ACLU of Texas - Projects - Police Accountability

The ACLU of Texas Police Accountability Project works on a wide range of topics, from racial profiling at traffic stops to undercover drug stings (like in Tulia) to homeland security. The police project aims both to educate and mobilize the public to promote reform, and to encourage law enforcement agencies to adopt best practices that limit misconduct and maximize accountability.

We do not take individual legal cases, but instead work through the political and policy-making process to promote reform.

West University Place Cell Phone Ban Oversteps
The ACLU of Texas is concerned about a proposed ordinance banning cell phones in West University Place, near Houston. Read More...

Voting Rights Presentation Materials Now Available!
On March 8, 2008, the ACLU Foundation of Texas held a voting rights panel as a part of our 70th Anniversary Conference in San Antonio. The handouts from that panel are accessible below for your convenience. Read More...

International Human Rights Experts Denounce U.S. Record On Racial And Ethnic Discrimination
A United Nations committee today issued a strongly worded critique of the United States’ record on racial discrimination and urged the government to make sweeping reforms to policies affecting racial and ethnic minorities, women, and immigrants in this country. The American Civil Liberties Union called on the U.S. government to take vigorous steps to implement the committee’s recommendations and fulfill its human rights treaty obligations. Read More...

ACLUTX 2008 Summer Intern Announcement
The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Texas is accepting applications for summer 2008 law internships. The ACLU is one of the nation's foremost defenders of civil liberties and civil rights. We are a nonpartisan organization dedicated to defending the Bill of Rights through litigation, legislation, and public education. The Texas affiliate of the ACLU, founded in 1938, is headquartered in Austin, and includes a regional office in Houston and thirteen chapters with over 17,000 members statewide. Read More...

HipHop Against Police Brutality Pleased With Success of Organizing Efforts in East Texas
The efforts of HipHop Against Police Brutality have paid off massively in Madisonville, TX, where city government has been drastically reformed amid scandal and corrupt police officers have been forced to resign. Read More...

ACLU of Texas to Participate in Town Hall with San Antonio Police Chief
The ACLU of Texas announced today that it will participate in a town hall meeting with San Antonio Police Chief William McManus tonight. Read More...

ACLU Seeks Statutory Compensation for All Tulia Exonerees
Today the ACLU submitted a brief to the Texas Attorney General Greg Abbot arguing that all the individuals wrongfully imprisoned as a result of the now infamous Tulia scandal are entitled to full compensation under Texas law. Read More...

End of an Era
The clock runs out on the state’s infamous regional drug task forces. By Nate Blakeslee in the March 24, 2006, issue of The Texas Observer magazine. Read More...

Austin's Open Government Online Amendment Analayzed
Confused about what's really in Austin's Open Government Online charter amendment? Is it really so detailed and incomprehensible? See for yourself. Read More...

Austin voters should give the public the password to government info
The Open Government Online charter amendment gives the public direct access to the city’s most important information. That’s why the city hopes to scare you into voting no in May. Read More...

Governor Perry wants new wiretapping authority: Say No!
If we're fighting murderers and drug runners, then Texas law enforcement has all the authority it needs for border wiretapping. Read More...

Searching for consent at Texas traffic stops
From the Liberty Blog: "A funny thing happened on the way to interpreting Texas' racial profiling data -- it turned out minorities weren't the only ones being subjected to unnecessary searches at traffic stops. Thirty percent of searches at Texas traffic stops are so-called 'consent searches' Read More...

Racial Profiling Report Released
The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, including the ACLU of Texas, Texas NAACP and Texas LULAC, released a new report on February 16th showing that racial profiling by law enforcement officers in Texas continues to be a problem. Read More...

Era of Tulia-style drug task forces coming to an end in Texas?
Scandals, mismanagement and skewed priorities at Texas drug task forces paid for by the federal Byrne grant program appear to finally be catching up to the rogue units. More have announced they'll close shop at the end of March Read More...

Help the Austin charter amendment campaign NOW!
Let the sun shine in! A new proposed revision to Austin's city charter might finally shed light on that city's flawed police disciplinary system. But we need your help! Download a petition and get a few Austin registered voters signed on! Read More...

Hurricanes, scandals could doom drug task forces
Texas drug task forces counting on renewed funding next March might find themselves hanging out to dry thanks to a bevy of scandals and an especially wet hurricane season on the Gulf Coast Read More...

Austin Taser death result of bad policy
The Central Texas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union condemned the use of Tasers by the department in a Tuesday afternoon protest by a handful of people at police headquarters. Since 1998, all but one of the 14 people who died while or after Austin police officers used force on them were minorities. Read More...

Drug task forces should shut down
After dozens of innocent people were wrongfully arrested in Tulia and Hearne, ACLU of Texas undertook a years-long campaign to reform Texas drug task forces and undercover drug practices. Read More...

Accountability for police snitches
Confidential informants, or "snitches," are typically criminals who agree to inform on others in exchange for money or reduced culpability for their crimes. The Police Accountability Project aims to reform policies and practices related to snitch use in Texas Read More...

Byrne money pays for non-task force projects
Texas drug task forces soak up a lot of federal funds needed for other important programs, but maybe that's starting to change. Read More...