Court Cases

Parents of children with disabilities in Virginia’s public schools filed a federal lawsuit challenging Governor Youngkin’s Executive Order 2, which provides that parents of students attending Virginia public schools can elect for their children to not be subjected to mask mandates in effect at the child’s school or educational program. This order was issued despite the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidance that "recommends indoor masking for all individuals ages 2 years and older, including students, teachers, staff, and visitors, regardless of vaccination." The Executive Order went into effect on January 24 and comes at a time when infection rates in Virginia for children are higher than ever.

The ACLU of Virginia, along with the ACLU, the ACLU of North Carolina, and the North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services, filed an amicus brief in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of Appellant-Plaintiff Charlie Hardin.

The ACLU of Virginia entered an appearance in a federal lawsuit on behalf of Randy Burke, an incarcerated person within the Virginia Department of Corrections (VDOC). Mr. Burke is a practicing Rastafarian who was put in solitary confinement for over five years for refusing to cut his hair, even though cutting his hair would violate a tenet of his religion. During his time in solitary confinement, he was also denied opportunities to practice his religion, including receiving religious services, religious items, and holiday meals.

The ACLU of Virginia filed an amicus brief in the Loudoun County Circuit Court on behalf of ACLU Virginia, ACLU, Equality Virginia, Equality Loudoun, Side By Side, and He She Ze and We. The brief, filed on October 13, 2021, is in opposition to an emergency petition and preliminary injunction request filed by the Alliance Defending Freedom on behalf Mr. Cross and his fellow plaintiffs.

The ACLU of Virginia, along with the ACLU, the League of Women Voters of Virginia, and the National Black Nonpartisan Redistricting Organization, filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court of Virginia in a case involving a challenge to House Bill 1255 (2020), a bill which set standards and criteria that the Virginia Redistricting Commission must follow when drawing new legislative districts, including the end of prison gerrymandering.

The ACLU of Virginia filed an amicus brief in the case of Commonwealth v. Galen Baughman in Arlington County Circuit Court. The brief supports Mr. Baughman’s assertion of his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination in response to an incriminating questionnaire required to be completed as part of his court-ordered treatment.

In the final days of 2020, the ACLU of Virginia filed an amicus brief in the case of Commonwealth of Virginia v. Harwinder Sangha in the Circuit Court of Fairfax County, which invited amici to address whether the Circuit Court should proceed with a misdemeanor trial even though the Commonwealth Attorney for Fairfax County, Steve Descano, had decided he would not—and could not ethically—dedicate valuable prosecutorial resources toward low-level misdemeanors such as the one in this case, given the sheer number of criminal cases his office handles.