law
San Francisco Moves to Prohibit Government Use of Facial Recognition and Limit Surveillance Technology
According to a new piece by The Atlantic, San Francisco legislators are moving ahead with a bill that would prohibit city government agencies from using facial recognition technology. While the draft legislation, known as the “Stop Secret Surveillance … Read more »
Defending Rights and Dissent Releases Resources Equipping Activists to Protect Free Speech Rights
Defending Rights and Dissent, a partner organization affiliated with the Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights, has released a collection of online resources for instructing activists how to preserve their right to peaceful protest. The resources, known collectively … Read more »
Law Enforcement Around the Country is Quietly Enlisting the Private Sector to Develop Real-Time Facial Recognition Capability
Once relegated to the fanciful flights of science fiction, facial recognition technology has not only reached sufficient maturity to enter the market, but has even entered mainstream consumer consciousness as a tool of convenience. One need only ask the satisfied … Read more »
Rauner Vetoes Bill Requiring User Opt-In for Selling Geolocation Data
The Chicago Tribune reports that Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner has vetoed a bill which would have required tech companies and other businesses whose products or services handle geolocation data to receive explicit consent from users or customers before that data … Read more »
Rauner Signs Broadly Supported Civil Forfeiture Protections Into Law
Governor Bruce Rauner signed a bill into law (HB303) restricting civil forfeiture practices of law enforcement agencies in the state. The newly enacted regulations, which CCDBR profiled previously, raise the evidentiary threshold for seizing citizens’ property from “probable … Read more »
Journalists Face Greater Legal Peril as US Justice Department Goes After Leakers
According to a new article from The Intercept, the US Department of Justice has announced that, as part of their redoubled effort to combat unauthorized disclosures, it may issue subpoenas to compel journalists to identify sources for their reporting. … Read more »
Trump’s Law Enforcement Address is Only the Latest Encouragement in a Pattern of Normalizing Police Brutality
In a piece for Portside, columnist Jelani Cobb underscored the dangerous pattern of the Trump administration, spearheaded by President Trump himself, to normalize abusive policing practices. While Trump’s speech last week to police officers in Long Island grabbed headlines … Read more »
Bipartisan Congressional Bill Threatens to Criminalize Peaceful Pro-Palestine Speech
UPDATE (9/7/17): A piece out last week from Portside reports that Congressman Bobby Rush of Illinois’s 1st District has added his name to the growing list of Congress members who have rescinded their initial support for the Israel Anti-Boycott Act… Read more »
Illinois Legislature Overwhelmingly Approves Bill Requiring Transparency and Accountability in Civil Forfeiture Practices
UPDATE (7/21/17): According to a new report from The Intercept, the US Department of Justice has announced that it will scrap reforms made under President Obama to rein in the practice of civil asset forfeiture by federal law enforcement… Read more »
Felony Rioting Charges Against Journalists Threaten Free Press Coverage
UPDATE (6/19/17): In their continuing coverage of detained Inauguration Day protesters and journalists covering them, Al Jazeera reports that two journalists swept up in a mass arrest by police in Washington DC remain charged (along with the protesters) with several … Read more »
