This week on Radio Civil Liberties, the Western Regional Office of the New York Civil Liberties Union and the Empire State Pride Agenda were pleased to host NYCLU Staff Attorney Matt Faiella at a community forum recently in Buffalo. Faiella was in Buffalo as part of a Western New York stop to discuss the impact of the "Martinez Decision" in which the New York State Court of Appeals mandated that New York State recognize same-sex marriages performed outside of New York State. The WNY event esd held at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Buffalo and included remarks by WRO Director, John A. Curr III, Empire State Pride Agenda WNY Organizer, Todd Plank and local Marriage Ambassador Kitty Lambert.

Listen Here to NYCLU Staff Attorney Matt Faiella discuss the "Martinez " decision and its implications at the recent WNY forum (22mb .mp3)


In our second segment this week, we heard from Retired U.S. army Colonel and ACLU Board Member Mike Pheneger, on the partnership of the ACLU and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) , in assembling defense teams to be available to assist in the legal representation of some of the Guantanamo detainees the Bush administration seeks to prosecute in the military commissions system. Retired Army Colonel Mike Pheneger talks about why this effort is important to this country's justice system.