On January 18th, the ACLU of Illinois Reproductive Rights Project and a bevy of professional medical organizations joined together to ask the Illinois Court of Appeals to strike down the Illinois Parental Notification Act of 1995.

Both the ACLU of Illinois and a number of prestigious medical groups told the court that if allowed to take effect (it has blocked from enforcement since it was adopted by the Illinois General Assembly), the Act will cause young women to suffer significant and irreversible harms as they exercise their fundamental right to terminate a pregnancy. Last year, a Circuit Court in Cook County labeled the Act "an unfortunate piece of legislation," because "the evidence makes clear that it's likely to cause more harm than any good." This is the essence of the argument made by the ACLU of Illinois and the leading professional medical organizations in their arguments to the appellate court.

The medical organizations supporting the ACLU's position in this litigation include: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist, American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Medical Women's Association, American Psychiatric Association, Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Illinois Psychiatric Society, Illinois Public Health Association, and Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine.

Randy Steidl is one of 20 men who've been exonerated and released from Illinois' death row in recent years. Last Tuesday, he and I sat just a few feet apart when the Illinois Senate passed Senate Bill 3539 -- repealing the state's irretrievably broken death penalty system.

The Senate vote on Tuesday was a result of a lot of hard work and advocacy by Illinois ACLU members and the general public--every email, every visit with a legislator, every phone call contributed to this legislative victory.

Now, your voice can make the difference in shutting down Illinois' broken death penalty for good. Push this win past the finish line: Tell Illinois Governor Quinn to sign Senate Bill 3539 into law.

Join us by signing this statement of support. Then, send it to your friends: Help us gather signatures from 50,000 members and supporters all across the country. We'll deliver this statement of support to his office next week.

Last week, as I witnessed the State Senate pass this milestone for justice and the rule of law, I have never been so proud to be part of the ACLU, so proud of our work and so proud of our supporters. Help us achieve a victory for justice in Illinois -- and across the country.

With your help, we can finish the job and make history.

Cross posted at the Blog of Rights

The latest copy of the Illinois Brief, the ACLU of Illinois' quarterly newsletter, is available for download. This issue covers important current issues like civil unions, repeal of the death penalty and the ACLU's suit challenging the application of eavesdropping laws to individuals making recordings of public conversations with police. Download a copy today!