News & Commentary

1.   La ley Voter ID (requisito de presentar identificación para votar) está en vigor en Wisconsin. Usted necesitará presentar una identificación con foto para votar el Día de la Elección, si quiere votar por adelantado en la oficina del secretario municipal, y (para la mayoría de los votantes que lo ejercen) si quiere votar a distancia por correo—también conocido como voto ausente. 2.    La mayoría de los votantes necesitan uno de los siguientes tipos de ID con foto para votar: •    Licencia de conducir del estado de W isconsin válida o que se haya vencido después del 4 de noviembre de 2014 o más recientemente (Si usted tiene este documento NO necesita ningún otro tipo de ID para votar.) •    ID con foto del estado de W isconsin (del DMV – División de vehículos automotores) válida o que se haya vencido el 4 de noviembre del 2014 o más recientemente Pasaporte de los Estados Unidos (válida o que se haya vencido después del 4 del noviembre de 2014) •    ID de los servicios uniformados (válida o que se haya vencido el 4 de noviembre de 2014, o “indefinida” sin fecha de vencimiento) •    ID de la Administración de Veteranos (VA ID) (no vencido) •    ID con foto de una Tribu Indígena de W isconsin que esté reconocida a nivel federal. Certificado de Naturalización que haya sido emitido dentro de los dos años antes de la elección. •    ID estudiantil  de una universidad o institución de enseñanza superior de W isconsin SIEMPRE y CUANDO el ID tenga nombre, foto, firma, fecha de emisión y fecha de vencimiento que no pase de dos años después de la fecha de emisión, ADEMAS de constancia de inscripción. •    Recibo del DMV de haber solicitado una licencia o ID en los últimos 60 días. 3.    Algunos votantes NO necesitan ID para votar: •    Los votantes que sean residentes permanentes en el extranjero y votantes en servicio activo en las fuerzas armadas; •    Los votantes ancianos o discapacitados que se consideren “confinados indefinidamente” a su vivienda pueden ejercer el voto ausente por correo (absentee vote by mail) sin presentar ID con foto. (Esto votantes se conocen a menudo como “votantes ausentes permanentes.”) Marque “confinado indefinadamente” en el sexto punto de la solicitud de papeleta para voto ausente.) •    Votantes que vivan en residencias de ancianos u otros centros de cuidado que voten con delegados especiales de votación “special voting deputies.” 4.    ¡Su identificación con foto NO necesita tener su dirección actual para que sea válida para votar! Si cambia de domicilio, NO necesita obtener una identificación con su nueva dirección. (Si tiene que inscribirse para votar usted necesita un documento con su dirección actual, que puede ser – pero no es obligatorio que sea – su licencia y su tarjeta de identificación)   5.    Su ID con foto NO necesita tener el nombre exacto que usted usa para votar. ¡Los apodos son aceptables! (Como dice la GAB (Oficina de Responsabilidad Electoral) “los Franciscos que se conozcan como Panchos, los Pepes que también sean José y las Guadalupes cuya ID diga Lupe no tienen por qué preocuparse.”) 6.    Su ID con foto debe tener un “parecido razonable” a usted. (Como dice la GAB, “Aunque se haya pintado el cabello, rasurado la barba o bajado de peso, si la foto en su ID tiene un “parecido razonable” a usted, esta deberá ser aceptada.) 7.   Si NO tiene un ID con foto válida puede solicitar una ID gratis en cualquier oficina del W isconsin Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV - División de Vehículos Automotores). 8.   Si usted nunca tuvo una licencia para conducir o tarjeta de ID del estado de W isconsin o no ha tenido una en los últimos 8 años, usted deberá traer: •    Certificado de nacimiento si ya lo tiene (o si puede conseguir uno gratis), o uno de los documentos menos comunes para comprobar nombre y fecha de nacimiento. o    Si usted tuviera que pagar por su certificado de nacimiento, puede ir al DMV y llenar el formulario “Document Process Verification” (Proceso de peticionar la verificación de documentos) (MV3012) que se encuentra en este vínculo. •    Comprobante de identidad (como lo son una tarjeta de seguro social, ID o licencia de otro estado o varios otros documentos) •    Comprobante de residencia en el estado 9.   Si usted tuvo una licencia o ID del estado de W isconsin en los últimos 8 años pero se le perdió, fue robada o se venció, usted puede conseguir una nueva identificación con foto del estado de W isconsin gratis presentando: •    Comprobante de identidad (y si no tiene copias de los papeles de identidad usted puede pedir al DMV que busquen su foto en el sistema de computadoras); y •    Comprobante de residencia 10. Si usted cambió su nombre (por ejemplo, por matrimonio, divorcio o cambio de nombre) también tiene que cambiar el nombre en su identificación). ----------- Si tiene otras preguntas o inquietudes sobre la ley que obliga presentar identificación con foto para votar, “Siga”  Wisconsin Election  Protection en Facebook o @EPWisco en Twitter y mande un  mensaje o publique sus preguntas o inquietudes en la página. Si usted no tiene acceso a Facebook, puede m andar sus preguntas o inquietudes a vote@aclu-wi.org  y le responderem os lo más pronto posible. También puede llam ar a Wisconsin Governm ent Accountability Board (GAB) al 1-866-VOTE- WIS (1-866-868-3947) o ir a su sitio de Internet, http://bringit.wi.gov 

