The ACLU today applauded Governor Davis for signing into law a bill that reverses the California Supreme Court's June 1, 1999 decision in Regents of the University of California v. Superior Court (Molloy). The ACLU's of Southern and Northern California, along with the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights, the First Amendment Project, and Equal Rights Advocates, represented the UC Santa Barbara Daily Nexus and one of its student reporters, Tim Molloy, in this case.

The Regents case challenged the UC Regents' actions in approving resolutions banning affirmative action. In July 1995, the UC Regents, led by former Governor Wilson, approved two resolutions abolishing affirmative action at the University. After a several month investigation uncovered evidence of an Open Meeting Act violation, the ACLU and other civil liberties organizations brought suit, alleging that Governor Wilson had illegally locked up the vote ahead of time.

Although lower courts had allowed this lawsuit to proceed to trial, Governor Wilson and the Regents appealed to the California Supreme Court. In its June 1, 1999 ruling, the California Supreme Court reversed the lower courts. It held that Mr. Molloy and the Nexus could not pursue any relief for a past violation of the Open Meeting Act. On September 15, 1999, Governor Davis signed into law AB 1234. This law states the California legislature's express intent "to supersede the decision of the California Supreme Court in Regents of the University of California v. Superior Court (Molloy) (1999) 20 Cal. 4th 509. In particular, AB 1234 specifically allows lawsuits to be brought, alleging past violations of the Open Meeting Act.

"This new law vindicates the principle for which we have long fought: That public officials must be held accountable to the people they serve," said ACLU staff attorney Dan Tokaji, who argued the Regents case before the California Supreme Court. "Public officials can no longer act in secret, hide their wrongdoing for 30 days, and then get away with it, as former Governor Wilson and the UC Regents sought to do. This is a great victory for all of us who believe that government should conduct its business in the light of day."

'Mr. Pratt's fight for justice will continue' In an important development in the civil rights suit brought by former Black Panther party leader Elmer 'Geronimo' Pratt, a federal district judge said today that she would permit the case to proceed, and that she was rejecting efforts by the defendants to have the case thrown out. Judge Christine Snyder said that it would be 'improvident' to dismiss the case at this point.

Mr. Pratt, who spent nearly three decades behind bars, is alleging that his conviction and life sentence for a 1968 murder was the result of a conspiracy by federal and local law enforcement agents. In 1997, Pratt's conviction was invalidated by a California state court that held he had not received a fair trial because evidence had been withheld. It was revealed that the star witness against him, Julius Butler, was a confidential informant for the Los Angeles Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. That piece of evidence, along with a startling array of additional information that surfaced after three decades, has cast new light on the actions of the LAPD, FBI, and Mr. Butler. It is these ties, Pratt alleges in his civil rights suit, that resulted in a coordinated campaign against him.

Defendants in the suit are the city of Los Angeles, five retired LAPD officers, seven former FBI agents, and Julius Butler. Each of the defendants filed motions to dismiss the case on various grounds. As co-counsel for Pratt in the civil right suit, the ACLU filed papers that declared that the motions to dismiss 'cobbled together a string of painfully weak arguments' in which the defendants had 'misstated, mangled, and ignored fundamental legal principles.'

'We are pleased that Judge Snyder recognized the patent deficiencies in the motions to dismiss this case,' said ACLU-SC Chief Counsel Michael Small. 'As a result of today's ruling, Geronimo Pratt's fight for justice will continue.'

In addition to the ACLU, Pratt is also represented by Johnnie L. Cochrane, who was Pratt's lawyer at his original trial, and Stuart Hanlon, a San Francisco civil rights lawyer, who has been part of Pratt's legal team for over a quarter-century.

The ACLU of Southern California and Bristol Park Medical Group, Inc. announced today that they have settled a lawsuit brought against the company and one of its physicians earlier this year over alleged discrimination due to sexual orientation.
The ACLU filed the case on behalf of Michelle Dupont against Dr. Ronald Axtell and Bristol Park Medical Group, Inc. Dupont, in her suit, alleged that Dr. Axtell had discriminated against her during a June 1998 medical appointment when he stated that, because of his personal beliefs concerning homosexuality, in the future she should be treated by other physicians in the Bristol Park practice.
The settlement announced today provides Ms. Dupont with financial compensation.
In addition, Bristol Park Medical Group, Inc. has agreed to do the following:

• Sponsor an in-house seminar for all Bristol Park Medical Group employees and support staff that will include reiteration of non-discrimination policies and sensitivity training for people directly involved in patient contact, with particular emphasis on non-discrimination based on patients' sexual orientation;
• Provide in-house materials that reiterate non-discriminatory policies at Bristol Park Medical Group and sensitivity training for all physicians in the group with regard to patients' sexual orientation;
• Require that all Bristol Park Medical Group support staff employees and physicians sign a form stating that they will comply with the non-discrimination policies;
• Post signs at each Bristol Park Medical Group facility stating the group's non-discriminatory policies, including non-discrimination with respect to patients' sexual orientation.

Plaintiff Michelle Dupont said, "I am happy to finally put this painful chapter behind me and get on with my life. My only hope is that through this suit, and today's settlement, medical professionals now understand that discrimination against gay men and lesbians must come to an end."
Andrew Siskind, M.D., medical director of Bristol Park Medical Group, said, "We at Bristol Park Medical have always had a policy against discrimination of any kind with respect to the delivery of patient care. We are very sorry Ms. Dupont had an unsatisfactory encounter at one of our facilities. In order to avoid any future problems, Bristol Park has agreed to reiterate its longstanding policy against discrimination, including discrimination based on sexual orientation."