The nationwide debate over transgender rights is playing out on a personal level in a federal court lawsuit filed by a former Liberty University employee fired by the Christian school after disclosing her identity as a transgender woman.

A judge in South Carolina has ruled it is too late for South Carolina to reopen voter registration for nearly 1,900 teens after the state Department of Motor Vehicles failed to notify election officials that they checked the box to register as they got their driver’s licenses.

Nebraska’s high court says people with felony records can register to vote in a decision with implications for the upcoming election.

A civil rights group is suing the city of Albuquerque, its police department and top officials on behalf of a man who was among those arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and later forced to pay bribes to get the charges dropped.

Officials in Puerto Rico have rejected a petition to extend the voter registration deadline.

A judge in Ohio says a state law that limits gender-affirming health care for youth under 18 can go into effect.

The head of a group of family members of victims of the Sept. 11 terror attacks says she's hearing nearly unanimous praise of the U.S. defense secretary's nullification of plea deals for the accused mastermind and two others.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington has sued the city of Spokane, alleging its anti-homeless laws violate the state constitution.

A group that works to protect and expand voting rights is asking the South Carolina Supreme Court to order lawmakers to redraw the state’s U.S. House districts because they lean too far Republican.

A national nonprofit that aids low-income people behind bars is reopening its Atlanta branch.

The city of Detroit has agreed to pay $300,000 to a man who was wrongly accused of shoplifting.

Vermont has agreed to pay $175,000 to settle a lawsuit on behalf of a man who was charged with a crime for giving a state trooper the middle finger in 2018.

A judge has paused parts of a new Washington state parental rights law derided by critics as a “forced outing” measure.

Officials say Maine’s shortage of public defenders allowed a man with a violent criminal history to be released on bail days before he went to his former girlfriend’s home where a man was killed, two houses burned to the ground and a standoff with police ensued.

The American Civil Liberties Union has prepared a blueprint for using lawsuits, advice to state and local officials and lobbying in Congress to try and thwart the large-scale raids, huge detention camps and mass deportations that former President Donald Trump has promised should he win a second term.

Legislation forcing TikTok’s parent company to sell the video-sharing platform or face a ban in the U.S. has received President Joe Biden’s official signoff.

A federal appeals court has ruled that West Virginia’s transgender sports ban violates the rights of a teen athlete.

A federal appeals court is considering whether to reinstate Arkansas' first-in the-nation ban on gender affirming care for minors after hearing arguments.

Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care for minors is being allowed to take effect by a federal appeals court in Chicago.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada is suing the county that includes Las Vegas over its new ban on standing or stopping while crossing pedestrian bridges on the Strip.

The city of Minneapolis has agreed to pay $950,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that journalists were subjected to police harassment and even hurt while covering protests over the police killings of George Floyd.

A Vermont mother has filed a lawsuit alleging that police used excessive force and discriminated against her unarmed Black son with behavioral and intellectual disabilities.

School officials in Las Vegas have released police reports and body camera footage under court order of a campus officer kneeling on a Black student last year.

A federal judge is prohibiting the separation of families at the border for purposes of deterring immigration for eight years.

Supporters of a ballot measure that would enshrine abortion rights in the Ohio Constitution are far outraising their anti-abortion opponents in the months leading up to the November election.

A proposed court settlement prevents the government from policies to separate migrant parents from their children at the border for eight years.

Tennessee’s first-in-the-nation law placing strict limits on drag shows is facing another legal challenge.

Indiana’s near-total abortion ban is set to take effect within days after the Indiana Supreme Court denied a rehearing in the case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana.

A Detroit woman who was arrested in connection with a suspected robbery and carjacking when she was eight months pregnant is suing the city and one of its police officers for what she says is an over- reliance on facial recognition technology.

Health care providers in Alabama have filed lawsuits against state Attorney General Steve Marshall over threats to prosecute people who help women arrange abortions outside the state.

