News & Commentary

Today, the Supreme Court of the United States denied a request by Cook County State’s Attorney to review a May 2012 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit regarding Illinois’ eavesdropping law.  The appellate court ruled for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois in the case and the federal district court has entered a preliminary injunction, blocking the Cook County State’s Attorney from prosecuting ACLU staff for audio recording police officers performing their public duties in a public place and speaking loudly enough to be heard by a passerby. The recordings take place as part of the ACLU’s long time practice of monitoring police practices on the streets of Chicago. The information gathered by the ACLU of Illinois would be used as part of its advocacy for changes in police practices in the City. The Illinois eavesdropping law has been the subject of much debate of late. Two state court judges have ruled that the application of the law to prosecute individuals for recording police in a public place is unconstitutional.  And, a Cook County jury last year acquitted a young woman charged with the offense.  The following can be attributed to Harvey Grossman, Legal Director of the ACLU of Illinois:

12/13/12 UPDATE: Legislative leaders announced plans to push for a vote on the freedom to marry for same-sex couples in early January.

Chicago Tonight reporter Paris Schutz spoke with ACLU of Illinois Legal Director Harvey Grossman about city officials who violated the Illinois Eavesdropping Act by secretly recording their phone calls with reporters. Under Illinois law, it is a felony to record audio of a person without their consent. The federal 7th Circuit Court of appeals recently ruled in favor of an ACLU of Illinois lawsuit challenging the application of the eavesdropping law to ACLU staff who wish to record audio of police officers performing their public duties in a public place. While the Cook County States Attorney is blocked from being able to prosecute ACLU staff who record audio without consent, Illinois citizens in other counties are still liable under the eavesdropping law and if charged, could face up to 15 years in prison.

ACLU of Illinois Senior Staff Counsel Adam Schwartz was interviewed on AlterPolitics and Reason TV about our recently released report highlighting Illinois fusion centers and their lack of sufficient privacy safeguards. Check out the video below:

Today, the a United States Senate committee issued a report – labeled “scathing” by some – on the work of fusion centers across the United States. Fusion Centers, mainly formed after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, are designed to share information and analysis about suspected criminal activity across federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.