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. [...]

Internet free speech: Federal judge dismisses stalker case

A federal judge rejected a claim against a man who relentlessly pursued a religious leader on Twitter in a groundbreaking case on free speech and cyberstalking. The judge said while the speech inflicted “substantial emotional distress,” “nucomfortable speech” was protected under the First Amendment. -db From The New York Times, December 15, 2011, by Somini [...]

‘Overbroad doctrine’ upheld in Washington state ruling on car horns

The Washington Supreme Court struck down a county noise ordinance forbidding honking car horns for purposes other than public safety. The Court ruled that the ordiance was overbroad in limiting legitimate expression. The decision came in a case in which a woman was arrested for honking her horn in front of a house of a [...]

Louisiana student sues in federal court after suspended for criticizing teacher on Facebook

A Baton Rouge high school student sued school officials for suspending him and throwing him out of the honors club for criticizing a teacher on Facebook. The student made the comment from his home and removed it before school the next day. The boy’s parents contend that the comment was intended as a joke and [...]

School bus riders sue policeman for arresting them for making faces

Two North Carolina men are suing a town and a member of its police force for arresting them for making faces at him while he drove behind the bus. The men were both minors attending high school when the incident occurred. The lawsuit contends that the students were within their constitutional rights in making non-threatening [...]

Charges dropped against North Carolina student thrown off campus for criticizing college

The Catawba Valley Community College dropped charges against a student, allowing him back on campus after they suspended him for two semesters for criticizing the college’s aggressive marketing of a debit card company to its students. But the college has yet to change its policy regarding free speech online and is still requiring the student [...]

First Amendment: Stolen valor case goes to U.S. Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the case of a California man held criminally liable for lying about his military exploits. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the man’s lies were permissible under the First Amendment. A dissenting judge wrote that the Supreme Court had already established that false statements of fact [...]

Profanity not always protected by First Amendment

A suburban Chicago city recently rescinded a law against profanity in public places out of concern that the law may run afoul of the First Amendment, but says David L. Hudson Jr. of the First Amendment Center, the Constitution does not always protect profanity. The list of unprotected speech includes fighting words, true threats and [...]

Free speech: Memo criticizing department head in community college ruled protected speech

A California appeals court found that a memo sent by a disgruntled teacher, Raymond Launier, to a community college faculty criticizing the psychology department chair was protected speech. The ruling hinged on the issue of whether the memo was sent “without malice.” The appellate judge said that given the testimony at trial, a jury could [...]

Federal appeals court rules article on Ohio mayor not libelous

The 6th circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled against a mayor who sued for libel after a magazine published an article entitled “The Bizarre Boy Mayor” in which the writer said the mayor “pulled off stunts” such as limiting residents’ participation in meetings and seeking personal information about constituents including young women. The appeals court [...]

ACLU sues in Washington state for right to run ad alleging Israeli war crimes

Seattle Times January 19, 2011 By Keith Ervin After complaints about an ad set to run on Seattle buses alleging Israeli war crimes, King County withdrew the ad prompting a suit by the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington saying withdrawing the ads violated the First Amendment rights of the sponsoring group. -db

Federal appeals court says cheerleader must cheer for player accused of sexually assaulting her

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a cheerleader’s refusal to root for an athlete accused of sexual assaulting her is not protected speech, and the school district had “no duty to promote” the cheerleader’s message. -db Salon.com Commentary September 24, 2010 By Tracy Clark-Flory Cheerleading is often maligned as an illegitimate, unchallenging sport [...]

Jefferson center announces dubious awards for stifling free expression

The Thomas Jefferson Center has made its 19th annual “Jefferson Muzzle” awards for those who demonstrated notable disregard for First Amendment last year. For the detailed list of the winners, go to Jefferson Muzzles. -db First Amendment Center Commentary April 13, 2010 By David L. Hudson Jr. An unusually diverse group of winners headlined the 19th [...]

Southern California: Appeals court rules against student for Web site hate speech

A California private school student lost an appeal of a decision against him for death threats he sent to a classmate on the classmate’s Web site. The court said the speech was not protected under the First Amendment since it conveyed serious expression to inflict bodily harm. -db Courthouse News Service March 17, 2010 By Avery [...]

First Amendment: Federal court allows Nevada to ban brothel ads

A federal appeals court ruled that the state of Nevada could regulate brothel ads under the First Amendment owing to the unique social and legal characteristics of prostitution. -db Courthouse News Service March 10, 2010 By Elizabeth Banicki (CN) – Legal brothels in Nevada cannot publicly advertise under the protection of the First Amendment because [...]

