Police Practices

"If the government becomes a law-breaker, it breeds contempt for law; it invites every man to become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy."
-- Louis Brandeis,
U.S. Supreme Court Justice,
Olmstead v. United States (1928)

Police have the vital and difficult job of protecting public safety. Performing this job effectively does not require sacrificing civil liberties or civil rights. All Oregon police agencies, from the state patrol to city police forces, need to respect the rights of individuals while enforcing the law. And when misconduct occurs, there must be policies and mechanisms for holding police accountable for their actions.

ACLU is also working to eliminate racial and ethnic profiling in police practices that have a disproportionate impact on individuals merely because of their race, color, national origin or religion.

For more information on your rights when stopped by the police, please feel free to download our Your Rights in Oregon card (under Related Documents).

Litigation

Gasque v. City of Portland

Vindication in “Know Your Rights” Case

November 7, 2012 - Nearly three years to the day after he was arrested in Old Town in downtown Portland for refusing to consent to a Portland police officer’s request to search him without probable cause, Jose Gasque received justice in a Multnomah County courtroom.

Moss v. Secret Service

ACLU Lawsuit Challenges Secret Service, Local Police Case Tied to 2004 Anti-Bush Demonstration

April 11, 2012 - In 2004, local police in Jacksonville, Oregon, at the direction of the U.S. Secret Service, violently broke up an anti-Bush picket line of about 300 peaceful demonstrators. At the same time the police allowed a group of pro-Bush demonstrators to remain in the same area undisturbed. As a result, the ACLU of Oregon filed a federal class-action lawsuit against the Secret Service and local police agencies, seeking damages and an injunction against such governmental abuse in the future.

The government has been trying to have the case thrown out for several years, even before we can get to the merits of what happened that day. The latest attempt to have our clients’ claims dismissed is the subject of the second ruling by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in this case.

On Monday, the court found that we have stated a claim against the Secret Service for violating our clients’ First Amendment rights by treating them differently than the pro-Bush demonstrators and that the Secret Service can be sued for their actions because they should have known their actions were unlawful.

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Legislation

ACLU Urges Lake Oswego to Consider Alternative Agreement With FBI

April 16, 2013 - Lake Oswego City Council is set to vote on a proposal to join the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) this evening, without discussion. The ACLU is urging the Council to postpone the vote until more details on the agreement between local law enforcement and the FBI can be reviewed.

UPDATE: April 17, 2013 - The Lake Oswego City Council voted unanimously to join the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).

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The efforts to improve communication and cooperation among law enforcement agencies, including between the FBI and other federal law enforcement agencies, is important. As yesterday’s events in Boston have once again illustrated, such cooperation can be essential to protect public safety. However, the FBI and other federal agencies operate under very different laws and policies than state and local police agencies are required to follow here in Oregon.

Unfortunately, the FBI’s standard agreement for participation by local agencies in their Joint Terrorism Task Forces does not make any accommodation for those different standards and requirements. Indeed, that standard agreement makes it extremely likely that local police officers, once deputized as members of the FBI JTTF, will engage in activities that violate the important protections and safeguards of Oregon law and the Oregon Constitution.

Portland Police Draft Revisions to Use of Force Policies, Release Settlement with DOJ

UPDATE - The City of Portland, PPB, and USDOJ have reached agreement on the terms of their settlement. The ACLU has reviewed this agreement and presented testimony at the City Council hearing on November 1.

October 25, 2012 - Prompted by a condemning report by the U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ), which found that the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has engaged in systemic overuse of force particularly against persons with mental illness, PPB drafted revisions to its policies on Use of Force, Use of Deadly Force, and Tasers. PPB posted these drafts for comment and the ACLU of Oregon has responded with detailed recommendations for improvement.

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Other

Request a Know Your Rights Workshop

Are you confident in asserting your rights when dealing with police? Do you know when an officer has the right to search you? Are you prepared to respond to an officer’s questions with a respectful “I choose to remain silent”?

Many of us do not have the knowledge and confidence to stand up for our basic rights during an encounter with law enforcement. Knowing these rights and how to assert them should be a part of our basic education but, sadly, it is not. So the ACLU of Oregon has launched a campaign to train people on their basic rights when dealing with law enforcement.

Final Portland Reports on JTTF Greatly Improved, But…

February 29, 2012 – Significantly modified reports on the City of Portland’s relationship with the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) were approved by the City Council after the ACLU’s testified they were greatly improved, but still lacked data that would permit the public to independently confirm that Oregon law and the Constitution are being honored by the City.

Last week, the ACLU had issued a detailed analysis that strongly criticized the original draft reports issued February 13 by Police Chief Mike Reese and Mayor Sam Adams. In prepared testimony today, ACLU of Oregon Executive Director David Fidanque detailed the specific improvements in the final reports, which will be made annually to the City Council in the future.

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