EFF wants protection for anonymous in porn-downloading suit

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is petitioning a federal judge to protect the anonymity of individuals involved in a copyright lawsuit over porn downloading. An adult film company wants to determine the identities of 1495 Internet users. The judge ordered the individuals suing to protect their anonymity to reveal their identities before the suit could proceed. [...]

Government watchdog alleges FBI stonewalling on WikiLeaks surveillance

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) has sued the Justice Department and the FBI claiming that they refuse to release information on the FBI’s surveillance of citizens who have shown support for or interest in WikiLeaks. EPIC made the Freedom of Information Act complaint in federal court. -db From the Courthouse News Service, January 31, [...]

Gay police officer loses right to make First Amendment case after he was hounded out of the department

A gay police officer who alleged that St. Cloud Police Department refused to allow him his First Amendment rights to work in the Twin Cities Pride Festival even if he used his vacation time lost a bid in federal court on the First Amendment claim. The court did say there was sufficient evidence to pursue [...]

Journalists snared in arrest net at Occupy Oakland protests

Six journalists were arrested at an Occupy Oakland protest at Oakland City Hall where protesters broke in and vandalized the walls. That brings the total of journalists arrested during the protests to 52. The reporters included those from KGO, an ABC affiliate, Mother Jones and the San Francisco Chronicle. As of now, it is not [...]

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul loses bid for identities of those posting online spoof

A federal judge ruled that Republican presidential contender Ron Paul could not force YouTube and Twitter to provide the identities of whoever uploaded videos with a spoof of Ron Paul bashing former candidate Jon Huntsman for being a Chinese agent. It is unusual for a candidate to sue in these matters given the courts’ tolerance [...]

Justice Department cites threat of violence in U.S. in keeping bin Laden photos secret

The Justice Department wants a federal judge to allow them to withhold photos of the death of Osama bin Laden on the grounds that releasing the photos could incite violence against the U.S. The DOJ disputed the arguments of Judicial Watch that making the photos public would cause harm to national security by revealing intelligence [...]

Federal appeals court upholds Stolen Valor Act

After the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the Stolen Valor Act unconstitutional in a separate case, the 10th Circuit upheld the law which prohibits lying about military awards. The opinion of the 10th Circuit judges cited a statement from a Supreme Court ruling that false statements do not get constitutional protection, “except to [...]

Opinion: NBC TV station obliged to run Romney ad the network objects to

After NBC TV station continued to air a Mitt Romney ad that the network wants pulled, they were charged with hypocrisy, but says Josh Gerstein in Politico, it’s not that the stations would sell out principles to make a buck, FCC rules say that stations have to take ads on a comparable basis from all [...]

Federal appeals court hands censorship tool to public colleges

The Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals extended the Supreme Court ruling known as Hazelwood to public colleges and universities while ruling on a case over the expulsion of a student in a counseling program at Eastern Michigan University. Hazelwood allows school administrators to censor student expression on the grounds of “legitimate pedagogical concerns.” -db [...]

Family sues Hustler for $20 million for publishing nude photos after death

A grieving family is suing Hustler Magazine for $20 million after the magazine published nude photos of a model who was murdered by her husband. Hustler is claiming that the model was a public figure and newsworthy. -db From the  Daily Mail, January 26, 2012, by Daily Mail Reporter. Full story  

South Carolina prison newsletter wins censorship suit

A South Carolina county will have to pony up nearly $600,000 to settle a censorship lawsuit brought by a group who publishes a monthly newsletter for prison inmates. Before the settlement, prison officials at a county detention center only allowed inmates religious texts for reading materials. -db From the First Amendment Center, January 26, 2012, [...]

Supreme Court police arrest man for ‘Occupy Everything’ words on jacket

In an incident reminiscent of  Cohen v. California, the Supreme Court police arrested a man in a corridor wearing a jacket with the words “Occupy Everything.” For the Citizen Media Law Project, Andrew F. Sellars analyzes the case finding little basis for the arrest. “Here, in the halls of the very building that brought us [...]

Federal judge rejects San Diego election campaign donation cap

A federal judge ruled that San Diego could not enforce its $1000 cap on donations by political parties to local election campaigns. The city wanted to stem the San Diego’s corrupt political scene, but the judge said she doubted that the anti-corruption interest was credible given the natural connection between parties and candidates. -db From [...]

