NEW: NYC's mayor-elect must now grapple with the sweeping NYPD surveillance apparatus that has historically targeted Muslims and other minority groups. @awinston.bsky.social reports for @wired.com www.wired.com/story/welcom...
By a 2-1 opinion, the Ninth Circuit just held that the president can federalize the National Guard forces and deploy them when protesters shine flashlights in the eyes of ICE officers. It’s one of the most dangerous and legally flawed court decisions I’ve seen this year. 1/23
As AI rapidly evolves, so does the legislation aiming to regulate it. Our resource tracks the federal bills addressing risks like disinformation and the manipulation of media to influence elections. bit.ly/45gyCTj
The military already wastes billions on subpar weapons. What's stopping it from doing the same with AI?
If defense contractors have their way, almost nothing.
My deep dive into the wild and wacky world of "acquisition reform" with @juliagledhill.bsky.social:
www.lawfaremedia.org/article/how-...
Here’s my analysis of NSPM-7 & the antifa EO. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
The Trump administration is escalating its surveillance of tens of millions of *legal* immigrants, forcing them to refrain from expressing opinions that someone might deem “anti-American.” It’s a clear attack on free speech and the First Amendment. bit.ly/4823Brc
🚨NEW🚨 Amazon has been developing drone surveillance tech for American cops, from gun detection to repurposing Twitch's streaming code.
It's also pushing all manner of surveillance tools, including Flock car tracking and AI that constantly monitors all prison calls.
www.forbes.com/sites/thomas...
I spent the week at the police surveillance convention and let me tell you my biggest observation: The name of the game now is consolidating as much information as humanely possible from surveillance devices, the internet, other governmental data, and literally a million other places. 🧵
States and cities can’t block legitimate federal operations, but they do have the power to decide whether and how they collaborate with federal law enforcement.
NEW: Internal report reveals DHS intelligence portal was accidentally opened to tens of thousands of users for months, exposing sensitive intel about Americans. @brennancenter.org obtained the docs. @wired.com has the story. 🧵
www.wired.com/story/a-dhs-...
🧵 NEW from 404 Media: ARC, a data broker owned by major US airlines, including American Airlines, United, and Delta, is selling access to 5 billion ticketing records to the government (incl. ICE and FBI), which can be used for warrantless searching and monitoring of peoples’ movements. 1/
THREAD: This morning, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled that President Trump's use of National Guardsmen and Marines to support federal law enforcement in and around Los Angeles violated the Posse Comitatus Act. (1/22) www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-t...
Back in April, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it was going to begin looking for "antisemitic activity" in the social media of applicants for a range of immigration benefits, including foreign students and most green card applicants. www.uscis.gov/newsroom/new...
I have so much to say about this and no time to say it... www.politico.com/news/2025/06...
New Yorkers need a strong IG to ensure that the police keep us safe while respecting our rights. Mayor Adams should commit to reviving the NYPD Inspector General. And mayoral candidates should prepare to do the same.
The letter ends with the Comptroller and Public Advocate asking the Mayor’s office a set of critical questions about funding and staffing issues facing the IG and offering up some ideas for reform.
The IG was established to answer that question. As the Comptroller & Public Advocate’s letter states, “the independence and strength of this oversight function are essential to building public trust and ensuring accountability in policing.” But this mission fails without proper support.
If the NYPD is willing to undermine its compliance with the POST Act, especially when it worked side by side with advocates and City Council on the new reporting bills, what other problematic practices is it undertaking that may not show up in the news?
It goes against the spirit of the POST Act for other agencies to secretly conduct surveillance for the NYPD that the department would be prohibited from doing on its own. And a judge found that the use of facial recognition in this case goes against NYPD policy.
But last month, litigation revealed that the NYPD was able to sidestep the POST Act by relying on the fire department’s access to Clearview, a facial recognition app that the NYPD has banned its officers from using, to identify a protestor.
Bills passed earlier this year to strengthen the Act were meant to close loopholes identified by the IG that allowed the police to evade robust oversight.
One of its most important roles is overseeing the NYPD’s compliance with the POST Act, which requires the department to disclose its use of surveillance technologies and develop use policies.
A functioning NYPD IG is critical. In its early years, the office produced important reports on policing issues affecting the civil liberties of New Yorkers. Its investigation on use-of-force reporting led to better tracking of incidents w/in the NYPD.
In July, City Council passed a bill by @galeabrewer.bsky.social to provide more transparency into the IG’s operations, including any NYPD interference and delayed reporting. But the IG won’t need to start disclosing that information until next year.
This isn’t the first time the IG has faced difficulties. A Brennan Center investigation revealed how stonewalling by the police department, a lack of leadership, and threats to its influence and autonomy have slowly eroded the IG’s capabilities.
Despite these issues, DOI is now looking to hire a “Co-Inspector General.” The “why” is unclear, but the letter claims that a “dual-leadership” structure wasn’t contemplated when the IG was established.
Funding is a likely contributor. The letter argues that decisions by the Mayor’s office and the Department of Investigation (or DOI, within which the IG sits) have resulted in steep budget cuts far beyond those faced by the DOI more broadly.
According to the letter, the IG is facing its lowest staffing level on record with only three positions filled, down from its 2017 peak staffing level of 37. And the office published the results of only one independently initiated investigation last year.