Southern California: Workers want right to solicit work on street corner

Day laborers in Costa Mesa are contesting a city law that bans them from seeking employment on city streets. The laborers want “solicitation speech” included as protected speech under the First Amendment. -db Courthouse News Service February 8, 2010 By Elizabeth Banicki SANTA ANA, Calif. (CN) – Day laborers say Costa Mesa enforces an unconstitutional [...]

Michael Jackson’s dermatologist fights anti-SLAPP to sustain defamation suit against plastic surgeon

Michael Jackson’s dermatologist is fighting an anti-SLAPP motion to keep his lawsuit going against a plastic surgeon he says defamed him for suggesting that he was instrumental in providing the medication that killed the singer. -db The Los Angeles Wave February 2, 2010 By Wire Services A dermatologist who alleges a plastic surgeon defamed him [...]

Free speech case: Prosecutors won’t file charges on posting of distasteful anti-Muslim images

Minnesota prosecutors declined to file charges against a man posting crude anti-Muslim images in front of a mosque and a Somali-owned store in St. Cloud.-DB Minneapolis Star Tribune January 7, 2010 By Patrick Condon MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Two Minnesota prosecutors say they won’t file charges against a man who investigators say admitted posting anti-Muslim images in front of [...]

Professor argues art should be protected speech under the First Amendment

A University of Iowa law professor says that since a work of art can be interpreted in various ways, it can not be treated as other unprotected speech since its message is not “intended, serious and imminent.” -DB The Washington Post Opinion January 5, 2010 By Randall P. Bezanson If a National Endowment for the Arts [...]

Courts consider distinction between hyperbole and real threat

This week two courts will hear arguments on whether particular threats should be considered the protected speech of hyperbolic rhetoric or taken as real threats. -DB First Amendment Law Prof Blog November 24, 2009 By Kathleen Bergin Upcoming trials test the boundary between ‘true threats’ and hyperbolic on-line speech The trial of Hal Turner is [...]

School denies students right to wear anti-Islam T-shirt

The American Civil Liberties Union is suing a school district in Gainesville, Florida for punishing students for wearing T-shirts promoting their religious beliefs that included anti-Islam slogans. -DB American Civil Liberties Union Opinion November 25, 2009 By Brandon Hensler Islam is of the Devil. That is the T-shirt slogan that instigated a hailstorm of debate [...]

Court hears arguments against government penalization of false statements

A federal court of appeals heard arguments this week on whether the government can impose criminal penalties on a man for falsely claiming he served in the military and earned the Congressional Medal of Honor. The man was convicted of violating the Stolen Valor Act which prohibits lying about military service. -DB Metropolitan News-Enterprise November [...]

Supreme Court lets stand lower court ruling that Illinois need not offer ‘Choose Life’ license plates

The Supreme Court rejected a free speech claim from Choose Life Illinois Inc. upholding an appellate court ruling that the plate would have given the impression that Illinois was taking sides in the abortion controversy. -DB Boston Tribune By David G. Savage October 5, 2009 WASHINGTON, D.C. — Illinois need not offer “Choose Life” license [...]

High court hears arguments: animal rights versus free speech

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week on whether videos of dogfights are protected speech under the First Amendment. The Obama administration is asking the court to reinstate the Federal Depiction of Animal Cruelty law, restricting the sale of videos and depictions of animal cruelty. -DB NPR October 6, 2009 By Deborah Tedford Animal [...]

Court rules teacher can pursue suit over political speech

Ruling on a teacher’s claim that he was dismissed for criticizing the school administration, a federal judge said it is already established that public employees do not enjoy First Amendment protection while at work but that the teacher could pursue his suit against the school district on the basis of the teacher’s claim that he [...]

Federal court rules sheriff’s deputy criticism not protected speech

While criticizing a sheriff for reacting in an irresponsible way to criticism of his use of personnel, the 7th Circuit ruled that the sheriff could discipline the deputy who brought the criticism. The deputy had argued that he had a right under the First Amendment to speak without suffering retaliation.  -DB First Amendment Center July 30, [...]

Gates case: Disorderly conduct or protected speech?

Concerning the arrest of the Harvard Professor Louis Gates, a commentator for Forbes Magazine says it is important to look beyond the racial and class issues to those of the First Amendment. Does loud and offensive necessarily constitute disorderly conduct? -DB Forbes Magazine Commentary July 28, 2009 By Harvey A. Silverglate The now-infamous Gates story has [...]