Laura W. Murphy is in her second tenure as Director of the ACLU’s Washington Legislative Office, a position she first held from 1993-2005. Since returning Murphy has maintained strong relationships with leaders in the United States Congress and the Obama Administration to advance the ACLU’s public policy priorities including national security, criminal justice, human rights, privacy, reproductive rights, civil rights and First Amendment issues.
Recently, Murphy played a leadership role in the passage of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 signed into law by President Obama on August 3, 2010—a law that reduced the sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine and that begins to address some of the racial disparities in the criminal justice system. Under her leadership, the ACLU Washington Legislative Office worked with Congress and the White House to gain support around federally-funded abortions for servicewomen and military dependents in the cases of rape or incest. The provision was signed into law on January 2, 2013.
Prior to her return to the ACLU, she founded and directed her own firm, Laura Murphy & Associates, L.L.C., where she utilized her 30 years of policy-making and political expertise to guide and advise corporate and non-profit clients at the national, state and local levels.
Blog Posts:
Trusting Law Enforcement After the Trayvon Tragedy
Trayvon’s is a story that far too many African American men experience daily. This case, and the countless others that haven't received the same attention, remind us of the crisis of racial profiling where millions of Black and brown people in America--particularly Black boys and men--are often automatically judged as suspicious or dangerous. These young men are growing up in a world where they feel unsafe proceeding with certain everyday activities such as returning home from an errand, driving, or hanging out with friends because of stereotyping and over-criminalization by our criminal justice. Read More