Several civil rights groups are challenging Florida’s new immigration law in a federal lawsuit.

A federal judge has struck down Arkansas’ ban on gender-affirming care for minors.

A federal judge is blocking much of Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors from taking effect as scheduled July 1.

A group of Chinese citizens living and working in Florida is suing the state over a new law that bans Chinese nationals from purchasing property in large swaths of the state.

A Missouri judge has blocked a unique rule that would restrict access to gender-affirming health care to children and adults.

A federal appeals panel has ruled that West Virginia transgender athletes can compete in female school sports while an appeal is heard on a state law banning their participation.

A top state lawyer has urged the Indiana Supreme Court to uphold the state’s Republican-backed abortion ban.

The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico and others are suing the city of Albuquerque in an effort to stop officials in the state’s largest city from destroying homeless encampments and jailing and fining people who are living on the street.

The nation's first trial over a ban on gender-confirming care for children has ended and is now in the hands of a federal judge.

Giving Tuesday is upon us and the season of charitable giving is in full swing.

The Georgia Supreme Court has reinstated the state’s ban on abortions after roughly six weeks of pregnancy.

The office of Georgia's attorney general says it will appeal a ruling that overturns a ban on most abortions starting around six weeks of pregnancy.

The ACLU of Nevada has asked the state’s secretary of state to investigate what it called a “coordinated partisan election administration effort” during a rural county's hand-count of mail-in ballots that was shut down last week.

A rural Nevada county awash with voting machine conspiracy theories has stopped its unprecedented effort to hand count ballots cast in advance of Election Day.

An unprecedented hand-count of mail-in ballots in a rural Nevada county is on hold and may not resume.

Volunteers began an unprecedented hand count of votes Wednesday in a rural Nevada county where voting machine conspiracy theories prompted mistrust.

The Nevada Supreme Court has ruled that a rural county can start hand-counting mail-in ballots two weeks before Election Day.

The Indiana Supreme Court has issued an order that prevents the state from enforcing a Republican-backed abortion ban while it considers whether the ban violates the state constitution.

President Joe Biden has signed an executive order designed to allay European concerns that U.S. intelligence agencies are illegally spying on them.

Attorneys for a U.S. Coast Guard Academy cadet who was expelled for becoming a father say he will get his degree as part of a legal settlement.

Sheryl Sandberg opened her next chapter as a full-time philanthropist Tuesday with a donation to the American Civil Liberties Union to fight state abortion bans across the country.

Migrants held by U.S. authorities at a detention center in rural New Mexico say they have endured retaliation rather than aid after reporting unsanitary conditions at the government-contracted jail.

A top state lawyer has derided arguments that Indiana’s new abortion ban violates the state constitution, saying that Indiana had such laws in place when the constitution was drafted in 1851 and that opponents of the ban are trying to invent a state right to privacy.

A federal judge in Phoenix has blocked enforcement of a new Arizona law restricting the filming of police.

Indiana abortion clinic operators have filed a lawsuit seeking to block the state’s ban on abortions that is set to take effect Sept. 15.

A federal appeals court has agreed with a judge's ruling preventing the state from enforcing a ban on transgender children receiving gender-affirming medical care.

On Tuesday, the 36th District Court, judges, leaders like Wayne County Sheriff Raphael Washington, former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, and civil rights advocates announced a historic agreement for major reform to the cash bail system to level the playing field for working-class Detroiters.

Clinics are shutting down abortion services in Texas after the Supreme Court in the nation's second-largest state blocked an order that briefly allowed the procedure to resume in some cases.

Exercising your right to vote can be confusing or intimidating, regardless if you’re a first-time voter or a veteran. KPRC 2 News and KSAT, our San Antonio sister-station, worked to create a comprehensive resource to make sure every eligible Texan can vote and is counted.

Facial recognition startup Clearview AI has agreed to restrict the use of its massive collection of face images to settle allegations that it collected people’s photos without their consent.

