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ACLU of Arizona offers “Bust Card”, Urges Racial Profiling Victims to Report Abuses (press release)

by on Jun. 30, 2010, under Life, Politics

In Advance Of Holiday Weekend, ACLU of Arizona Offers “Bust Card,” Urges Racial Profiling Victims to Report Abuses

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, June 30, 2010

CONTACT: Jon O’Neill at 602-773-6007, joneill@acluaz.org

PHOENIX – Amid growing concern that people are being targeted by law enforcement even before Arizona’s new racial profiling law takes effect, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona today issued an updated “Know Your Rights” bust card that spells out the rights and responsibilities of citizens and non-citizens when they are stopped by police.

The bust card is being issued in conjunction with “Travel Alerts” posted today by other ACLU affiliates that warn travelers their civil rights could be violated while passing through or staying in Arizona. Racial profiling victims are also being urged to contact the ACLU of Arizona with any complaints they may have.

The unconstitutional law – known as SB 1070 – is not scheduled to go into effect until July 29, but the ACLU of Arizona has already received complaints from people who believe they were profiled by law enforcement because they look “foreign.” Since April, the ACLU of Arizona has received a steady increase in reports involving individuals who were asked to confirm their identity or citizenship status.

SB 1070 requires law enforcement agents to demand “papers” from people they stop who they suspect are “unlawfully present” in the United States. If individuals are unable to prove to officers that they have permission to be here, they may be detained indefinitely without probable cause to believe they have committed a crime.

“In Arizona, SB 1070 has caused relations between community members and police to go from bad to worse,” said ACLU of Arizona Executive Director Alessandra Soler Meetze. “Two of the largest police departments in the state – DPS and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office – have had to defend against accusations of racial profiling in Court. On top of that, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice for suspected civil rights violations.”

The ACLU and other organizations filed a lawsuit challenging the Arizona immigration law in May, but until the law is struck down, the ACLU warns that individuals should be aware of their rights if stopped by police, especially while they are traveling on busy highways during the July 4th weekend.

The case challenging SB 1070 is the third ACLU lawsuit against government officials in Arizona on behalf of a besieged minority community. In August 2009, the organization filed a lawsuit on behalf of a Latino citizen and lawful resident who were forcibly transported by MCSO deputies to the site of a worksite raid. In addition, the group’s lawsuit challenging unlawful stops of Latino drivers and passengers by MCSO is moving forward following the discovery of thousands of documents MCSO had previously failed to disclose. The parties are scheduled to go back to court July 16.

“Our goal is to protect Arizona residents from misconduct by law enforcement, and to make sure they know their rights should they be subject to it,” added Meetze. “Unfortunately, we’re already hearing stories about individuals being harassed by police based on their accent, appearance, or where they come from. It is important for people to understand that they have the right to politely decline additional questioning, to refuse a consent search, and to ask to speak to an attorney. These rights are not just reserved to citizens of this country but are available to everyone.”

The downloadable ACLU “bust card” contains information on coping with vehicle stops and questioning by police, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, and the FBI. In addition, the ACLU has made available a Q&A flier in both English and Spanish. The organization is urging individuals who have experienced racial profiling by police to complete a new online complaint form at: http://www.acluaz.org/intake/html/ or call 602-650-1854.

To view the “bust card” on your mobile device, go to:

English: http://mobile.aclu.org

Spanish: http://mobile.aclu.org/espanol

More information about the Arizona law, including an ACLU video and slide show, can be found at: www.acluaz.org.

To read the ACLU of Arizona’s report documenting the on-going problem of racial profiling by the Arizona Department of Public Safety, visit: http://www.acluaz.org/DrivingWhileBlackorBrown.pdf

Alessandra Soler Meetze

Executive Director

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Arizona

P.O. Box 17148

Phoenix, AZ 85011-0148

Phone: 602-773-6006 (direct) or 602-650-1854 (general)

Fax: 602-650-1376

Visit us on-line at: www.acluaz.org

En Español: http://www.acluaz.org/en_espanol_main.html

ACLU of Arizona

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  • charles

    If you are legal you have nothing to worry about.
    If  any law officer asks me for identification regardless of his or her race I have no problem showing my identification. 
    Regardless of your race if a law officer ask’s for your I.D. and legal status tell them!
    No American has anything to hide unless you are not American.
     

