Statement on the Passing of Paul Chevigny

The New York Civil Liberties Union mourns the passing of Paul Chevigny. Paul worked for the NYCLU in the early 1970s both as a staff attorney and as the founding director of the Police Practices Project. During his time at the NYCLU, Paul wrote two seminal works, “Police Power: Police Abuses in New York City” and “Cops and Rebels.” The latter was about his case defending Alfred Cain, one of three Brooklyn Black Panthers who were entrapped by the NYPD. Paul was also one of the original lawyers in Handschu v. Special Services Division, a lawsuit brought by the NYCLU and others challenging the NYPD’s surveillance of political organizations. The case continues to protect the political activities of New Yorkers today.

Paul brought a wide-ranging body of knowledge and an intellectual perspective to NYCLU deliberations. He also had a straight forward writing style that cut through cant and pomposity and advanced civil liberties claims with compelling simplicity. He was a beloved member of the NYCLU family and we will miss him.