ACLU Working to Assess Growth in Police Militarization

Chapters have filed hundreds of public information requests to get details

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said Wednesday that chapters in 23 states have filed over 255 open records requests pertaining to the militarization of local police departments around the country since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in what the group is calling its most concentrated effort yet to assess the growth of America's police state.

"The American people deserve to know how much our local police are using military weapons and tactics for everyday policing," Allie Bohm, ACLU advocacy and policy strategist, said in an advisory. "The militarization of local police is a threat to Americans' right to live without fear of military-style intervention in their daily lives, and we need to make sure these resources and tactics are deployed only with rigorous oversight and strong legal protections."