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Damage Of Drug War On Prominent Display At Telluride Film Festival This Weekend (08/28/2008)
TELLURIDE, CO – The devastating impact of America's "war on drugs" will be on prominent display this weekend at the Telluride Film Festival with the premiere of "American Violet," a film based on the racially charged drug war scandal that rocked the town of Hearne, Texas, several years ago. Directed by Tim Disney and written by Bill Haney, the film stars Alfre Woodard, Will Patton and Tim Blake Nelson.

ACLU Expresses its Disappointment in Congress for Failing to Eliminate Aid Penalty in HEA Reauthorization (07/31/2008)
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, the American Civil Liberties Union expressed its disappointment in Congress for failing to repeal the aid elimination penalty in the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA). The aid elimination penalty bars students with drug convictions – often minor, first time and misdemeanor offenses – from receiving critical college aid.

International Drug Policy Up For Debate At Landmark U.N. Forum (07/07/2008)
VIENNA, Austria – The American Civil Liberties Union today joins a diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations participating in the United Nations’ “Beyond 2008 Forum,” a historic opportunity to assess the past decade of international drug policy and to shape its future course. The ACLU and others will speak to the inability of current, principally punitive drug policies to reduce the supply of or demand for illicit drugs, as well as the significant violence, health problems, and civil and human rights violations directly attributable to these policies.

Advocates Stand Together for Fairness in Federal Sentencing (02/26/2008)
Washington, DC – On Tuesday, February 26, activists from around the country, civil rights and professional organizations stood together to call for much-needed reform to the country’s federal sentencing laws. This press briefing and lobby event marked the culmination of a month-long series of events aimed at addressing the 20-year-old sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine. According to current guidelines, a conviction for the sale of 500 grams of powder cocaine results in a 5-year mandatory minimum sentence, while the same penalty is triggered for sale or possession of only 5 grams of crack cocaine.

ACLU Cheers USSC Decision to Apply New Drug Sentencing Guidelines Retroactively (12/11/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s decision to apply recent changes in federal crack cocaine sentencing guidelines retroactively. Thousands of offenders were sentenced under the previous guidelines, which unfairly and erroneously required them to serve more than the mandatory minimum sentence required by law. Thanks to the USSC’s decision, such offenders will now have the opportunity to appear before the court and have their case reviewed by a judge.

Caught in the Net: The Impact of Drug Policies on Women and Families (03/15/2005)
In this report, the ACLU, Break the Chains and the Brennan Center for Justice advocate for fair drug laws and policies that adequately take into account the needs of women and their families, and address the root causes of women's involvement with illegal drugs.

Ending Discrimination Against People with Alcohol and Drug Problems (05/02/2003)
This report includes principles and recommendations developed by a national policy panel. Graham Boyd, Director of the ACLU Drug Law Reform Project, served as a panelist.

Collateral Damage in the War on Drugs (05/01/2002)
A Villanova Law Review article by ACLU Drug Law Reform Project Director Graham Boyd examining the many destructive by products of America's War on Drugs, including record incarceration, the erosion of constitutional rights and racial injustice.

The Drug War is the New Jim Crow (07/31/2001)
An article by ACLU Drug Law Reform Project Director Graham Boyd published in the NACLA Report on the Americas, July/August 2001, examining the destructive impact of America's drug policy, including record incarceration, erosion of constitutional rights, and rampant racial injustice.

This is Your Bill of Rights, on Drugs (12/01/1999)
An article by ACLU Drug Law Reform Project Director Graham Boyd and journalist Jack Hitt published in Harper's Magazine, December 1999. The piece examines how the "War on Drugs" has wreaked havoc on America's Bill of Rights.

ACLU Complaint in SSDP v. Spellings (03/22/2006)

The Solicitor General's letter to Congress Regarding ACLU v. Mineta (01/26/2005)

Ridley v. MBTA - Decision (12/10/2004)

Opinion in ACLU, et al. v. Mineta, et al. (06/02/2004)

Order in ACLU, et al. v. Mineta, et al. (06/02/2004)

ACLU Letter to House of Representatives Urges “NO” Vote on Souder Amendment #2 (07/24/2009)
On behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a non-partisan organization with more than a half million members, countless activists and supporters, and fifty-three affiliates nationwide, we write to urge you to oppose and vote no on Representative Souder’s amendment to H.R. 3293, which would prohibit federal funding for syringe exchange programs. The amendment is scheduled for a vote this afternoon.

Coalition Thank You Letter on Syringe Exchange Programs (07/23/2009)
As organizations engaged in the fight against HIV/AIDS, we want to thank you for the historic vote on syringe exchange on July 17, 2009. Your decision to remove the federal ban in the FY10 appropriations bill was an important first step to a full repeal. It would not have happened without your leadership.

Coalition Letter on Syringe Exchange Programs (07/14/2009)
Annually, nearly 8,000 people in the United States contract HIV/AIDS and approximately 12,000 people contract the hepatitis C virus directly or indirectly from sharing contaminated syringes. Syringe exchange programs are proven to be cost-effective and lifesaving, do not promote drug use, and provide a conduit to primary health care for hard to reach populations. For the first time since 1989, the Labor, Health and Human Services subcommittee has removed the ban on federal funding of syringe exchange programs from the FY 2010 Appropriations bill. We thank the subcommittee for its leadership in using science-based research to bring an end to the decades-old ban. As organizations dedicated to the eradication of HIV/AIDS and advocacy on behalf of those infected and affected by the epidemic, we strongly urge the full Appropriations Committee to support the Labor, Health and Human Services subcommittee in its decision to remove the ban. Further, we urge you to vote against any amendment that would reinstate the federal ban or put further restrictions on syringe exchange.

ACLU Legislative Priorities for the 111th Congress (01/13/2009)

National Sign-On Letter Supporting Syringe Exchange Programs (07/30/2008)
We, the undersigned organizations, are writing to express our sincere thanks and support for your efforts to combat the HIV/AIDS and hepatitis epidemic through introduction of the Community AIDS and Hepatitis Prevention Act of 2008. Providing sterile syringes is a simple, cost-effective method of saving lives.

ACLU Statement to the United Nations: Adopting a Human Rights-Based Global Drug Policy (07/07/2008)
The American Civil Liberties Union joins a diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations participating in the “Beyond 2008 Forum,” an unprecedented opportunity to review the past decade of international drug policy and to shape its future course.

U.N. Report of Mission to Indonesia: Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights (03/10/2008)
A report from the United Nations Human Rights Council titled, "Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development." Page 45 of the report exposes the torture and capital punishment of Indonesian prisoners accused solely of drug crimes and the role of the U.S. in this process.

About the ACLU Drug Law Reform Project (11/28/2005)

DLRP Internship Opportunities (05/19/2005)

DLRP Past Cases (07/16/2004)

Lopez v. Gonzales and Toledo-Flores v. United States (09/14/2006)
Whether a state conviction for drug possession that would be a misdemeanor under federal law can nonetheless be treated as an "aggravated felony" for immigration purposes, which leads to serious adverse consequences, including ineligibilitiy for political asylum and cancellation of removal. DECIDED

Lopez v. Gonzales and Toledo-Flores v. United States (06/21/2006)
Whether a state conviction for drug possession that would be a misdemeanor under federal law can nonetheless be treated as an "aggravated felony" for immigration purposes, which leads to serious adverse consequences, including ineligibilitiy for political asylum and cancellation of removal. DECIDED