One of the main ways ACLU-DC works to protect civil liberties and civil rights is through litigation. This section of our website documents the cases we’re working on now and those we’ve handled in recent years. Click here for general information about what types of cases we litigate.
Important disclaimer: Communicating with us through this website does not create an attorney-client relationship; only a signed agreement can create such a relationship. Additionally, past success is no guarantee of future results, even if we agree to represent you.
In March 2016, the District of Columbia enacted the Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results (NEAR) Act of 2016. One of its key provisions required the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) to collect...
In May 2018, we filed this lawsuit on behalf of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association to challenge the Trump administration’s plans to drastically alter the application criteria...
In March 2018, we filed a class action lawsuit against the Trump administration’s arbitrary detention of asylum seekers fleeing persecution, torture, or death in their countries of origin. As our complaint...
One morning in June 2015, multiple U.S. Marshals stormed into Donya Williams’ home in Southeast D.C. where she lived with her daughter J.W., then 12 years old. The Marshals, who were there to carry out a...
On January 20, 2017, thousands of concerned citizens took to the streets of the District of Columbia to protest the incoming presidential administration. More than 200 people were arrested after a smaller...
On October 13, 2017, the American Civil Liberties Union filed an emergency lawsuit in federal court to fight on behalf of a young woman in Texas who is being prevented from accessing abortion care by the...