Amber Heard pushed to have details of her marriage with fellow actor Johnny Depp included in an op-ed piece that she wrote about domestic violence, even though her lawyers wanted those passages removed from the article.

Frontier Airlines has settled a discrimination suit brought by a group of flight attendants who claimed the carrier discriminated against them during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

Two separate lawsuits were filed Thursday in an effort to secure abortion rights in the state of Michigan, should the federal Roe v. Wade ruling be revoked and leave abortion rules up to individual states.

Two separate lawsuits were filed Thursday in an effort to secure abortion rights in the state of Michigan, should the federal Roe v. Wade ruling be revoked and leave abortion rules up to individual states.

Former McDonald’s workers who alleged rampant sexual harassment at their Michigan restaurant have reached a $1.5 million settlement agreement with the restaurant’s former owner.

Three Muslim Americans have filed a lawsuit alleging that U.S. border officers questioned them about their religious beliefs in violation of their constitutional rights when they returned from international travel.

A Texas judge is blocking the state from investigating as child abuse gender confirming care for transgender youth.

The state of Minnesota has agreed to pay $825,000 and change several policies to settle a lawsuit brought by journalists who say they were hurt or harassed while covering protests over the police killings of George Floyd and Daunte Wright.

U.S. health regulators are lifting long-standing restrictions on how women obtain the abortion pill.

The U.S. government has withdrawn from settlement negotiations to end lawsuits filed on behalf of parents and children who were forcibly separated under the Trump administration’s zero-tolerance border policy.

Giving Tuesday is upon us and the season of charitable giving is in full swing.

The ACLU is not looking for any criminal charges to be filed, but they do want a higher power to take a look into the Taylor Police Department.

Here’s what's coming up on Local 4 News at Noon.

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit over a South Carolina law that bans school districts from imposing mask mandates.

Here are tonight's top stories.

In its new report, the Michigan ACLU accuses the Michigan Branch of Customs and Border Protection of “blatant racial profiling” and making people of Latino or Hispanic descent a “primary suspect.”

The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan (ACLU) is asking the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) to intervene in a “potentially racially hostile education environment” in Brighton schools.

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a Virginia school board’s appeal to reinstate its transgender bathroom ban.

The Supreme Court has ruled that a Pennsylvania public school wrongly suspended a student from cheerleading over a vulgar social media post.

The U.S. Department of Justice is challenging bans involving transgender people that target athletes in West Virginia and children in Arkansas.

A lot has changed since the 1960s. And the world can change quickly, too. If there has ever been a time when that is clear, it’s now.

The Biden administration says it has identified more than 3,900 children separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border under former President Donald Trump’s “zero-tolerance” policy on illegal crossings.

A federal lawsuit has been filed challenging West Virginia’s new ban on transgender athletes from competing in female sports in middle and high schools and colleges.

Law enforcement agencies can respond that way under an arcane Oregon law that critics say allows them to violate people's First Amendment rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. In 1971, the Virginia Supreme Court invalidated Virginia’s unlawful assembly statute on First Amendment grounds, the ACLU of Oregon said. The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon says that because unlawful assembly is not a crime in Oregon, the vast majority of protesters who were arrested were charged with interfering with a peace officer. The Oregon law is still unconstitutional because it gives police outsized power to silence dissent, said Kelly Simon, the ACLU of Oregon’s interim legal director. “Ironically, or maybe not so ironically in Oregon, unlawful assembly declarations too often are precursors to police violence against those asking for the government to recognize their right to be safe,” Simon told Bynum's subcommittee.

(AP Photo/Matt York)WASHINGTON – The Biden administration has asked the Supreme Court to put off arguments over two controversial Trump administration policies that have been challenged in court now that President Joe Biden has taken steps to unwind them. In his first days as president, Biden rescinded the national emergency Trump declared on the southern border and ordered a pause in wall construction. AdThe American Civil Liberties Union, which represents groups that sued the Trump administration in both cases, has agreed to putting off both cases, acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the court. “It’s a good start that the Biden administration is not rushing to defend Trump’s illegal wall in court, but just hitting the brakes isn’t enough. Trump’s wall devastated border communities, the environment, and tribal sites,” ACLU lawyer Dror Ladin said.

