Civil Liberties
Enes Kanter Freedom on China and Free Speech: 'This Is Bigger Than Basketball'
"While we are dribbling a ball on the other side of the ocean, people are losing their loved ones, losing their lives, and losing their hopes."
Sixth Circuit Rules Government Cannot Seize $300,000 in Home Equity to Pay $22,000 Tax Debt
Doing so qualifies as a taking requiring "just compensation" under the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
Activist Groups Demand Feds Require Nutrition Labels on Booze
Plaintiffs want the nanny state to nanny harder.
Another Analysis Suggests Mandatory Reporting Laws May Be Doing Children More Harm Than Good
Plus: Virginia lawmaker wants to criminalize parents who don't affirm child's gender identity, inflation is up 8.2 percent over the past 12 months, and more...
Public Housing Complexes May Not Ban Gun Possession by Tenants
So holds the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
Sixth Circuit Finds Government Seizure of Home's Equitable Title to Satisfy Tax Debt Was a Taking
An important victory against "self-dealing" by state and local governments.
Michigan Bill Could Mean Life in Prison for Parents or Docs Who Allow Gender Transition Treatment for Minors
Under H.B. 6454, prescribing puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones would be treated as a more severe form of child abuse than starving or abandoning a kid.
Union Group Tries To Bully L.A. Times Into Burying Racist Remarks
Plus: Copyright versus the internet, roofer helping rebuild hurricane-damaged Florida houses arrested for lack of Florida license, and more...
The Consequences That Hunter Biden Could Face for Violating Arbitrary Gun Laws Should Give His Father Pause
The president supports the law that could send his son to prison for lying about his personal habits while buying a firearm.
Yale Law School, Judge Ho, Neutrals, and Secondary Boycotts
Even when there's good reason to criticize universities, we should keep the students out of our battles.
Gavin Newsom Vetoed California Crypto Regulations—and Invited Even Worse Federal Intervention
Any new rules for the crypto market should protect entrepreneurs and investors from overzealous intervention, not subject them to it.
The Problem With DeSantis' 'Stop WOKE' Act
The state can't really banish ideas, and it's dangerous to try.
Federal Bureaucrats Say We Can't Reschedule Marijuana Because of How It's Scheduled
Cannabis has long been classified as having "high potential for abuse" and "no currently accepted medical use." That makes it harder to study and, therefore, harder to reclassify.
Judge Holds Federal Bureau of Prisons in Contempt for Allowing Man To Waste Away From Untreated Cancer
A federal judge wrote that the Bureau of Prisons should be "deeply ashamed" of medical delays that resulted in a man dying from treatable cancer.
Thoughts On Judge Ho's Clerkship Boycott
[This is a guest post by Prof. Jack Goldsmith of the Harvard Law School.]
No, State Legislators Can't Ban Interstate Abortion Travel
The Constitution's commerce clause guarantees a domestic free trade zone. A state law that bars a resident from traveling to take advantage of another state’s economic activity would be unconstitutional.
The Twin Crusades Against Drugs and Guns
The war on drugs conspires with the war on guns to make a mockery of justice.
Obvious Gripe Site Isn't "False Personation"
“We conclude no reasonable person would believe Plummer created a website describing himself as vexatious, incompetent, or dishonest.”
A Federal Judge Rejects New York's Attempt To Defy the SCOTUS Decision Upholding the Right To Bear Arms
The decision is a warning to states that impose vague permit standards or sweeping bans on guns in "sensitive locations."
'Riotsville, U.S.A.' Explores the Origins of Police Militarization
Sierra Pettengill's documentary focuses on the fake towns, built by the Army in the 1960s, to train law enforcement.
Kiwi Farms Is Back
The return of the trollish forum demonstrates the futility of bans on bad speech.
A California Law Designed To Protect Children's Digital Privacy Could Lead to Invasive Age Verification
While the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act was hailed as a victory for digital privacy, critics warn of a litany of unintended consequences.
Court Rejects Avas Flowers' Libel Claims
"The allegedly defamatory nature of this statement is the implication that Plaintiff holds itself out as a local business when it is not. But truth is an affirmative defense to defamation under Delaware law, and the ... Declaration [submitted by Avas] does not deny that Plaintiff maintains call centers abroad in locations such as Mexico or Asia."
A Seattle Cop Gets Fired for Bad Tweets Instead of His Terrible Conduct
An officer used an anonymous account to lash out at police protesters (and a Reason post). He was uncovered and fired.
An Officer Hogtied and Tased an Autistic Child. Why Is He Still Allowed To Work as a Cop?
The Kansas credentialing body reprimanded the officer for using excessive force against a child, but stopped short of pulling his license.
Libel Lawsuit by Blackwater Founder Erik Prince Against The Intercept Rejected
A federal court held that Prince was a public figure, and hadn't offered enough plausible allegations that the defendants knew the statements were false or likely false (the so-called "actual malice" showing).
FIRE Podcast on Free Speech and the Texas Social Media Law
The podcast is a debate between legal scholar Brad Smith and myself.
Is a War on Policing Increasing Crime? Q&A With Rafael Mangual
In Criminal (In)Justice, the Manhattan Institute scholar argues that most reforms favored by social justice activists—and many libertarians—make life worse for communities of color.
Is a War on Policing Increasing Crime? Q&A with Rafael Mangual
In Criminal (In)Justice, the Manhattan Institute scholar argues that most reforms favored by social justice activists—and many libertarians—make life worse for communities of color.
A Campus Pro-Life Group Faced Criticism. Now, It Demands That Its Detractors Be 'Reprimanded.'
Students for Life at George Mason University claims that another student organization defamed the group by criticizing its event that compared abortion to slavery and segregation.
District Court in Title IX Sexual Assault Case Rejects One-Sided Pseudonymity
"Plaintiff has sought to avail herself of the protections of anonymity (without prior Court order), all the while single-handedly precluding the Named Defendant from the ability to avail himself of similar protections."
Mocking the Police Is Not a Crime
A First Amendment case prompts The Onion to explain how parody works.
Herschel Walker's Campaign Shows Why Third-Party Candidates Are Important
Republicans turned off by Walker at least have a third option, but for House races in Georgia, state law makes it extremely difficult for third-party candidates to get on the ballot.