  • Michael

    “The unconstitutional law – known as SB 1070 – is not scheduled to go into effect until July 29…”
    Talk about a biased article and poor reporting. This law is NOT unconstitutional until a court rules that it is… whichever way it goes will then be challenged all the way to the Supreme Court. Maybe send Carolyn Classen back to school to learn a bit about journalism and fairness in reporting.

  • Carolyn Classen

    Thank you Michael for your comment and you are right,  SB 1070 is allegedly unconstitutional and only time will tell if it will be struck down, based  on the legal challenges it is facing.   I noted on my blog title that this is a press release from the ACLU of Arizona, so these are their words, not mine.  Please contact them if you have any  comments or questions. And I am a graduate of a law school,  having taken no journalism courses at all, and I’m an unpaid blogger/”citizen journalist” for this online Tucsoncitizen.com.

  • bullet

    Michael:  This isn’t an article – it’s a press release. Carolyn Classen isn’t biased – just lazy.

  • Carolyn Classen

    Charles, people legally in America with I.D.s (driver’s licenses, passports, green cards, visa permits, etc) will have no trouble proving their identification, but the problem with SB 1070 is that it may cause these same people (of color) to be targeted by law enforcement officials.  Even tourists (not Americans) may be questioned.

  • Carolyn Classen

    Bullet, I have learned that’s it’s safer to just re-print the ACLU press releases instead of paraphrasing them, for accuracy in reporting what they and other groups are saying and doing about this heated issue.

  • MCLepus

    @Charles Don’t let your white skin make you overconfident. ICE can deport anyone they damn well please:
    http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2008/01/24/25392/immigration-officials-detaining.html
    ”
    FLORENCE, Ariz. — Thomas Warziniack was born in Minnesota and grew up in Georgia, but immigration authorities pronounced him an illegal immigrant from Russia.
    Immigration and Customs Enforcement has held Warziniack for weeks in an Arizona detention facility with the aim of deporting him to a country he’s never seen. His jailers shrugged off Warziniack’s claims that he was an American citizen, even though they could have retrieved his Minnesota birth certificate in minutes and even though a Colorado court had concluded that he was a U.S. citizen a year before it shipped him to Arizona. ”
    Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2008/01/24/25392/immigration-officials-detaining.html#ixzz0sNFxxAeo

  • Carolyn Classen

    Thanks MC Lepus– for that article link about U.S. Citizen Thomas Warziniack facing deportation to Russia by ICE.  That’s pretty scary, and it happened right here in Arizona.

  • charles

    Hi Carolyn,
    The tourist or other people of color that are here legaly will need to work with law inforcement to help the state get on the right track,   if these people do not want to help by simply showing there passport or identification then that to me is
    un-American! I am sure there will be lawsuites with many playing that race card.
    Some people will be inconvenienced but thast is a small price to pay to remove illegal  peolpe in this state.

  • Carolyn Classen

    The “reply” tool online here may finally be working Charles.  Yes, people here legally should be able to prove their status, even tourists with valid visas.  Whenever I travel overseas I always keep my U.S. Passport in my handbag at all times, with me.  But after July 29, I may have to do that as well in Arizona.

