The Dirty Pictures That Revolutionized Art
Brian Doherty's history of underground comix chronicles how Robert Crumb, Art Spiegelman, and others challenged censorship and increased free speech.
Free Speech
Did Cassidy Hutchinson's Testimony Clinch the Incitement Case Against Trump?
The former president's recklessness is beyond dispute, but that is not enough to convict him while respecting the First Amendment.
Ex-Police-Officer Allowed to Proceed Pseudonymously with Due Process and Libel Claim Against City
I lost my motion opposing pseudonymity in the District of New Hampshire, though I'm appealing to the First Circuit.
When Is Government Official's Blocking Commenter from Social Media Page "State Action"?
The Sixth Circuit disagrees with the Second Circuit in the @RealDonaldTrump case (but maybe not by much).
Supreme Court Says High School Coach's Postgame Prayers Are Protected Free Speech
A 6–3 majority sees it as noncoercive and not a violation of the Establishment Clause.
Justice Thomas (Still) Wants Supreme Court to Revisit "Actual Malice"
Justice Thomas reiterates his desire to revisit the contours of defamation law and New York Times v. Sullivan.
State Attorney General Suggests Considering Applicants' Ideological Viewpoints in Denying Carry Licenses
The California AG endorses denying licenses based on the applicant's "hatred" or "racism."
American U. Law Students Investigated for "Harassment" for Insulting Comments About Abortion in Group Chat
The complaining student alleged the students' remarks were "harassing and threatening" him because of his conservative "political affiliation" and his "religious beliefs."
As the ACLU Recedes From Its Core Mission, FIRE Expands To Fill the Void
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) is defending expression on campus and off as the ACLU becomes a progressive advocacy group.
Boycotts Aren't Protected Speech, Rules Appeals Court
Plus: Employers sue over Florida's Stop WOKE Act, how inflation erodes financial privacy, and more...
Abortion Bans Bring First Amendment Battles, Too
Looking back at how abortion advertising bans played out last century may give us some idea what the future holds for speech about abortion.
The ACLU Is Struggling To Find Its Identity In Post-Trump America
Despite its opposition to gun rights for individuals, the ACLU's drift away from its core mission resembles the NRA's recent trajectory.
Criminal Libel Law, Partly Coming Back in Washington State in Harassment Order Cases
When a judge hearing a protection order petition thinks the defendant is engaged in "harassment," which can include two or more statements the judge thinks is libelous, the judge can effectively criminalize future libels of the plaintiff by the defendant.
Australia Offers a Terrifying Vision of an Internet Without Section 230
What happens when YouTube and Facebook can be held liable for their users’ speech?
Senators Want To Control Google Search Results About Abortion
Plus: Uvalde cops didn't check classroom door, Texas GOP slides further to the right, telemedicine deregulation in peril, and more...
University of Houston Rolls Back Unconstitutional Anti-Harassment Policy
Students sued to protect their First and 14th Amendment rights.
Contract Lawsuit Can Proceed, Over Private School Disciplining Student for Alleged Racial Epithet Use
The plaintiff alleged that the Wardlaw-Hartridge School had failed to comply with its own procedural rules in the Student-Parent Handbook.
>$10M Libel Verdicts: They're Not Just for Johnny Depp
But here the Iowa Supreme Court reduced the verdict to $3M, with an interesting analysis of the law of libel.
What Are Ya, Some Kind of Comedian?
Qualified immunity denied in case alleging a probable-cause-less arrest based on plaintiff's (comedian Hannibal Buress's) speech "roast[ing a police officer's] ass."
U.K. Approves Extradition of Julian Assange to the U.S.
The WikiLeaks founder faces espionage charges for publishing classified U.S. information, a prosecution with serious implications for all our First Amendment protections.
YouTube Deleted a January 6th Committee Video for Spreading Election Misinformation
"We enforce our policies equally for everyone," said a spokesperson.
"[W]ell, People Really Be Tellin', People Be Tellin'. That Is Not Right, That Is Not Right."
A Snapchat post containing this line and "a copy of the police report summarizing [a witness's] identification of [a person] as the shooter" leads to a four-year prison sentence for witness tampering; a New Jersey court says the post is a constitutionally unprotected true threat of violence.
Seventh Circuit Reinstates Lawsuit Over School Ban on T-Shirts That Depict Guns,
and reverses a precedent that suggested that viewpoint-neutral speech restrictions in public K-12 schools are generally permissible.
Institute for Free Speech Looking for Litigator (with 7+ Years of Experience)
One of the very few jobs where you'd get to litigate free speech law every day
Not Libel or IIED to Accuse Ex-Son-in-Law of Trying to Turn His Daughter (Accuser's Granddaughter) Lesbian,
at least in text messages to the grandchildren.
$125K Libel Punitive Award Excessive When Jury Found No Compensatory Damages
The award was entered against entertainment executive Damon Anthony Dash, former business partner of Jay-Z; $650K in libel damages to another plaintiff, plus likely $25K of the $125K, remain.
No First Amendment Problem with Routine Anonymous Criminal Juries
"[I]n this internet age, where jurors' names can trigger lightning-fast access to a wealth of biographical information, including addresses, any slightly positive role in divulging jurors' names to the public is outweighed by the risk to jury integrity."
Zap Comix Were Never for Kids
Disreputable and censored comix improbably brought the art form from the gutter to the museums.
Texas Ban on "Transmitting" Nude Photos Without Request or Consent: Does It Apply Just to Posting Them Online?
It looks like it was intended to cover unwanted sexual images sent to a particular person, but its text seems broad enough to potentially cover even posting things on your own site.
Court Limits Ban on Speech That Causes "Substantial Emotional Distress" with "Intent to Harass or Intimdate"
The court concludes that the federal "cyberstalking" statute covers only speech intended to "put the victim in fear of death or bodily injury" or to "distress the victim by threatening, intimidating, or the like."
Cancel Culture Deprives Brooklynites of Understanding How Putin Uses Food as a Political Weapon
When the Bushwick bar Honey's tried to host a “Russia, Ukraine, and Food" talk with food writer and academic Darra Goldstein, the angry mob shut them down.
He Was Targeted by Police for His Political Speech. Now, He's Suing.
William Fambrough supported the "wrong" mayoral candidate, so East Cleveland law enforcement destroyed his van and hit him with petty prosecutions.
Anonymity and Pro-Abortion-Rights Initiatives and Referenda
What kind of a showing of possible "harassment" or "reprisals" must backers of such ballot measures make to keep petition signatures (and financial contributions) from becoming public records?
State Trooper Suing Andrew Cuomo for Harassment Can Be Pseudonymous, Because the Case Is "High-Profile"
The court's view appears to be that, the more public interest in a case, the less the public is entitled to know.
