In his first years as chief attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, Harvey Grossman won a landmark settlement with the city of Chicago limiting police surveillance of political groups.
Known as the Red Squad decree, the 1982 settlement prevented Chicago police from spying on groups engaged in activities protected by the First Amendment, ending a practice in the city that stretched back in one form or another to the 1920s.
On Thursday, as he prepared to step down after 35 years as legal director, Grossman reflected on the fact that government surveillance is once again a major issue facing Illinois and the country.
“These battles don’t stay won,” Grossman said in an interview. “You have to remain vigilant.”
Grossman notified the ACLU’s board formally Thursday evening that he was stepping down as legal director effective Friday, but he will remain as a senior counsel for the time being.
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When he started with the ACLU, Grossman worked to keep the FBI from gathering information about people who weren’t suspected of any specific crimes and keeping the dossiers on file.
“Today, any Google search looks like that,” Grossman said.
Grossman, 68, was able to expand his legal staff from three attorneys to more than 10 today as he challenged not only the FBI but also City Hall, Cook County and the state of Illinois.
In the 1980s, medical professionals with AIDS were being fired from Cook County Hospital, now Stroger Hospital. The ACLU went to court to win federally protected status for people with HIV.
The group also won a case against the city of Chicago, establishing that political allegiance should not be taken into consideration when awarding contracts.
In the early 1980s, under then-Mayor Jane Byrne, the Chicago Reporter found that police had made more than 100,000 disorderly conduct arrests as part of a crackdown, Grossman said. The ACLU successfully sued, arguing that many of the arrests were made without probable cause and police officers were not even appearing in court as witnesses.
Similar issues arose in the early 1990s over Chicago’s gang loitering ordinance and warrantless searches in Chicago Housing Authority buildings.
In both cases, the ACLU scored legal victories against the city.
Only a few weeks ago, the city and the ACLU announced what they called a landmark agreement regarding street stops by police. The Chicago Police Department has agreed to keep track of all investigatory street stops and protective pat-downs. Using that data, a retired federal magistrate judge will determine if the city’s practices are lawful.
“We are always fighting the same battles,” Grossman said. Over and over again.”
Twitter @ltaford