  • Skip

    Much ado about nothing… The Bleeding heart liberal ACLU is the biggest detriment to the US. They were good for the Country, at one time. Now they are useless PIA’s (Pain in the A__’s!) They have made the determination that SB1070 is Unconstitutional..even tho it mirrors the Federal Law. SB1070 has NOT been in any Court decision yet, but ACLU says it’s unconstitutional?? That’s the \cart before the horse\… but, ACLU no longer cares about right or wrong.. I think President Obama and his Dept of Justice shold crap or get off the pot in taking this issue to court. If the Feds did their job, none of this would be required. How about the 750 million the Feds already owe Arizona for the incarceration of CONVICTED criminals that are also ILLEGAL Immigrants. The FEDS will NOT pay what they owe, OR enforce their own laws. If ACLU was worth anything any more, they would be filing suit against the FEDS for not doing their job. BUT…and I said this well over a year ago…The current, losing, Democratic Party is just waiting to force on the law abiding citizens the \blanket amnesty\ for Illegal Immigrants, thus they can gain 10 – 14 million votes.. (and they don’t care if they are Illegal Felons or not)… Wait and see… President Obama is hinting very seriously about that now…his \Border Security can only be accomplished if it’s in concert with a viable immigration plan\, which means, blanket amnesty. I always thought the US had an immigration plan…apply and follow the rules. There are Illegals here, who after 10 years STILL cannot speak our language. They fly their Mexican flag with our US Flag, on the same flagpole, which is against our flag laws. My mother came to this Country, LEGALLY, from Germany in 1925 with my Grandparents, via Ellis Island. They had to comply with immigrations rules, and I cannot remember them telling me that we had to print everything for them in English AND German, or Italian, or Russian, or whatever.. But..look at what we have to do for the Mexicans!! Total waste of taxpayer money! You want to be here, act like it. follow the rules, learn the language, and if, IF you want to become a Citizen of the US, RESPECT this Country. But…I digress… 

  • Brittanicus

    Half the American working population is looking for work and the good old Liberal Marxist Democrat are out to force another crippling amnesty down our throats.
    The costs and other expenditures for illegal aliens is such a burden on the economy of Arizona and every other state–SOMETHING MUST BE DONE & NOW? Decades of complete disregard for Citizens and legal residents have led us to the edge of a financial precipice. Billions of dollars every year are transferred to other countries to support families, plus even more billions are sent to Mexico to stabilize their economies, but most ends up in the pockets of the corrupt government. The interior of America has become a welfare state for “Anchor Babies”, for hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens who have doctored and fraudulent government issued ID’s.This gives them access to welfare entitlements, which is the absolute fault of every Administration since President Bush Senior. Any kind of AMNESTY now will also attribute to a breakdown that will encompass the whole of America. Billions more will be spent in processing the 20 to 30 million already here, with an imminent danger of millions of others wanting to reach this land before AMNESTY is signed into law. Those readers who are unsure, should read the implications after the 1986 Immigration Control & Reform bill was signed by Ronald Reagan. THEY LIED TO US IN 1986, THEY ARE LYING TO US NOW.Since the 1920 the ACLU has brought misery to the American people, its origins drenched in Communistic views. It’s ominous beginnings have always had the ideologies of  undermining this nations freedoms, liberties and crushing the US Constitution. They are always out front in suing communities, mostly because of a growing need to eliminate our Democracy and giving–rights–to illegal aliens, who have trespassed in a sovereign nation that has THE PEOPLE’S law to enforce our borders and deport people who have intentionally ignored our immigration laws. I cannot even count the number of times that I have been stopped by the police, but even so once checked on their computer I was sent on my way.It was a absolute travesty as all the promises were never kept. Employers knowingly hiring foreign nationals were never penalized with harsh fines or imprisonment. Instead of 3 million being legitimized the number was way beyond 6 million. The cost of processing was staggering. President Obama is giving a pep-talk this Thursday, but it is the open border, free trade and special interest lobbyists that are passing along the rhetoric and lies. His token military force on the border will not have the ability to halt the unfettered flow of illegal drugs, foreign nationals or even Middle Eastern terrorists. The Tea Party and thousands of pro-sovereignty organization and advocates have already proclaimed there will be no–AMNESTY. Until the–REAL–double parallel fences are duly completed, nothing will pass that even smells of AMNESTY. Learn the whole truth at NumbersUSA. Additionally discover who your enemies are in both political parties beginning with Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).

