American Violet -- a new feature film on the drug war run amok, and an ACLU lawsuit that successfully fought it

On April 17, American Violet will be released in theaters across the country. It will be featured in the Philadelphia Film Festival on April 4 and 5.

This powerful, dramatic movie is based on the drug cases in Hearne, TX, a small town between Waco and College Station, TX, about 100 miles northeast of Austin.

The drug raids in the case were successfully challenged by the ACLU Drug Policy Litigation Project. The movie revolves around Regina Kelly, the lead plaintiff in the ACLU case. In 2005, the defendants settled, admitting a practice of 15 years of racially motivated drug raids in Hearne. There was a 22 minute documentary made, Hearne, Texas: Scenes from the Drug War. The video is the third one down the page.

You can click here to see the American Violet trailer. This case echoes the infamy of the better known cases of Tulia, TX.

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