ACLU Releases Abuse-Reporting App in Arizona

PHOENIX (CN) - The ACLU of Arizona has released a bilingual mobile phone app for people to report racial profiling stemming from S.B. 1070, the state's controversial immigration law.

Key provisions of the law were struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2012, but Arizona police are still allowed to enforce the "show me your papers" provision.

That provision requires police officers to check the immigration status of anyone they stop or arrest if there is reasonable suspicion that the person is in the U.S. illegally.

The app, "ACLU-AZ Stop SB1070," allows users to report law enforcement abuse of the immigration law, including the name of the agency, the date and location, and a description of the incident. It also provides users with information about their legal rights.

The app is part of a campaign by the ACLU of Arizona to document the impact of the law. The campaign includes a hotline to report abuses, a YouTube channel with people testifying about their experiences under S.B. 1070, and an online map tracking the complaints, at www.acluazmap.org .

"The goal of this campaign is to arm affected individuals with the tools and information they need to stand up for themselves, report abuses and help us fight back in the courts to get the worst provision of the law struck down," ACLU of Arizona Immigrants' Rights Coordinator Dulce Juarez said in a statement.

The campaign comes one mother after a federal judge ordered Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his deputies to stop racially profiling Latinos during immigration patrols and traffic stops.

"It is frankly impossible to enforce S.B. 1070 without using race or engaging in prolonged detentions, and the decision in the Arpaio litigation sends a strong message to police departments across the state that they cannot hide behind S.B. 1070 and use it as an excuse to violate people's constitutional rights," said Alessandra Soler, executive director of the ACLU of Arizona.

The organization set up the hotline in June 2012, and has received more than 6,000 reports of racial profiling and prolonged detentions. The app is available for free at www.acluaz.org/UnitedAgainst1070 .

Arpaio has been sued more than 400 times since 2010, according to the Courthouse News database.

Follow @jamierossCNS

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