  • Monte

    “SB 1070 requires law enforcement agents to demand “papers” from people they stop who they suspect are “unlawfully present” in the United States. If individuals are unable to prove to officers that they have permission to be here, they may be detained indefinitely without probable cause to believe they have committed a crime.”

    Carolyn, did you even read the bill?  Here is what it really says.

    “For any lawful  STOP, DETENTION OR ARREST made by a law enforcement official or a law enforcement agency of this state or a law enforcement official or a law enforcement agency of a county, city, town or other political subdivision of this state IN THE ENFORCEMENT OF ANY OTHER LAW OR ORDINANCE OF A COUNTY, CITY OR TOWN OR THIS STATE where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien  AND is unlawfully present in the United States, a reasonable attempt shall be made, when practicable, to determine the immigration status of the person, except if the determination may hinder or obstruct an investigation.”

    In other words, if after stopping someone for criminal activity or a traffic violation or  ordinance violation , and they present to an officer “reasonable suspicion” they are here illegally, then the officer may ask about their legal status.

    Since the police officer will already have your DL and registration in hand, if it’s a valid DL from Az or any other state that requires proof of citizenship to obtain, he isn’t going to ask you about your status, (no matter what color you are) as those forms of ID lets the officer presume you are not here illegally. It’s in the bill.

    And no, they cannot be detained indefinitely.  The courts have ruled they may be detained briefly at the “scene” to complete the investigation.”  Just like a cop does to check your DL, registration and insurance.

    “new racial profiling law takes effect”

    That comment is just flat dishonest.  The new law even makes racial profiling a crime!

    “A law  enforcement official or agency of this state or a county, city, town or other
    political subdivision of this state may not solely consider race, color or national origin in implementing the requirements of this subsection except to the extent permitted by the United States or Arizona Constitution.”

    “Racial profiling refers to the inappropriate use of an individual’s race or ethnicity by law enforcement personnel as a key factor (or sometimes as any factor at all) in deciding whether to engage in enforcement (e.g. make a traffic stop or arrest).”

    This law doesn’t target Hispanics, it targets traffic violators, criminals and ordinance abusers. Traffic violators, criminals and ordinance abusers are not a race or a class you can “profile.” And since being “illegal” isn’t an observable offense, how can you single out Hispanics?  3 out of 4 times the targeted person is going to be a legal citizen.  What are cops going to do, only enforce laws broken by Hispanics so they can profile them, while non-Hispanics go on a crime spree?  Get real!

    This kind of poor reporting just fuels racial tensions.

     

  • Monte

    Correction: Should have read:
    “A law  enforcement official or agency of this state or a county, city, town or other
    political subdivision of this state may not consider race, color or national origin in implementing the requirements of this subsection except to the extent permitted by the United States or Arizona Constitution.”
    Solely was removed in HR2162.

  • Monte

    “Charles, people legally in America with I.D.s (driver’s licenses, passports, green cards, visa permits, etc) will have no trouble proving their identification, but the problem with SB 1070 is that it may cause these same people (of color) to be targeted by law enforcement officials.  Even tourists (not Americans) may be questioned.”
    How will they be targeted?  How will the cops know who to target from the thousands of traffic violators and criminals?
    Yes, tourists that break the law in the US who get stopped by LE and present “reasonable suspicion” will get asked to prove their status. So what?
    You seem to imply this law gives cops authority to stop someone for “driving while brown.”
    That’s just hogwash!

