SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The continued incarceration of a transgender refugee from Mexico who was tortured in her home country and has been granted asylum by a U.S. immigration judge is 'unconstitutional,' the ACLU and two legal partners argued in a petition filed today.

Seeking to end Oscar 'Diana' Santander's 15 months in jail, the habeas corpus petition filed in federal court calls for her release or an immediate hearing at which the government would be required to show how her lengthy and continuing detention is justified. The Southern California and San Diego affiliates of the American Civil Liberties Union filed the petition, together with the Casa Cornelia Law Center and the private law firm Greenberg Glusker Fields Claman & Machtinger.

Santander, who was tortured in Mexico by police and other government officials, was granted asylum and relief under the Convention Against Torture in May by an immigration judge. However, the government continues to incarcerate her at the San Diego Correctional Facility in Otay Mesa, Calif., while the Immigration and Customs Enforcement branch of the Department of Homeland Security appeals the ruling.

'Controlling federal law bars the government from imprisoning people who have won relief under the Convention Against Torture,' said Ahilan Arulanantham of the ACLU of Southern California, lead counsel in the case. 'It is shameful that the government refuses to follow that law, particularly in this case, where it has resulted in the imprisonment of a person with serious medical needs without any kind of detention hearing.'

The U.S. government contends that Santander cannot be released because she is an aggravated felon, a claim based on statements at her asylum hearing that prior to 1990, she was incarcerated in Mexico on a robbery charge. The immigration judge found no merit to that government claim at the hearing, citing lack of information or evidence of the alleged offense.

'Once again, the government is abusing its power and breaking the law. It has no right to continue locking up Ms. Santander. It should release her immediately," said David Blair-Loy, legal director of the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial counties.

The petition filed by the ACLU and its partners argues that Santander is not likely to ever be deported, and that her continued detention therefore violates the Immigration and Nationality Act and the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment.

The Ninth Circuit Court has twice stated that people who have prevailed in their asylum applications cannot be detained for a prolonged period. The circuit court has also twice held that foreign nationals detained for a prolonged period must be afforded a hearing where the government bears the burden to show that their detention remains justified.

'When, as here, a noncitizen has been detained for over fifteen months outside of any kind of criminal process, the detention becomes punitive,' the petition states.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Pioneering actress Nichelle Nichols, who played Lt. Uhura on the original 'Star Trek' television series, will receive the Liberty and Justice Award from the ACLU of Southern California Foundation on the closing night of this year's Outfest 2008: the 26th Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Film Festival on Monday, July 21, 2008.

The award, in recognition of Ms. Nichols' contributions to the fight for civil rights and social justice, will be presented at the closing night gala screening of 'Tru Loved' at 8 p.m. at the Orpheum Theatre, 842 South Broadway, in downtown Los Angeles. Ms. Nichols is one of the stars of the film.

As Lt. Uhura, Ms. Nichols was the first African American actor to have a recurring, non-stereotypical role on a network television series. The series was broadcast from 1966 to 1969 and before that time, most black actors on television portrayed servants. Even though the role was groundbreaking, she felt it was not substantial and was tempted to quit the show. But Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. convinced her to stay with the series because Lt. Uhura was an important role model for black children.

'Ms. Nichols' trail-blazing role on "Star Trek" allowed her to portray racial equality in our nation's future, which brought us closer to full equality in our present,' said Ramona Ripston, executive director of the ACLU/SC, in announcing the award. 'She also worked to expand opportunities for women at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).'

After the series ended, Ms. Nichols worked as volunteer for NASA on a special project to recruit women and minorities to the space program. Among those recruited by that project were Dr. Sally Ride, the first American female astronaut, and U.S. Air Force Col. Guion Bluford Jr., the first African American astronaut. Dr. Mae Jemison, a former astronaut who is African American, said seeing Ms. Nichols on 'Star Trek' inspired her to become a physician and astronaut.

Ms. Nichols co-stars in the film 'Tru Loved'. She plays the smart and sassy grandmother of a closeted high school football player, a role that has been earning her buzz on the festival circuit as the movie continues to wend its way around the country.

We are so honored to have the wonderful Nichelle Nichols in our film,' said the film's producer, Antonio Brown of BrownBag Productions. 'And that our friends at the ACLU/SC are eager to recognize her work on screen and off makes our screening at Outfest even that more exciting.'

The ACLU/SC Foundation Liberty and Justice Award will be presented to Ms. Nichols by her friend and fellow 'Star Trek' actor George Takei, who played Mr. Sulu on the series.

LOS ANGELES, CALIF. - The Calabasas City Council passed a resolution that prohibits grant funding to those who sue city officials or employees, which according to the ACLU of Southern California is a violation of First Amendment rights. In a letter, the ACLU/SC informed the City Council that if they do not repeal the resolution they will likely face a lawsuit.

The resolution, passed in April, prohibits city officials from considering community service grants for any organizations whose principals have ever sued or now are suing the City of Calabasas, any current or past member of the City Council, or any current or past city employee. The letter urges the council to repeal the rule or face litigation and a possible federal court injunction.

'This ordinance strikes at the heart of a core function of the First Amendment: to allow people to petition their government for redress of grievances, and access to the courts is part of the right to petition,' said Peter Eliasberg, managing attorney at the ACLU/SC, who sent the letter to the city. 'By discriminating in this way, the city punishes organizations for engaging in First Amendment protected activity just because the city disagrees with that activity.'

The City Council of Calabasas approved the policy as an amendment to an earlier ordinance that sought to formalize the procedures for awarding community service grants. Over the past few years the grants have grown in popularity, from more than $28,000 distributed to 16 organizations in 2005 to $70,000 budgeted for this fiscal year.

But a questionnaire that the city uses to determine eligibility for the money crosses a constitutional line when it asks organizations if they, their board members or their administrators have ever been or are now in litigation with the city, Eliasberg said. Materials considered by the Council make clear that if the organization's answer to that question is yes, it cannot receive funding.

'There is no reason to bar a group from obtaining city funding based on past or pending litigation,' said Eliasberg, who is also the ACLU/SC's Manheim Family Attorney for First Amendment Rights. 'That comes dangerously close to a loyalty test.'