Category Archives: News

https://soundcloud.com/thepurplestatereport/29-dean-sanderford In this episode, we continue our series on Colorado’s death penalty. Our guest Dean Sanderford, witnessed the horribly botched execution of his client, Clayton Lockett. Public Policy Associate, Helen Griffiths interviews. Read the ACLU of Colorado report, “Ending a Broken System: Colorado’s Expensive, Ineffective and Unjust Death Penalty” at: http://bit.ly/EABSco Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-purple-state-report/id1257880553 The.... | Read More

DENVER – After more than three years of litigation, the federal district court in Colorado agreed with the ACLU that ICE has been repeatedly violating the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by denying immigration lawyers access to their clients’ files when ICE deemed the clients to be “fugitives.” In an extensive 44-page ruling, the court issued a final judgment and imposed a permanent nationwide injunction against the challenged practice.  “ICE invented a reason for nondisclosure that.... | Read More

Since October of 2012, it has been my enormous privilege to serve as Executive Director of the ACLU of Colorado. Now, I am preparing to move on from this position, after completing our current fiscal year on March 31. I would not do this if I were not confident that we have the resources, staff and expertise to continue the critical work we do every day. You can read the official announcement at ACLU-co.org.  When I began this position, I could not have imagined everything that we would accomplish.... | Read More

Current executive director to leave post in the spring DENVER – The ACLU of Colorado is announcing the departure of its current executive director, Nathan Woodliff-Stanley, in March 2020. The ACLU of Colorado’s Board of Directors will immediately launch a national search for a new executive director. The board will appoint an interim director following Woodliff-Stanley’s departure until his successor is selected.  “We deeply appreciate Nathan’s dedicated and impactful service to.... | Read More

DENVER – An ACLU of Colorado report released today highlights 22 stories of families whose loved ones were murdered and why, in the face of such tragedy, they firmly oppose the death penalty. The death penalty is an expensive, ineffective and unjust process that harms victims’ families. Over the course of decades, victims’ families are forced to navigate a complicated legal process and relive the trauma of their loved one’s murder. “There was a trial for the killer’s accomplice that dragged.... | Read More

https://soundcloud.com/thepurplestatereport/28-sister-helen-prejean The Purple State Report is back and we begin the new year with a series of podcast episodes analyzing Colorado’s death penalty. In this episode, our guest is Sister Helen Prejean, a prominent anti-death penalty activist and author of Dead Man Walking. Public Policy Director, Denise Maes and Public Policy Associate, Helen Griffiths interview. Join ACLU of Colorado on January 14, 2020, for End the Death Penalty Lobby Day. More.... | Read More

2020 is here, and this will be a very important year for the ACLU, Colorado and our nation. Here are seven ACLU of Colorado resolutions for the New Year to help guide our work and yours: Bring Our Neighbors Home. The majority of people in Colorado jails are not there because they have been convicted of a crime. The majority are legally innocent and only incarcerated because they can’t afford to pay a monetary bond. As the Colorado legislative session begins this week, the ACLU of Colorado.... | Read More

It is with deep sadness that we received the news that Gwen Thomas passed away on December 26, 2019 at the age of 94. Gwen was a longtime leader at the ACLU of Colorado and at the national ACLU. She served on the Board of Directors of the ACLU of Colorado for almost three decades, ending her last term in 2008. She also served on the Board of the national ACLU for 25 years, where she served on multiple committees and as Vice Chair for several years. She was a professor of English at what was then.... | Read More

December 10, 2019 DENVER — The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Colorado, Holwell Shuster & Goldberg LLP, and Towards Justice filed two companion lawsuits against Frontier Airlines today for systematically denying its employees basic accommodations for pregnancy and breastfeeding. The lawsuits, filed today by four Frontier pilots and four flight attendants, challenge a host of policies that harm pregnant or breastfeeding employees. Frontier has penalized flight attendants for.... | Read More

November 12, 2019 DENVER – The ACLU of Colorado filed a lawsuit today against the GEO Group, Inc., for the wrongful death of Kamyar Samimi. Mr. Samimi, a Legal Permanent Resident, died in December 2017, after two weeks in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Aurora Contract Detention Facility (ACDF), a for-profit detention center operated by GEO. The ACLU of Colorado’s investigation, which included a lawsuit for records related to Mr. Samimi’s death, revealed a.... | Read More