Recent lethal encounters with police make it clear that we need to continuously work to build trust between police and the communities they serve. We know there is a better approach to policing, and one of those approaches is using civilian review boards to hold police departments accountable for their actions or inaction. Voters in Miami have a chance in this election to make a difference for fairer and safer policing.

 The City of Miami’s Civilian Investigative Panel is charged with investigating complaints of police misconduct in the City of Miami and recommend policy and procedure changes. Reforms to strengthen the CIP are on the ballot in Miami this year.

By voting YES on the CIP amendment, you will support: 

• Improving the administrative functioning of the CIP and allow the panel to manage executive staff.
• Clarifying the CIP’s authority to issue subpoenas and conduct investigations in a manner that does not interfere with criminal investigations.
• Strengthening the CIP’s responsiveness to community concerns by giving it authority to self-initiate investigations, automatically investigate all police shootings that result in death, and investigate and issue reports concerning repeated police mis-conduct.

Building police-community relationships is essential to making our communities safer. By voting YES, you will increase the independence and strength of the Civilian Investigative Panel in the City of Miami, so they can hold our police departments and law enforcement officers accountable for their conduct and actions, free from political influence.

The ACLU of Florida recommends voting YES on the Civilian Investigative Panel Amendment.

P.S. If you have questions about voting in Florida, visit our online voter registration guide. Early voting has already begun in Florida and ends on November 5 or 6 depending on the county.

There's a lot at stake in this election. Besides electing our future leaders, Floridians will vote on statewide initiatives that will strongly impact your civil liberties and civil rights. While the American Civil Liberties Union is nonpartisan and does not endorse candidates, we do weigh in on ballot measures that affect our civil rights and civil liberties.

By voting “YES” on amendment 2, you’re putting healthcare decisions back into physician’s hands. Our legislators have recognized that marijuana can be used as medicine by passing Charlotte’s Web Law and the Right to Try Act, but those laws are not enough.

THE FACTS

By voting YES on Amendment 2, you’re putting healthcare decisions back into physician’s hands. Our legislators have recognized that marijuana can be used as medicine by passing Charlotte’s Web Law and the Right to Try Act, but those laws are not enough.

Current state law, passed in 2014, allows the use of non-euphoric cannabis for patients with medical conditions that cause seizures and severe muscle spasms. Last year, legislators passed a law allowing terminally ill patients to receive prescriptions for full-strength marijuana, but that still leaves tens of thousands of Floridians with debilitating conditions without this medically necessary treatment.

As of mid-April, 23 states and Washington, D.C. have laws permitting the use of marijuana for medical conditions. Medical marijuana has been proven to help with PTSD, MS, ALS, HIV/AIDS, epilepsy, cancer and other seriously debilitating medical conditions and Amendment 2 will do just that. In states that have passed a medical marijuana law, there has been a decrease in death by opioid use, and a decrease in suicide rates and use among adolescents has not gone up.

A YES vote on Amendment 2 would:

• Create a constitutional right for people with specific “debilitating” conditions – such as cancer, epilepsy, AIDS, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis – to use marijuana as long as a physician has certified they have one of the specified conditions.
• Require parental consent before a minor could be certified by a physician to receive medical marijuana.
• Permit caregivers to assist patients with marijuana treatments as long as that person possesses a caregiver identification card issued by the states. Caregivers must undergo a background check and are not allowed to use marijuana themselves.
• Require patients and caregivers to get a state-issued ID.
• Retain state and federal prohibitions on recreational marijuana use, as well as prohibitions on operating vehicles and boats while under the influence.
• Create “medical marijuana treatment centers” to cultivate and dispense drugs to certified patients or caregivers.
• Shield physicians from criminal or civil actions for issuing patient certifications.

Resources:

• Ballot language
• Learn more about the initiative from United Care.

If you have questions about voting in Florida, visit our online voter registration guide.