She succeeds Susan Herman, a professor at Brooklyn Law School who had served as president since 2008. Early in her career, after graduating from Yale Law School, she was a legal fellow at the ACLU in 1997-98. At NYU Law School, Archer is a professor of clinical law and director of its Civil Rights Clinic. Ad“There is no one better equipped, who best personifies or is more capable to helm the future battles for civil rights, civil liberties, and systemic equality than Deborah Archer,” Romero said. “President Trump may be gone but his toxic legacy on civil rights and civil liberties is still very much with us,” Romero said.

LANSING, Mich. – The Legislature approved changes last week to Michigan’s sex offender registry after federal courts declared the current policy unconstitutional. In 2006, the state prohibited those on the registry from living or loitering within 1,000 feet of school property. In 2011, the state approved a requirement for registrants to immediately report changes in addresses, vehicles and phone numbers. Since the judge's February decision, officers were advised not to take enforcement action for certain violations involving the registry and school safety zones, said Michigan State Police spokeswoman Shanon Banner. The legislation would require offenders to report changes in phone numbers and vehicles to authorities.

LANSING, Mich. – “We are, so excited about this coalition, and we’re excited about these reforms. They prove that when people work together, they make genuine real process in Lansing,” said Kimberly Buddin. Thursday, several organizations -- like Americans for Prosperity, the ACLU of Michigan, Safe and Just Michigan and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy -- presented the Justice Reform Package to the State House and Senate. They addressed key and important issues like driver’s license suspensions, mandatory minimum sentencing, case initiation, sentencing, probation, racial justice and fairness. The State House approved the package, now they move on to the Senate.

(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)LAS VEGAS – Some military voters are concerned they have been thrust into the center of unsubstantiated fraud claims by President Donald Trump’s campaign that several thousand people may have improperly voted in Nevada. Still, lawyers from Trump’s campaign sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr alleging they had uncovered what they described as “criminal voter fraud” in Nevada. Those people were identified by “cross-referencing the names and addresses of voters with the National Change of Address database,” according to the letter. Instead, it listed voters by the county, city, state and zip code they moved from, and the city, state and nine-digit zip code they moved to. Voting rights activists say hundreds of people on the list appear to be linked to the U.S. military.

Most of the parents were deported to their Central American homelands, and their children were placed with sponsors in the U.S., often relatives. But it was later discovered an additional 1,556 children were taken from their parents going back to summer 2017, including the 545 kids who are still separated. The administration’s foot-dragging has made it even tougher to find the parents because of how much time has passed, he said. The judge called for an update on Dec. 2 and set another hearing for Dec. 4 to discuss the progress. Just nine parents separated from their children were allowed back in January.

DETROIT – The battle over foreclosures in Wayne County took a new turn Thursday in Detroit. The American Civil Liberties Union wants the county to protect many from foreclosure for years to come. The county has taken action to protect those struggling by suspending all foreclosures through the end of the year. Now the ACLU wants to take it a step further protecting those from foreclosure for years to come. Local 4 reached out to the Wayne County Treasurer’s Office but calls have not been returned.

SAN DIEGO – Court-appointed lawyers said Tuesday that they have been unable to find parents of 545 children who were separated at the U.S. border with Mexico early in the Trump administration. The children were separated between July 1, 2017, and June 26, 2018, when a federal judge in San Diego ordered that children in government custody be reunited with their parents. The American Civil Liberties Union, which sued over the practice, said a court-appointed steering committee located parents of 485 children, up 47 from August. That leaves 545 still unaccounted for among the 1,030 children for whom the steering committee had telephone numbers from U.S. authorities. About two-thirds of parents of those 545 children are believed to be in their countries of origin, the ACLU said.

