Pennsylvania
New PA Project Education Fund v. Schmidt
On September 25, 2024, 10 organizations filed a suit in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, asking the court to stop enforcement of the commonwealth’s requirement that voters include an irrelevant handwritten date on the outer return envelope of their mail ballot packets or else be disenfranchised.
Status: Ongoing
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36 Pennsylvania Cases
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Sep 2024
Voting Rights
Black Political Empowerment Project v. Schmidt
A statewide coalition of nonpartisan community organizations sued state and county officials, asserting that the practice of disenfranchising voters for failure to handwrite the date on the outer return envelope of their mail ballot packet, despite the lack of any purpose or use for the handwritten date, violates the fundamental right to vote guaranteed by the Pennsylvania Constitution’s Free and Equal Elections Clause.
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Sep 2024
Voting Rights
Black Political Empowerment Project v. Schmidt
A statewide coalition of nonpartisan community organizations sued state and county officials, asserting that the practice of disenfranchising voters for failure to handwrite the date on the outer return envelope of their mail ballot packet, despite the lack of any purpose or use for the handwritten date, violates the fundamental right to vote guaranteed by the Pennsylvania Constitution’s Free and Equal Elections Clause.
Pennsylvania
Jul 2024
Criminal Law Reform
Smart Justice
Horton v. Rangos (Amicus Brief)
This case challenges the government’s authority to incarcerate individuals accused of probation violations for months or years without meaningfully assessing their risk to the community.
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Pennsylvania
Jul 2024
Criminal Law Reform
Smart Justice
Horton v. Rangos (Amicus Brief)
This case challenges the government’s authority to incarcerate individuals accused of probation violations for months or years without meaningfully assessing their risk to the community.
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Jul 2024
Privacy & Technology
Commonwealth v. Foster
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Jul 2024
Privacy & Technology
Commonwealth v. Foster
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
May 2024
Civil Liberties
Penncrest School District v. Cagle
This case in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court asks whether the Right to Know Law (“RTKL”), 65 P.S. §§ 67.101 - 67.3104, requires the disclosure of school board members’ social media posts on their private Facebook accounts relating to the propriety of a display of certain books in the school library. This case is among one of the first state supreme court cases addressing whether Facebook posts constitute records. The ACLU’s State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the ACLU of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania attorney Brian Cagle, filed a brief arguing that RTKL’s text and structure require the conclusion that posts are “records,” and thus are subject to disclosure.
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court
May 2024
Civil Liberties
Penncrest School District v. Cagle
This case in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court asks whether the Right to Know Law (“RTKL”), 65 P.S. §§ 67.101 - 67.3104, requires the disclosure of school board members’ social media posts on their private Facebook accounts relating to the propriety of a display of certain books in the school library. This case is among one of the first state supreme court cases addressing whether Facebook posts constitute records. The ACLU’s State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the ACLU of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania attorney Brian Cagle, filed a brief arguing that RTKL’s text and structure require the conclusion that posts are “records,” and thus are subject to disclosure.