Dan King🇺🇦

107% tariffs on Italian pasta?

Opinion | He’s a citizen with a Real ID. ICE detained him anyway. Twice. Leo Garcia Venegas’s experience shows why Trump’s immigration raids are unconstitutional.

"When officers detain groups of people based on their occupation, their location, or 'how they look,' ... the stop will rarely — if ever — be justified."

-@ij.org's @jaredmcclain.bsky.social on ICE's unconstitutional work site raids. @postopinions.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...

@ij.org are the team behind "The Plate Privacy Project" and have a lawsuit filed challenging the constitutionality of license plate readers in Norfolk, Virginia.

In today's decision, the court said that "public necessity" is an exception to the Fifth Amendment's Takings Clause.

But that's not right. If the government destroys an innocent person's property, it must compensate that person.

Appeals Court Panel Rules Los Angeles Business Owner Not Entitled to Compensation After SWAT Team Destroys Shop; Owner Will Ask Full Court to Review - Institute for Justice LOS ANGELES—Today, a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled an innocent business owner whose business was destroyed by a SWAT team […]

Today, a panel of the 9th Circuit ruled @ij.org client Carlos Pena is not entitled to compensation after a SWAT team destroyed his shop while chasing a fugitive in 2022.

We'll ask the full Appeals Court to rehear this case.
ij.org/press-releas...

Sandy Springs police officer terminated after allegedly using city’s Flock cameras for personal gain The officer may have violated multiple Georgia laws, including corporate espionage.

A Georgia cop used the city's ALPR cameras to conduct corporate espionage for a different job.

Once again, for the millionth time, this abuse will continue until governments start implementing warrant requirements!
www.wsbtv.com/news/local/f...

Throughout the country, local governments are partnering with private companies to install automatic license plate reader cameras (#ALPRs) on their roadways.

But IJ is fighting back against mass surveillance.

YouTube video by Institute for Justice How Police Around the Country Are Conducting Mass Surveillance

Check out @ij.org's newest episode of Beyond the Brief, featuring me and IJ Attorney Michael Soyfer talking about warrantless mass surveillance and license plate readers.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xU5...

Texas Appeals Court Reverses Forfeiture of Innocent Americans’ Life Savings and Orders Harris County to Return the $41,680 It Seized - Institute for Justice Today, the Texas First Court of Appeals reversed a Harris County civil-forfeiture judgment entered after a six-day jury trial and rendered judgment for Institute for Justice (IJ) […]

Good news for your Tuesday!

An appeals court has ordered Texas to return the life savings of @ij.org clients Ameal Woods and Jordan Davis, which were taken through civil forfeiture.

Neither was ever charged with a crime.
ij.org/press-releas...

As Abuses Mount Nationwide, Administration Calls on Court to Reject Lawsuit Challenging Constitutionality of License Plate Readers - Institute for Justice NORFOLK, Va.—On Saturday, the new United States Attorney Lindsey Halligan submitted a statement of interest in a constitutional lawsuit against the city of Norfolk, defending the city’s use of 176 Flo...

Over the weekend, new U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan submitted a "statement of interest" on behalf of the administration against @ij.org's lawsuit challenging the warrantless use of ALPRs.

The feds love mass surveillance.
ij.org/press-releas...

New documents show the city of Norfolk, VA tracked the location of @ij.org clients Lee Schmidt & Crystal Arrington 4 & 6 times per day, respectively, using ALPRs.

All without a warrant.

Check out Kevin’s deep dive into those documents for @nbcnews.com

VICTORY: Officers Denied #QualifiedImmunity for Arresting and Jailing Woman at Christmas
🧵

Broward County police "had a warrant for a different Jennifer... who was 23 years younger; five inches shorter; and had a different hair color, eye color, skin tone, social security number, and home address. 'When I was in jail, nobody would listen to me that they had arrested the wrong person.'"

The court ruled there are "observable differences between the individual and the person described in the warrant and there was plenty of time for officers to verify the identity of the person being arrested but the officers ignored red flags and arrested the person anyways."

After days of trying, Jennifer's brother (who is a police officer himself) was finally able to convince Broward County they had arrested a completely innocent woman.

Jennifer was released and told "it happens."

The innocent Jennifer spent the next three days in jail. She missed Christmas with her family and didn't get to see her son off to the airport before he deployed with the Marines.

While she was in there, her family worked tirelessly to get her out.

Despite the fact that none of the information on the warrant matched any of the information on Jennifer's ID, Broward County Deputy Peter Peraza insisted on moving forward with the arrest.

On Christmas Eve 2022, Jennifer was arrested getting off a cruise ship in Ft. Lauderdale.

