, mandatory sentences are very close to

passage. The Boatwright and Deddeh measures were -

originally blocked in Assembly committee, the

Carpenter bill has been held over as a two-year bill,

and the Robbins rape measure has been re-referred by

the Assembly floor to committee. But the Robbins

heroin bill and the Deukmejian firearms. bill -

representing criminal problems of an especially in-.

tractable nature - came over from the Senate with a

substantial head of steam, and have a good chance of

being enacted into law. At this writing the Robbins

measure (SB 268) has yet to be voted upon by the

Assembly, and the Deukmejian measure (SB 278) is

back in the Senate awaiting concurrence by that house

to `Assembly amendments.

With Deukmejian's bill through, Demacnas have

hastened to get identical measures of their own onto

the floor. The floodgates being down, the Boatwright

and Deddeh measures had breath blown back into

them by a special session of the Criminal Justice

Committee, and they are now ready as new mandatory |

sentence vehicles in the event political hay can be

made out of a chance crime wave. : .

Constituent pressure has played a strong part in

getting the mandatory sentence provisions as far as

they have gone. I would urge ACLU members to write

their representative, advising them that they want real

solutions to real problems, and not empty panaceas

if the school was a victim of a crime.

een as the panier, sentence, California citizens

have a right to demand thoughtful analysis and action

on the part of their legislators, especially towards

problems that affect the immediate safety and well-

being of all persons in California.

SENTENCING OF FELONS

Three proposals are pending in Sacramento to

abolish the indeterminate sentence. and. substitute

certain sentences for those sent to prison. SB 42, by

Sen. John Nejedly (R.-Contra Costa), would allow

judges to select fixed sentences from a scale of

penalties based upon median times actually served for

particular offenses between 1968 and 1972 (a period in

which sentences in California were approximately

double the national median), and would allow the

prosecutor to plead and prove aggravating cir-

cumstances which could raise these fixed sentences by

up to eight years or more. AB 2311, by Assemblymen

Torres and Alatorre, would create an administrative

body to fix sentences in accordance with national

practice; AB 1440, by Assemblyman Sieroty, would |

create a judicial yon to perform essentially the same

function.

AB 1440 and AB 2311 are still in the Assembly. SB

42 is in the hands of the Assembly Criminal Justice

Committee, where it has thus far failed to command a

majority of votes, primarily because of the length and

inflexibility of the sentences it commands, and

because of its transfer of discretion to the prosecutor

rather than to the judge. ACLU-NC opposed the bill

in committee for these reasons, although we favor the

principle of abolition of the indeterminate sentence.

ACLU-NC policy toward all three of these bills will be

reviewed in detail by the affiliate board of directors in

October.

PRIVACY

Two major acts to protect privacy, both actively

supported by the ACLU, are moving well through the

- Jegislature and should land on the governor's desk

within the week. SB 852, by Sen. George Moscone (D.-

San Francisco), would allow each citizen access to and

an opportunity to correct errors in any file kept on

him by any agency of state government. The bill

provides for civil remedies in court and attorneys' fees

if use of these remedies is successful. At this writing

the bill is about to be considered on the Assembly

floor. ,

AB 1429, by Assemblyman Alan Sieroty (D.-Beverly

Hills), would protect privacy interests in bank records.

It would. require all state and local governmental

officials to use legal process only to gain access to

bank records, and then only after notice to the

customer and a ten-day waiting period in which the

customer would be entitled to resist the process in.

court. It is opposed by most state agencies and is.

under some threat of veto. It has passed the Senate,

awaits. Assembly concurrence in minor Senate

amendments, and should be on the governor's desk

within a few days of this writing.

S. 1 Meeting

On Wednesday, September 17 at

the Humanists of San

parents, the Yolo County Chapter of the.

ACLU decided to do something about

harassment of juveniles in Davis and

the compilation and dissemination of

field interrogation (F.I.) cards by the

-Davis Police Department.

The Chapter called upon the- Police

Department to destroy all F.I. cards

after six months, restrict access to the

cards, and develop guidelines con-

cerning their field interrogation

practices and release of information on

juvenile-police contracts.

Davis Police officials originally

denied virtually all of the ACLU

charges but later acknowledged the

` procedures while defending them as

legal, necessary and beneficial. They

admitted that the information was

are kept indefinitely.

_ The police reported that their policy

on F.I. cards was as follows:

"Its purpose is to have a record of the

contact which may provide (1) a

pattern related to a _ particular

criminal activity, (2) a suspect in a

crime, (3) a witness to a crime, (4) a

witness who can state that no crime

was observed.

After a series of meetings between

Yolo Chapter Board members and city

officials, new guidelines were

promulgated by the Police Department

last month. The Police are currently

disposing of all F.I. cards more than

one year old and in the future, juvenile

reports will only be available to a school

Otherwise, the police have agreed to

get written authorization from either

juvenile or parents before releasing

records to other non-law enforcement

agencies. The written authorization is

on a specially designed police form

beginning "I hereby grant permission

to the Davis police department to

release information . " and to specify

to whom and under what circumstances

such information would be released.