Muhammad Ali a central figure in unfolding of First Amendment rights

Muhammad Ali, the former world heavyweight boxing champion, “embodies the essence of the First Amendment,” writes David L. Hudson Jr., of the First Amendment Center. Hudson shows how Ali was at the “vortex of…First Amendment freedoms,” freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition.  -db From a commentary for the First Amendment Center, January 21, [...]

Appeal in the works in Twitter/WikiLeaks case

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation are set to file an appeal concerning the U.S. government’s attempts to obtain Twitter records in their investigation of WikiLeaks. The ACLU and EFF are seeking to prevent the government from sealing records of their efforts to obtain private information of Internet users without a [...]

U.S. Supreme Court backs 1994 law granting copyright protection to foreign works

Rejecting arguments that a 1994 law complying with an international treaty violated U.S. copyright law and free speech rights, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-2 to extend copyright protection to foreign works. Google was among those against the law, but the government said that foreign works should receive the same treatment as domestic works under [...]

D.C. appellate court rules for whistelblower’s anonymity

The District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruled that a software trade association did not have to disclose the name of an anonymous tipster. Solers, a software company, had sued the trade association to determine the identity of the tipster who they claimed made a false accusation that the company used unlicensed software. -db From [...]

Balance sought in fight over bills to stop Internet piracy

With copyright protection established in the U.S. Constitution and free speech in the Bill of Rights, it is vital to honor each in the fight over the new online piracy bills currently before Congress says Ken Paulson of the First Amendment Center. It will be a difficult task to craft a law that intercepts pirated [...]

Federal appeals court rejects lawsuit claiming police violated rights of protestors during 2008 Republican Convention

The 8th U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals found that police had not violated protestors ‘ First And Fourth Amendments rights when they arrested 400 people at the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota. The court cited widespread violence and vandalism in saying police were justified in conducting mass arrests to restore order. [...]

Prosecutors seeking testimony of New York Times reporter in national security trial

Prosecutors in the case of a former CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling accused of leaking classified information are attempting to reverse a lower court finding that a New York Times reporter James Risen was exempt from disclosing his sources for a story on a CIA program to disrupt Iran’s nuclear program. The government prosecutors claim that [...]

Reporter sues Obama over law he claims threatens free press

A reporter has sued President Barack Obama saying that under the Homeland Battlefield Bill reporters simply doing their job could be thrown in jail without due process. Signed into law last December 31, the bill authorizes the military to indefinitely detain without charge or trial anyone accused of supporting terrorists anywhere in the world. -db [...]

Supreme Court declines to rule on student free speech on Internet

Despite split rulings in two federal appellate courts, the U.S. Supreme Court will not hear arguments on whether school officials can regulate the off-campus speech of students on the Internet. Two of the three cases under consideration concerned parodies directed at principals while the third involved cruel words directed at another student. -db From the [...]

California: Teacher retirement fund wins round in suit against credit rating firms

Spurning arguments that their lawsuit attacked free speech rights, a San Francisco Superior Court judge ruled that CalPERS could continue their legal battle against credit-rating firms, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s. The public pension system accused the firms of negligence in making careless investment ratings. -db From the San Francisco Chronicle,  January 14, 2012, by Bob [...]

Arizona students win right to contest ban on ethnic studies program

Just as the Tucson Unified School District board voted the end the Mexican-American studies program, a federal judge ruled that students could sue to reinstate the program. The judge said teachers had no standing to contest the ruling to end the program and that teachers “have failed to demonstrate that they have a protected First [...]

Los Angeles: Fight on to stop limits on speaking before Board of Supervisors

A group of citizens has been able to forestall a move by the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors to restrict the public in addressing the board. A proposal before the board would limit speakers to three minutes for  various items on the agenda and two minutes for items not on the agenda. The board has [...]

Case over alleged defamation by Oregon blogger heats up

A couple of legal heavyweights are joining the appeal of a $2.5 million judgment against an Oregon blogger accused of defaming the Obsidian Finance Group. An Oregon federal judge had ruled that the blogger was not a member of the media and not protected by Oregon’s shield law. -db From a commentary for the Citizens [...]

Federal appeals court allows challenge to hiring decision allegedly based on politics

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has allowed an applicant for a college teaching job to sue a law school dean for allegedly discriminating against her for her political beliefs. The applicant said the then dean of the University of Iowa College of Law rejected her application for legal-writing positions based on her socially [...]