    • Carolyn Classen

      Summary from aforementioned (in press release above) April 2008 ACLU report, “Driving while Black or Brown”:
      II Executive Summary of Findings
      “Arizona Department of Public Safety Officers made more than 500,000 stops between July 1, 2006 and June 30, 2007. Just under 200,000 stops were made on Arizona’s interstate highways during this period.
      Of those 200,000 interstate highway stops, approximately 13,271 resulted in searches.
      African Americans and Hispanics stopped by DPS officers were more likely than whites to be searched on all major highways included in this analysis. Native Americans and persons of Middle Eastern descent also were more likely than whites to be searched on most highways.
      On average, Native Americans stopped by DPS officers were 3.25 times more likely to be searched than whites stopped by DPS officers. African Americans and Hispanics were each 2.5 times more likely than whites to be searched by DPS.
      Higher search rates for minorities were not justified by higher rates of transporting contraband. In fact, on average, whites were more likely to be carrying contraband than Native Americans, Middle Easterners, Hispanics and Asians on all major Arizona highways. African Americans were at least twice as likely as whites to be searched on all six interstate segments, despite the fact that the rate of contraband seizures for African Americans and whites was similar.
      Minorities, including African Americans, Hispanics and Middle Easterners, were consistently stopped for longer periods of time than whites traveling on all interstate highways in Arizona.
      In sum, this report concludes that DPS officers treated persons from different racial and ethnic groups unequally between July 2006 and June 2007. Minorities were more likely than whites to be searched and stopped for longer periods of time. This unequal treatment was not justified by higher contraband seizure rates from minority motorists.”
       
       

  • erniemccray

    And asking somebody to prove that they should be allowed in a state building comes under what law? It’s rather easy, I would suppose, for people who have never been profiled based on their race to shine all this on with attitudes of “Well, if you’re here legally what’s the big deal?” The big deal is no one who has not committed a crime and “truly” hasn’t “reasonably” been suspected of committing one shouldn’t have to show anybody anything at any time. And when has there ever been in this country a significant number of cops who don’t hassle brown and black people or gay people? Being a Latino right now is not a day at Disneyland.
    Don’t we see the game that’s being played? Our government and fat corporate cats run economies into the ground and sit back on their yachts in their hideaway places while “We the People” search out somebody to lessen, somebody to belittle. In this case people struggling like us who we keep referring to as “illegal.” We’re all illegal as far as the system is concerned. Illegals didn’t create sub prime loans, homelessness, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” or bulldoze the rain forests and farms of Latin America, sending people across our borders, burning up in the desert or freezing in the mountains frantically trying to make it to the U.S. to earn enough money to eat, to keep from dying. And what do they get? The wrath of people that can’t see that we’re all in the same boat.
    McCain can’t remember how many houses he has and we’re going to chastise somebody who practically has nothing?
    We don’t have immigration laws because what we have works. Exploitation works. When we collectively decide that we want to pay big bucks for lettuce and tomatoes we’ll have our law and I guess our big complaint will be how hard it is to receive workman’s comp because we “legals” then will be breaking our backs in the fields, so to speak.

  • erniemccray

    And, if any of us are ever jacked up by the law when we’re innocent who are we going to call? Some attorney at $$$$$$ per hour or the ACLU?

  • Entropy

    Why is it that people who support the notion that excercizing our RIGHTS afforded to us by the US Constituion is UNAMERICAN? Do these people hate the US Constituion that much?

    If I choose NOT to carry ID because it’s my right, that’s somehow UNAMERICAN? If I’m driving, I’ll carry my DL, but driving isn’t a right. I can choose to walk and not carry a DL. Isn’t being an American about having rights? Or is it now American to be treated like those in the former USSR or East Germany?
     
    Listen, I’m not going to debate whether or not SB1070 is unconstitutional or not, but to say that knowing my rights and excersizing my rights are UNAMERICAN is well…. UN-American.
     
    If you don’t like the Constitution, there are plenty of other countries to move to where your rights are limited.
     
    Want to know what constitutes being pulled over in MCSO? Brown skin and the following: Not  license plate light, tint, cracked windshield, failure to use a turn signal, horn, BEING A PASSENGER, etc.
     
    http://azdatapages.com/datacenter/joe-arpaio-crime-sweep-stops.html

  • gary

    Really Charles, this is how you feel? Refusing to show your papers to the authorities is un-American? That is a pretty creepy version of liberty you practice.
    Same goes to the witless wonder who said if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. Every dictatorship in the world uses that standard. Privacy has nothing to do with right or wrong, hiding or not hiding something. It stems from the right of the govt to DEMAND something.

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