_ Yolo Chapter Chairperson Jonathon

Lewis commented: ``We are very

pleased with the police department

reply. They hadn't been purging the

cards at all. It's a step in the right

direction. However, we urge and en-

courage their continuing review."

"

7:30 (c) p.m.,

Francisco and the ACLU are co-

sponsoring a public meeting on S.1, the

Federal Criminal Code Reform Act. If

passed, S.1 would restore the death

penalty, bring back the anti-communist

Smith Act, severely threaten - free

speech, free press, and assembly rights.

To learn more about the nature of

'0x00A7.1, attend the lecture and discussion

presented by Frank Wilkinson,

Executive Director of the National

Committee Against Repressive

Legislation.

The meeting will be held i in the U.C.

Extension Auditorium, 55 Laguna

Street, San Francisco. A $1 donation is

requested.

gt

aclu news

Sept. 1975

Sacramento

- Communique from the Sacramento

Chapter to the Sacramento Chapter

There are more than 1,000 of you out

_ there and yet we still see only 15 or 20 of

you at Chapter Board meetings. The

Board meetings are open to everyone.

They take place the fourth Wednesday

of every month, at 7:30 p.m., at the

County Administration Building, 901 G

Street. We discuss cases and issues

effecting all of us in this community.

We make decisions and send letters in

your name. You might want to come

and learn what you have been saying to

- state and local agencies and law en-

forcement entities.

Some of our Chapter programs

include:

CIVIL LIBERTIES ASSISTANCE

PROGRAM: The Chapter operates a

telephone answering service which

takes calls from Sacramento residents -

who feel that their civil liberties have

been violated. The telephone screening

committee meets every month, on the

third Monday at 7:30 p.m. We usually

have one or more of our volunteer

attorneys there. If you are interested in

- joining this project, call Lynda Bardis

at 442-0485.

WOMEN'S RIGHTS PROJECT:

The Chapter has an active Women's

Rights Project with eight members who

are canvassing Sacramento to find

instances of sex discrimination not

already being dealt with by other

organizations.

POLICE PRACTICES PROJECT:

During the month of September, the

_ Chapter will begin formulating its

Police Practices. Project. At- its

organizational meeting, participants

will decide how to deal with the growing

problem of police abuse in our com-

munity. The Project needs help from

people committed to decreasing the

oppressive methods of Sacramento law

enforcement agents.

We hope to see you at future Board

meetings and activities.

Berkeley-Albany

New fall programs are getting under

way as members return from vacations.

We're holding a Public Meeting on

Farm Labor and California's new farm

labor bill. Speakers are Ruth Friedman,

former attorney for the United Farm

Workers; Joe Grodin, member of the

State Board implementing the farm

labor bill; Victor Van Bourg, labor law

specialist. Meeting is at All Soul's

Church, Cedar and Spruce Streets,

Berkeley (enter on Spruce), September

18, 1975, 8 p.m. Coffee served, ad-

mission free. Come and meet the

Berkeley membership.

On October 11 (Saturday), we will be

co-sponsors with the Northern

California Media Association for

Student Rights in presenting meetings

-on various aspects of high school

student publishing. Topics are varied

and include First Amendment rights

and newspapers, financing papers,

developing readership, motivating

students to participate in journalism

and others.

Volunteer attorneys knowledgable in

First Amendment rights are needed as

consultants. Call Manny Nestle at 642-

.1948. Call Mr. Nestle for further details

of time and place.

In October, another Membership

meeting will be planned.

Fresno

The Chapter's second annual

Backyard Bash will be held this

Saturday, September 20, from 3:30 to

7:30 p.m., at the home of John Crosby,

3459 East Bellaire Way, Fresno.

David Fishlow, new director of

ACLU-NC, will be our guest speaker.

An informative and relaxing afternoon,

with swimming and good times, can

again be had by all. Tickets are $3 for

adults and $2 for children; free for

those who join ACLU at the event. The

`menu will include hamburgers, salad,

and a refreshment. For more in-

formation, call Howard Watkins at 486-

7633 (eves.). :

Many thanks are in order to Julie

Linxwiler and Ann Stanislawsky, who

have headed up our successful renewal

drive. For those of you who have not yet

renewed, please do it now. See you the

20th.

Santa Clara

An account of the status of civil

liberties in West Germany was

presented to the chapter board by

member Lisa Kalvelage, a native of

Nuernberg, West Germany, who has

just returned after a month's visit there.

The daily newspaper accounts depicting

the lack of due process for political

prisoners and the general acceptance of

obeisance to all authority by the

citizenry, whether to a small martinet of

a government clerk or to a train con-

ductor, Lisa feels, indicates the German

people haven't learned very much from

past experience. Her talk brought home

the necessity to us all to fight hard to

make certain that the Bill of Rights is

not just a bunch of two-hundred-year-

old printed words.

The first in a series of ``Lawyers

Luncheons"' was held the first Tuesday

in September. The chapter legal

committee has instituted these monthly

luncheons as a method of "beefing up''

interest in ACLU among the local

legal community. The plan is to in-

formally discuss some of the more

interesting current cases, getting feed-

back from the attorneys and hopefully

arousing interest and participation in

ACLU activities.

