ACLU Lawsuit Claims Oregon Authorities Surveil People who Protest Against Police Departments that Murder or Brutalize Black Citizens

From [HERE] The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Oregon filed a lawsuit against the city of Medford, Oregon, on Tuesday, alleging that the city’s law enforcement authorities have been surveilling and illegally gathering information on the complainants for years. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of two local organizations and an individual activist.

In the complaint, filed in the Jackson County Circuit Court, plaintiffs say that records reveal that the police have been conducting surveillance on political activists in the city. This surveillance allegedly began after protests in the wake of the murder of George Floyd in 2020. Police continued to monitor protests against the overturning of Roe v. Wade, and the police department allegedly infiltrated a social media group of activists.

As per the complainants, the police department maintained files on activists who had only engaged in peaceful protesting, violating ORS 181A.250, a statute that forbids law enforcement authorities from collecting information about parties unless in the course of a criminal investigation, where there are reasonable grounds to suspect the party of criminal behavior. [MORE]