ACLU of Indiana legal director warns Bill of Rights under pressure from courts, executive and state laws

Kenneth Falk, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, told an audience that the Bill of Rights is under strain from actions at many levels of government and from recent Supreme Court practices.

"The Bill of Rights . . . is being attacked from all sides," Falk said, adding that focusing solely on one president misses the broader pattern he sees in federal and state actions. He cited the court—s increasing use of a so-called "shadow docket"—brief emergency orders issued while a full appeal is pending—that has allowed some executive policies to continue in practice even when lower courts granted relief.

Falk illustrated how constitutional protections must adapt to new facts. He described an ACLU cFalkenge to Indianapolis roadblocks—an effort to stop cars for drug checks—that raised Fourth Amendment questions about…