San Francisco

This year the San Francisco Chapter

is questioning candidates for Mayor on

major civil liberties issues. We are

concerned that the Mayor, through the

. exercise of executive powers, has a

tremendous impact on our personal

freedom and we want to know each

candidate's views on civil liberties

before the election.

WHAT HAS BEEN DONE

We have circulated an extensive

questionnaire to each candidate.

WHAT WE WILL DO

We will release the results of the

Questionnaire in September and will

invite the candidates to attend our

Annual Meeting, Sunday, October 19, 4

p-m., to be held at Firemen's Fund

Auditorium, 3333 California Street.

Our questionnaire probed _ their

attitudes on: Police Practices, Juvenile

Rights, Victimless Crimes, The Public

Defender's Office, (c) Municipal

Employment Practices, and the role,

structure and composition of Com-

missions. ;

As is the case with most civil liberties

questions, these have few ``correct''

answers; the candidates' responses will

not be graded. The dilemmas reflected

in the questions cannot be solved. But

answers are demanded in the day-to-

day functioning of our government and

are found, whether through action or

inadvertance.

Our purpose in asking the questions

is to make the search for answers open

and more intentional. We believe that

' the need has never been greater for

citizens to be alert to government's

tendency to erode our freedom. We are

convinced that local government has an

important and immediate impact on

individual liberties. The choice of

Mayor in many ways determines the

nature of that impact. It is thus im-

portant that each candidate's position

be known. We will not be endorsing any

candidates. Reserve the date ...

Sunday, October 19, 4 p.m. Annual

meeting and Candidates Forum,

Firemen's Fund Auditorium, 3333

California Street, San Francisco.

(Elections to our own Board of

Directors will also be held.)

`CHAPTERS |

Chapter activity continued during the

summer. A very successful garage sale

was held. Put together almost over

night, the two-day sale added much

needed funds to our treasury. We plan ~~

to hold them often. It is a good source

of revenue and everyone gets a bargain.

So, don't discard ... save your white

elephants for the Chapter Garage Sale.

Have you sent your membership

renewal? Have you enrolled a new

member? Need information? Call the

Chapter office, 433-2750.

ESSAY CONTEST

The Second Annual Essay Contest

for senior high school students will be

gaining momentum within the next few

weeks. Suggested topics are: `"What Is

Missing. from The Bill of Rights?" and

"If I Were Re-writing The Bill of

Rights.' We will keep you informed of

progress.

COMING SOON The San

Francisco Chapter Newsletter. . .

Stockton

Members of the Stockton Chapter of

ACLU began the "season" with a Labor

Day Picnic at the home of the Eugene

Weston's. About 65 people gathered for (c)

an afternoon of swimming and enjoying

homemade salads and barbecued hot

dogs. At the regular September Board

meeting legal committee chairman Al

Bonner reported an average of 50 phone

calls through the answering service.

Plans were made for a December 7th

cocktail party and it was agreed to host _

the Chapter Committee meeting in

November. In cooperation with other

local groups, the Stockton Chapter

plans a series of Town Hall Meetings

beginning in January as part of the -

Bicentennial observance. Board

member Frank Palmares is in charge of

planning.

THE SAN FRANCISCO CHAPTER PRESENTS A

Life, Liberty and Pursuit of -

Happiness Festival

Saturday and Sunday, October 4 and 5

10a.m.toe6p.m.

Fort Mason, Pier area (Laguna Street entrance at Marina Green)

MUSIC, ENTERTAINMENT, FLORAL EXHIBITS, .

ARTISTS, CRAFTSPEOPLE and LOTS OF FOOD

(Exhibitors desiring space, please call (415) 391-5641 or

write: ACLU Festival, P.O. Box 6710, San Francisco 94101.)

9 issues a year, monthly except bi-monthly in March-April, July-August,

`and November-December

Published by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California

Second Class Mail privileges authorized at San Francisco, California

Richard DeLancie, Chairman of the Board, David M. Fishlow, Executive Director

Mike Callahan, Editor and Assistant Executive Director

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

Membership $15 and up of which $2.50 is the annual subscription fee for aclu News.

Irving R. Cohen was Acting Executive Director of

New Board members

continued from page I

companies as to their duties under Title VII and

studying the applicability of California FEPC code

ce sections to class actions. She also planned and

developed procedures for citizens' complaints and

general commission functioning, as one of the first

Police Review Committee Commissioners in Berkeley.

He is also teaching two law classes and was formerly

Director of the East Palo Alto Legal Aid Office.

Neil Horton is an attorney in Oakland and a long -

time ACLU Board member, who left the Board in

1974 after serving three consecutive three year terms.

As an ACLU volunteer attorney Horton has handled

many cases for the affiliate and is currently working

on ACLU-NC's case Royer v. Steinberg.

ACLU-NC until July and was the former Marin

Chapter representative on the Board. He served on a

number of Board committees, including the Executive

Committee and was Chairperson of the Marin

Chapter. ee 5

Thelton Henderson is Assistant Dean at Stanford

University Law School in charge of minority ad-

missions and student organizations at the law school.