Supreme Court may loosen restrictions on broadcasters in Nicole Richie swearing case

There is some hope that when the U.S. Supreme Court this week  will decide that broadcasters should not be shackled with Federal Communications Commission fines for on-air indecency. The case on the docket concerns swear words used by Cher and Nicole Richie on an awards show broadcast on Fox television and a scene of a [...]

Study disputes Supreme Court’s reputation as First Amendment advocate

A study for the Brennan Center for Justice found that notwithstanding its reputation, the Roberts Supreme Court is ruling for free speech at a lower rate than the courts led by three previous chief justices. In responding to the study, some point out that numbers don’t tell the entire story that the court had made [...]

Government forces clamp on Twitter demanding censorship

The U.S. government has stepped up efforts to pressure Twitter to censor posts by a militant Somali group and the Taliban according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The Israeli government and U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman are also pressuring Twitter. -db From a commentary for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, January 6, 2012, byy Jillian C. York [...]

Group sues over ban of anti-abortion display in Wyoming state legislature

An anti-abortion group is asking for a injunction in federal court to prevent the state from blocking an anti-abortion display in a corridor linking the Capitol Building to a parking garage. The group, WyWatch Family Action, said other groups had put up displays, and they were only asking for equal treatment. -db From the Casper [...]

Free speech: Supreme Court refuses to hear commercial speech case brought by interior decorators

The U.S. Supreme Court declined last week to hear a case on commercial speech brought by interior decorators who claim that Florida is denying their free speech rights by requiring years of school, apprenticeship and an exam before a person can take clients in interior design. Lawyers for the plaintiffs argue that Florida’s law is [...]

Frederal courts reject challenges to prison pen-pal limits

Another federal court approved restrictions on prison pen-pals by ruling that the Missouri Department of Corrections could prevent inmates from soliciting pen pals online. The court said the policy protected security and rehabilitation and still allowed inmates other avenues to exercise their  First Amendment rights. From the First Amendment Center, January 8, 2012, by David [...]

Rights of Reporters Covering Protests? The Nation answers FAQs

How does the First Amendment protect reporters on the OWS protest frontlines?  Attorney and University of Missouri Journalism Fellow Jonathan Peters spells it out in The Nation: FAQ: What Are the Rights of Reporters Covering Protests? | The Nation.

PBS’s MediaShift lists eleven top stories in media law for 2011

MediaShift’s top media law stories for 2011 include journalists’ coverage of Occupy movements; the proposed online piracy legislation; net neutrality; coverage of live police actions; Righthaven and the “hot news” doctrine. -db From a commentary in MediaShift, December 23, 2011, by Rob Arcamona, Jeff Hermes and Andy Sellars. Full story

New software protects anonymous speakers on Internet

Graduate students are developing software that could be used to protect whistleblowers, human rights advocates, and hackers. -db From The New York Times, January 3, 2012, by Nicole Perlroth. Full story  

Indiana governor rescinds new Statehouse security rules limiting protests

In the face of protests over a “right to work” law, allowing workers to opt out of paying union dues, state authorities imposed a 3,00 person crowd cap to entering the Statehouse. The governor lifted the restrictions after input from the public and media. -db From the Evansville Courier & Press, January 4, 2012, by [...]

First Amendment Center protests Indiana lawmaker’s attempt to censor ‘non-traditional’ versions of national anthem

The First Amendment guarantees that the government not regulate the expression of those who sing “off tune” argues Gene Policinski, executive director of the First Amendment Center. That someone might offend someone else by doing a non-traditional rendition of the national anthem should not be grounds for censorship writes Policinski. -db From a commentary for [...]

Missouri: Federal appeals court rules reporter’s testimony should be allowed

The 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that a court could force a reporter to testify in a lawsuit against plastic surgeons. A woman brought the lawsuit against her plastic surgeons who gave her partially nude photos to  the reporter who worked for a Missouri newspaper. -db From The Reporters Committee for Freedom of [...]

Federal appeals court rules restrictions on PACs unconstitutional

The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled unconstitutional a Washington state law restricting political action committees from taking in donations of $5000 or more in the last three weeks of an election. The state argued that the law was intended to protect voters allowed to mail their ballots 18 days before the election. -db [...]

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