1.    Voter ID is in effect in Wisconsin. You need a photo ID to vote in person on Election Day, to vote early in person at the clerk’s office, and (for most voters) to vote absentee by mail. 2.    Most voters need one of the following kinds of photo ID to vote: •    Wisconsin drivers' license (current or expired since 11/4/14) (If you have this you do NOT need any other “voter ID” card.) •    Wisconsin photo ID card (from DMV) (current or expired since 11/4/14) •    U.S. Passport (current or expired since 11/4/14) •    Uniformed services ID (current or expired since 11/4/14, or “indefinite” with no expiration date) •    Veteran’s Administration ID (VA ID) (unexpired) •    Photo ID from federally recognized Indian tribe in Wisconsin •    Naturalization certificate from the two years before an election •    Student ID from a Wisconsin college or university IF the ID has name, photo, signature, issuance date, & expiration date no more than 2 years from issuance date, PLUS proof of enrollment. (Here’s info on which colleges have ID you can use to vote: http://www.commoncausewisconsin.org/2016/03/wi-college-university-students-must-act.html )

ACLU Calls on Incoming Corrections Secretary Jon Litscher to Eliminate Solitary Confinement, Especially of Children As Jon Litscher prepares to take the reins as Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections amid revelations about the abuse of children at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake juvenile correctional facilities, the ACLU of Wisconsin repeats its call for independent oversight and reform of the Department’s use of solitary confinement, particularly of juveniles.  The ACLU also supports Milwaukee County’s efforts to bring young prisoners back to their home communities, but only if they can be appropriately housed and cared for locally. Recent developments have brought momentum to the cause of curtailing solitary confinement and the “terrible price” it exacts on prisoners. In a concurring opinion in June 2015, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy complained that “the conditions in which prisoners have been kept simply has not been a matter of sufficient public inquiry or interest.” He observed that “near-total isolation exacts a terrible price,” and invited a legal challenge to long-term solitary confinement.  In late 2015, a group of leaders of state correctional systems, including former Wisconsin DOC secretary Rick Raemisch, and advocates for prisoners made recommendations to end the over-use of isolation in prisons.  The recommendations included ensuring that vulnerable populations, including juveniles, be confined in isolated settings only when no alternative exists and then only for a maximum of 15 days.  In January 2016, President Obama prohibited solitary confinement of juveniles in federal prisons and adopted other recommendations to limit the use of restrictive housing.  These developments coincide with the United Nation’s adoption of the “Nelson Mandela Rules” for the treatment of prisoners, which recognize solitary’s “devastating effect on physical and mental health” and restrict its use to no more than 15 days. The ACLU has long been concerned about solitary confinement in Wisconsin’s prisons and jails, especially when applied to young people, and called for greater transparency so the public can monitor and deter abuse.  In 2010, the ACLU questioned the closing of Ethan Allen School for Boys and Southern Oaks School for Girls, because many of the youth incarcerated there were from the Milwaukee area and would be more isolated from family if moved to the more distant Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake facilities. The ACLU feared the greater distance would make family visits more difficult, interfere with the youths’ rehabilitation, and put them further “out of sight and out of mind.” In 2012, the ACLU and Human Rights Watch issued a report, “Growing Up Locked Down,” which documented the severe harm solitary confinement causes young people.  The report noted that the Wisconsin Department of Corrections refused to allow interviews of children in its custody, and the ACLU called upon “Wisconsin prison and jail officials . . . to be more transparent about how they use solitary confinement on kids.”  In November 2015, the ACLU joined other advocates in calling upon the Department to contract with an independent entity, such as the National Institute of Corrections, to evaluate its solitary practices and policies, report its findings to the public and make recommendations for future improvements.  While the Department under outgoing Secretary Ed Wall made some progress toward reducing the use of solitary confinement, it did not respond to calls for greater oversight and transparency. The DOC’s general lack of transparency with regard to solitary and particularly the isolation of the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lakes facilities from prisoners’ families raise serious concerns about the extent to which juveniles may have been subjected to solitary.  Secretary Litscher should seize the opportunity of his appointment to eliminate solitary confinement of juveniles, radically reduce its use among all prisoners, and submit to independent oversight.

In recent years, there have been calls by communities at varying distances from the Great Lakes to divert Great Lakes water for drinking (and development) purposes. Under the 2008 Great Lakes Compact ( http://www.greatlakes.org/Document.Doc?id=144 ), Great Lakes water generally must remain within the Great Lakes basin – except that municipalities within counties that straddle the basin can request water. That request, however, can be vetoed by even just ONE governor of one of the Great Lakes states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin).   The first test case is coming from Wau

The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Wisconsin today announced that the State of Wisconsin has satisfied the terms of a settlement agreement requiring fundamental changes to medical and mental health care at the state’s largest women’s prison and that the parties to Flynn v. Walker, the longstanding class-action lawsuit, would file papers seeking court dismissal of the case. The first-of-its-kind class action lawsuit was originally filed in 2006 on behalf of women prisoners at Taycheedah Correctional Institution. The lawsuit charged that the prison system put the lives of women prisoners at risk through grossly deficient health care, provided women mental health treatment far inferior to that provided to men in Wisconsin, and failed to provide reasonable accommodations to allow prisoners with disabilities to access basic prison services.

Last week, representatives of the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) held a “listening session” as the COPS Office began a voluntary Collaborative Reform Initiative program with the Milwaukee Police Department.  Milwaukee community organizations and individuals reiterated some of the issues that surfaced during the listening session and at subsequent meetings that they hope will be included in the goals for the collaborative reform initiative in a letter sent today.

Police agencies in Wisconsin use civil asset forfeiture laws to seize – and then keep or sell – property they allege is involved in a crime.  Even if the owner of the property is innocent or never charged, they may never get their property back.  From the moment police seize the property until the courts act, owners are harmed, and may be deprived of their vehicle or the funds they may need to hire an attorney.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Jan. 8, 2015

by Jabril Faraj