DETROIT – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic shouldn’t stop you from voting. Engage Michigan is teaming up with the ACLU and many other organizations to create MichiganVoting.org, a website that provides information for voters. The website is expected to have information on how to get to the polls on election day. Watch the video above for the full report

Pearland Police Chief Johnny Spires defended the large law enforcement presence. Drake said the ACLU was deeply troubled that BORTAC agents were part of the law enforcement response. BORTAC agents have been criticized for how they have detained and arrested protesters in Portland, Oregon. A representative of Customs and Border Protection in Washington, D.C., declined to comment on the work of BORTAC agents in Pearland. CBP said its special operations teams are routinely deployed to help law enforcement nationwide.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. Brown University rebutted what the school calls spurious conspiracy claims" as it responded to an allegation that it is failing to comply with a 1998 agreement ensuring gender equity in sports. The Ivy League school this year announced it was cutting several varsity women's and men's sports, and reducing them to club status. The agreement stemmed from a lawsuit filed after Brown dropped womens gymnastics and volleyball as varsity sports. Brown last month released internal documents, including emails from high-ranking school officials, that Public Justice and the ACLU said show Brown wanted to undermine and dismantle the 1998 agreement. Brown President Christina Paxson said the school fully supports women's sports.

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, challenging the legality of the actions taken by U.S. agents sent by President Donald Trump to subdue protests in Portland. The federal agents exceeded the limits of their authority, making illegal arrests and using tear gas, rubber bullets, pepper spray and other tactics to squelch the protests, the lawsuit alleges. A video of plaintiff and Navy veteran Christopher David's encounter with U.S. agents outside the Portland courthouse circulated widely on social media. It showed one agent hitting David with a baton and another dousing him in the face with pepper spray. Local police have arrested hundreds of people over the three months and federal agents arrested at least 94 people at the height of the demonstrations in July.

NORFOLK, Va. A Virginia state senator has been charged with damaging a Confederate monument in Portsmouth during protests that also led to a demonstrator being critically injured when a statue was torn down, authorities said Monday. Lucas is a longtime Democratic legislator and a key power broker in the state Senate, joining the chamber in 1992. The monument in Portsmouth consists of a large obelisk and statues of four Confederate military personnel. Felony charges leveled against a sitting state senator are to be taken seriously, and should not be sought out for political gain, he said in a statement. "It is for that reason that the Republican Party of Virginia calls for Senator Lucas to turn herself in.

As of this week, the ACLU has filed nearly 400 lawsuits and other legal actions against the Trump administration, some meeting with setbacks but many resulting in important victories. As of this week, the ACLU has filed nearly 400 lawsuits and other legal actions against the Trump administration, some meeting with setbacks but many resulting in important victories. Donald Trump has provided a full employment program for ACLU lawyers on all of our issues, Romero said. By a similar 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court also allowed the implementation of the Trump administration policy barring transgender people from enlisting in the military. In an email, Turley questioned the wisdom of the torrent of lawsuits against the Trump administration.

Robert Williams was the victim of shoddy investigative work," police Chief James Craig said. Williams, 42, was arrested in January in front of his family at their home in Farmington Hills, a Detroit suburb. The video wasn't as clear as he felt it should be. The ACLU, which opposes the use of facial technology by police, publicized Williams' case. He blamed it on subpar work by police and prosecutors but said the technology can be useful if handled properly.

DETROIT The controversy over the use of facial recognition technology continues after a Farmington Hill man was arrested at his home for a crime he didnt commit. They claim he was arrested based off of facial recognition software. READ: A closer look at facial recognition technologyAll of the photos had two things in common, said Williams Attorney, Victoria Burton-Harris. They were all Black faces and men.Once the cops identified Mr. Williams using facial recognition technology, said Phil Mayor with the ACLU of Michigan. The family is demanding a public apology and for the DPD to scrap its use of facial recognition software.