Civil Rights Round Up

It's been a while since my last civil rights round up, and a lot of interesting things have happened in the interim.  So, let's get started:

• The NYPD conducts an awful lot of stop and frisks--508,540 people last year alone, up from 97,296 in 2002.  And, guess what?  More than half of those stopped were black.  Go figure. (NY Times via TalkLeft)
• Woman's Lawsuit Threatens To Remove Red-Light Cameras--A lawyer brings a lawsuit on behalf of his wife challenging red-light cameras on the  grounds that they deny the alleged offenders due process of law.  Fight the power, my man!  (Yahoo)
• Body Cavity Search Takes a Turn for the Worse--During a rectal exam, immigration officers "unknowingly" pull out a seton.  Ouch.  And, more importantly, yuck.  (The Register via KevinMD)
• NYPD Can't Routinely Tape Protests--A US District Court Judge rules that purely political activity can't be taped.  (Findlaw via NYSBA General Practice Section blog)
• DOJ Sued for Release of Domestic Surveillance Order--The Electronic Frontier Foundation has filed a complaint "seeking the release of a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC)  order that authorized government surveillance of transmissions coming into or going outside of the country where one party was suspected of association with a terrorist organization."  (Jurist)