Press Releases

ACLU of NC Statement on Plans to Scale Back Federal Immigration Detention Center in Graham, N.C.

“For years, immigrant advocates and community members have raised the alarm about the horrific conditions, reports of abuse, and serious medical neglect at the Alamance County jail," said Stefania Arteaga, regional immigrants' rights strategist for the ACLU of North Carolina.

N.C. Supreme Court Upholds Ruling that Domestic Violence Protections Must Apply Equally to LGBTQ+ Couples

In a victory for LGBTQ+ equality, the N.C. Supreme Court upheld a Court of Appeals decision establishing that people in same-sex dating relationships cannot be excluded from domestic violence protections. The opinion in M.E. v. T.J was issued after the defendant appealed the December 2020...
Issue Areas: LGBTQIA+ Equality

Governor Cooper Exercises Clemency Power to End Prison Sentences for the First Time

For the first time since taking office in 2017, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper exercised his clemency powers to release people from prison. Upon the recommendation from the state’s Juvenile Sentence Review Board, Cooper granted clemency to three people, including April Barber, who was given ...

Federal Court Settlement Provides Step Towards Ending Poverty-Based Driver’s License Revocation in North Carolina

“This settlement will help mitigate the harms of the unnecessarily harsh and punitive practice of revoking people’s drivers’ licenses because they are not wealthy, a practice which has disproportionately affected people and communities of color,” said Michele Delgado, staff attorney for the ACLU...
Issue Areas: Criminal Law Reform
Court Cases: Johnson v. Goodwin

Federal Court Holds Final Hearing in Driver's License Revocation Case

Today’s hearing comes nearly four years after three North Carolinians filed suit challenging North Carolina’s law and the DMV’s practice of revoking driver’s licenses as unconstitutional. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the ACLU of North Carolina, and
Issue Areas: Criminal Law Reform
Court Cases: Johnson v. Goodwin

ACLU of NC Statement on Marking One Year Since the U.S. Capitol Insurrection

“Our governing institutions have endured, not because they are inherently unbreakable, but rather as a result of constant defense against attacks that seek to advance white supremacy at the expense of our democracy. Understanding the meaning of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol is essential to...

Community Groups Raise Concerns About Censorship of LGBTQIA+ Affirming Book from Wake County Public Library, Publicize Support for Community Members

“Our public libraries should be an information haven for all people in our community, not sites of censorship. The coordinated effort throughout the country to denigrate books that center LGBTQIA+ issues and voices from libraries and schools is harmful and unconstitutional...

N.C. House Passes Elections Bill with Anti-Immigrant Provisions

“If enacted, HB 259 would unfairly subject immigrant communities to possible arrest and prosecution, putting voters of color and immigrant communities through a burdensome process to prove their eligibility that other voters do not face...

The ACLU of NC Condemns House Passage of Anti-Voter Bills

“It is shameful that lawmakers are advancing anti-voter bills in the final days of the legislative session. These undemocratic efforts are part of a national playbook to slowly erode North Carolinians’ access to the ballot piece by piece. Not only would these bills create more barriers to ...