The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Oregon has filed a lawsuit against the city of Medford, Oregon, 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 organisations 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 behaviour.
Medford city attorney, Eric Mitton stated, in an email to Associated Press, that the police only gathered publicly available information and the purpose of the surveillance was to “to address legitimate police interests regarding public rallies and protests.”
