ACLU of Wyoming National Chapter - INTAKE
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<meta name="description" content="OUR JOB IS TO CONSERVE AMERICA'S ORIGINAL CIVIC VALUES - THE CONSTITUTION AND THE BILL OF RIGHTS">
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Intake</strong></font></td>
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<td valign="top"><p ><strong>HOW THE ACLU
OF WYOMING ACCEPTS CASES</strong> </p>
<p class="text">Thank you for your initial interest
in the American Civil Liberties Union of Wyoming about
your complaint. Please read this information carefully
to find out the kinds of complaints we handle, and
fill out the questionnaire and return it to us. If
we need more information, we will contact you. We will
let you know whether we can offer you assistance. Please
be patient as there may be some delay due to the overwhelming
number of requests we receive.</p>
<p align="right" ><a href="IntakeForm.php">For
the online questionnaire, please select here</a><br>
<a href="ComplaintForm.pdf">To download
the questionnaire, PDF, please select here</a><br>
<a href="zIntakeForm.html"></a></p>
<p ><strong>HOW DO WE SELECT CASES?</strong></p>
<p >The ACLU generally files cases that
affect the civil liberties of large numbers of people,
rather than those involving a dispute between two parties.
The basic questions we ask when reviewing a potential
case are: 1) Is this a significant civil liberties
issue? 2) What effect will this case have on people
other than the parties involved? 3) Do we have the
necessary resources to take this case?</p>
<p ><strong>WHAT ARE CIVIL LIBERTIES?</strong></p>
<p >The civil liberties we seek to protect
include: </p>
<ul>
<li><strong >Freedom of Speech and Press</strong> <span >For
example: a student is suspended for writing a newspaper
article critical of the principal; a police officer
is disciplined for speaking out against police
brutality; a group is charged for police protection
when it applies for a demonstration permit.</span></li>
<li><strong >Freedom of Religion </strong><br>
<span >This involves both the right
of individuals to religious beliefs and the separation
of church and state.</span></li>
<li><strong >Privacy </strong><br>
<span >For example, illegal search
and seizures (warrantless searches).</span></li>
<li><strong >Equal Protection/Discrimination </strong><br>
<span >For example: a sheriff's department
which refuses to accept women deputies; a refusal
to allow homeless people to vote because they have
no fixed addresses.</span></li>
<li><strong >Due Process </strong><br>
<span >For example, a community group
is denied a permit by the police and the town provides
no appeal of the police decision. </span></li>
</ul>
<p ><strong>WHAT CASES AFFECT OTHERS?</strong></p>
<p >Lawsuits can affect a large number
of people in two ways. First, we sometimes challenge
a policy or practice which directly impacts upon many
people. Second, a lawsuit brought on behalf of one
person can have a larger impact on others in the long
run when it establishes or expands legal protections.
For example, a lawsuit challenging drug testing of
one employee, if successful, could set a precedent
for thousands of workers in the future. </p>
<p ><strong>WHY DO WE PREFER CASES WITHOUT
FACTUAL DISPUTES?</strong></p>
<p >We tend to take cases which do not
involve complicated disputes of fact, but prefer to
take cases where the issue is a question of law. Facts
are considered to be in dispute whenever you have one
version of what happened and the other party(s) has
a different view. An example of a factual dispute is
an employment discrimination case where the employer
claims he fired the employee because of poor job performance
and has credible evidence to support that claim.</p>
<p >The reasons we often decide not to
accept cases involving factual disputes are: 1) Our
limited resources (it is often expensive to prove a
case which involves substantial factual disputes);
2) A court might never reach the civil liberties legal
issue if it resolves the facts against the client;
3) The case is less likely to have a broad impact on
others if the decision rests upon the specific facts
of a case. </p>
<p ><strong>WHAT DOES IT COST?</strong></p>
<p >ACLU cooperating attorneys represent
the clients free of charge. ACLU cases are handled
by volunteer attorneys who are in private practice
and volunteer their time for ACLU cases.</p>
<p ><strong>TYPES OF CASES THE ACLU GENERALLY
CANNOT ACCEPT:</strong></p>
<p >Types of cases the ACLU does not generally
accept include:</p>
<ul>
<li >An individual was fired without
a good reason or just cause.</li>
<li > An individual is being denied benefits
such as worker's compensation or unemployment benefits.</li>
<li >Criminal cases or complaints about
a person's attorney in a criminal case. Only in limited
cases, for example when a person is being prosecuted
for engaging in activity protected by the Constitution
(such as participating in a political demonstration),
do we consider accepting criminal cases.</li>
<li >Child custody/support or divorce
cases.</li>
<li >Private civil disputes including
contractual matters.</li>
</ul>
<p ><strong>WHY DOES THE ACLU TURN DOWN
CASES THAT FALL WITHIN THE GUIDELINES FOR ACCEPTANCE?</strong><br>
<font color="#FFFFFF"><br>
</font>There are many cases and problems of unfairness
and injustice which the ACLU is simply unable to handle.
We receive many requests for assistance each month.
Therefore, we cannot accept all of the complaints that
fall within the guidelines discussed above. We must
select those which we believe will have the greatest
impact on protecting civil liberties.</p>
<p ><strong>CAN THE ACLU ADVISE ME ABOUT
MY CASE?</strong></p>
<p >The ACLU is unable to give you advice
about your case or provide other types of assistance,
(for example, reviewing your papers or conducting legal
research to assist you), if we do not accept your case.
This policy allows us to direct the necessary resources
to those cases that we do accept.</p>
<p ><strong>IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT DEADLINES:</strong></p>
<p >All legal claims have time deadlines.
The deadlines may be different depending on who violated
your rights and depending on what rights were violated.
For some kinds of violations, you may need to file
a claim with a government agency before you can sue,
and these agencies usually have their own time deadlines.
The ACLU cannot give you advice about the deadlines
that apply to your case. To protect your rights, please
consult with an attorney promptly to find out what
deadlines apply in your case.</p>
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<p class="textsmaller">© 2006
ACLU of Wyoming National Chapter</font></span><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <br>
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