But the warrant was for a different Jennifer with a different last name, who was 5 inches shorter, 23 years younger, and had different hair color, eye color, skin tone, SSN and address.

Victory: Broward County Officers Not Entitled to Qualified Immunity for Arresting Innocent Woman in Case of Mistaken Identity  - Institute for Justice On Wednesday, United States District Court Judge Melissa Damian ruled a Texas woman’s lawsuit against the Broward County Sherrif’s Office and several deputies of the […]

HUGE WIN

A judge has ruled the police officers who overlooked obvious evidence they were arresting the wrong woman when they arrested @ij.org client Jennifer Heath Box in a case of mistaken identity are NOT entitled to qualified immunity. 🧵
ij.org/press-releas...

Our client, Serafim, was issued a citation for failure to submit a boiler report. But his home didn't even have a boiler, because the previous owner removed it.

Serafim was not allowed to appeal the fine & didn't even learn about the fine until years later.

Innocent Property Owner Asks Supreme Court to Hear Case Challenging New York City’s ‘Unreviewable’ Code Fines - Institute for Justice WASHINGTON—Today, an innocent New York property owner—who was fined for a code violation he did not commit and had no way to appeal—is asking the […]

In NYC, the Department of Buildings issues "unreviewable" fines for code violations, giving property owners no way to appeal, even if they have proof they're innocent.

Today, @ij.org asked #SCOTUS to hear our case challenging this scheme.
ij.org/press-releas...

Public Interest Law Firm Applauds Westchester County Village for Ending License Plate Reader Contract - Institute for Justice ARLINGTON, Va.—Today, the Institute for Justice (IJ) applauds the village of Scarsdale, New York for terminating its contract with the automated license plate reader (ALPR) […]

🚨Today, the village of Scarsdale, NY terminated its automated license plate reader camera contract, after 450 residents spoke out against it.

@ij.org applauds this move & the hard work of the activists who reached out to us to protect their 4th Amendment rights.
ij.org/press-releas...

Public Interest Law Firm Urges Appeals Court to Once Again Reject Immunity for Judge Who Personally Jailed Kids - Institute for Justice ARLINGTON, Va.—Today, the Institute for Justice (IJ) submitted an amicus brief in a case seeking to hold a judge accountable for throwing two innocent children […]

In 2019, Judge Eric Eighmy jailed 2 innocent kids because they didn't want to go with their mom during a custody dispute.

A court ruled he wasn't entitled to judicial immunity.

Now, he wants qualified immunity.

@ij.org submitted a brief urging the court to deny immunity.
ij.org/press-releas...

Rays at Yankees Boyle vs Fried

There are two ways to get your pierogi at Veselka

It took nearly 3.5 years for Cristal to get her money back. So, we sought interest payments and attorney's fees under the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act.

Yesterday, the court said Cristal hasn't "substantially prevailed" in court and thus wasn't entitled to fees or interest.

Cristal tried to navigate the forfeiture system herself, but never got her day in court.

So in 2022, she teamed up with IJ to file an appeal seeking a chance to make her case in front of a judge.

After a court ruled she was entitled to make her case, the DEA gave her $ back.

Cristal's ex was acquitted of all charges, and Cristal was never even suspected of a crime. Still, Rochester Police partnered with the federal government to take Cristal's money through civil forfeiture.

In October 2020, police were serving warrants for Cristal's then-boyfriend, whom they suspected of dealing drugs.

When police raided Cristal's home, they found nothing illegal. Still, they seized $8,040 she was going to invest in her food cart business.

Court Rules Rochester Woman Not Entitled to Fees or Interest After Police Seized Her Money Without Suspecting Her of Crime; Woman Will Appeal  - Institute for Justice ROCHESTER, N.Y.—On Monday, the United States District Court for the Western District of New York ruled that a Rochester woman was not entitled to attorney […]

In 2020, Rochester Police took $8,040 from Cristal Starling w/o suspecting her of a crime.

After @ij.org stepped in to sue, the DEA gave Cristal's money back.

But Yesterday, a judge ruled she isn't entitled to interest or fees. We'll appeal. 🧵
ij.org/press-releas...

Victory: Kansas City Places Moratorium on Mandatory Parking Minimum Rules - Institute for Justice KANSAS CITY, Kan.—Today, a new resolution went into effect placing a three-year moratorium on Kansas City’s parking minimum rules for affected properties east of Interstate […]

In a win for @ij.org's activism work, Kansas City, Kansas has put a 3-year moratorium on its parking minimum law.

This is a huge win for small businesses in KCK.
ij.org/press-releas...