Civil Liberties
Federalist Society National Lawyers Convention Panel on Zoning, Property Rights, and the Housing Crisis
I participated along with James Burling (Pacific Legal Foundation), Prof. Peter Byrne (Georgetown), and Prof. Sara Bronin (George Washington University).
You Can Thank This Ohio Klansman for Expanding Your Freedom of Speech
Brandenburg v. Ohio established the "imminent lawless action" standard. More than 50 years later, partisans keep trying to apply it selectively.
D.C. Jury Acquits 'Sandwich Guy' of Assaulting Federal Agent
A jury found Sean Dunn, who went viral in August for throwing a Subway sandwich at a Border Patrol officer, not guilty.
Federal Judge Blasts 'Disgusting' ICE Facility Conditions, Orders Basic Humane Treatment for Detainees
“The evidence has been pretty strong that his facility is no longer just a temporary holding facility,” said U.S. District Court Judge Robert Gettleman. “It has really become a prison.”
The CHAT Act Won't Protect Kids, But it Might Break the Internet.
By forcing government ID verification for AI tools, Congress risks censoring everyday digital services and driving young Americans to unsafe overseas platforms.
New Jersey Cops Took His Guns Because They Were Worried About His Wife's Mental Health
Elsid Aliaj says the seizure violated state law and the Second Amendment.
Stealing Innocent People's Tax Returns Isn't Heroic. The IRS Leaker Doesn't Deserve a Do-Over.
Charles Littlejohn exposed hundreds of thousands of Americans’ private tax returns and undermined the nation’s voluntary tax system. His five-year sentence shouldn’t be reduced.
Dick Cheney, Vice President and Self-Described 'Darth Vader,' Was a Champion of the War State
The former vice president liked being compared to the supervillain as a joke. But he had seriously villainous effects on millions of people in real life.
What Does Fentanyl Have to Do With Alleged Drug Boats 2,600 Miles Away? Absolutely Nothing.
President Trump’s pretextual claim that fentanyl carrying drug boats in the Caribbean are an existential threat to Americans doesn’t pass muster.
Photo: A Banksy Mural's Ghostly Outline
The street artist's London mural appeared after the U.K. Parliament voted to ban a group that uses "disruptive tactics" against manufacturers supplying weapons to Israel.
Don't Want ICE To Scan Your Face? Too Bad, You Might Not Have A Choice.
The DHS is claiming the right to scan people without their consent—and that's just part of its growing cache of surveillance tools.
Trump Says His 'Armed Conflict' With Drug Traffickers Does Not Involve 'Hostilities'
The government is tying itself in knots to cast murder as self-defense and avoid legal limits on the president's use of the military.
Oklahoma's Obscenity Bait and Switch Could Ban Pride Parades and Public Drag Shows
These lawmakers expect local authorities to ban "obscenity" before it happens—a recipe for chilling a wide variety of legal speech.
Senate Investigations Find Medical Neglect and Other Human Rights Violations in Immigration Detention Centers
Two reports find that the detention system is failing to provide detainees with adequate food, water, and medical care.
Chicago Cops Ignore the Law, Arrest Legal Gun Owners
Once we let our rights become privileges, government officials can revoke them on a whim.
He Served His Time for Sex Offenses He Committed as a Teen. He's Still Locked Up With No Release Date.
Justin Sanchez is one of more than 6,000 Americans indefinitely detained in a system that wastes money and doesn't make us safer.
How the Punisher, a Murderous Anti-Hero, Became the Mascot for Increasingly Militarized Police Forces
“He is breaking the very laws…that cops are supposed to uphold.”
Illinois Is Taking the Feds to Court Over 'Trump's Invasion' of Chicago
"The Trump Administration's Department of War gave me an ultimatum: call up your troops, or we will," Gov. J.B. Pritzker said.
James Comey Says His Grudge-Driven Prosecution Is Unconstitutional Retaliation for His Criticism of Trump
The former FBI director also argues that the charges against him are legally deficient and that the prosecutor who brought them was improperly appointed.
According to Trump, He Has Already Saved 350,000 Lives by Murdering Suspected Drug Smugglers
There are several problems with the president's math, which suggests he has accomplished an impossible feat.
A Portland Family Says Their Dad Was Wrongly Arrested by ICE. Now He's Lost in Immigration Detention.
For the past two weeks, Juan Barbosa Gomez has been in federal immigration detention, but he doesn't show up on ICE's online detainee locator. His family says he has valid work permit and no criminal record.
Prosecutors Drop Charges Against Tennessee Man Over Facebook Meme
Larry Bushart was arrested on a $2 million bond for posting a meme on Facebook. He was released this week, after more than a month in jail.
Social Media Speech "Recklessly" Jeopardizing Classmates' Sense of "Safety" by "Condon[ing]" "Forcible Family Separation by Immigration Authorities" May Be Punishable
So argues a concurring opinion in today's Second Circuit decision in Leroy v. Livingston Manor Central School Dist., also speaking about speech that "callously cheer[s] on or condone[s]" "police brutality, ... religiously-motivated attacks on their houses of worship, sexual or gender-based violence, or any other type of targeted state or private violence."
School's "Interest in Teaching Racial Sensitivity Is Not Sufficient" to Justify Punishing Student's "Free Expression Off-Campus"
So holds the Second Circuit: "Tying a student speaker's constitutional right to free expression solely to the reaction that speech garners from upset or angry listeners cannot be squared with [First Amendment] principles."
When the Government Censored Dracula, Frankenstein, and King Kong
Remembering a monstrous era of American history
Trump's Move To Replace 12 ICE Directors Could Mean More Aggressive and Unconstitutional Immigration Enforcement
To fill the roles, the Trump administration is turning to agents from Customs and Border Protection, the agency that has led aggressive immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles and Chicago.
Jake Tapper Called Out Obama and Biden for Free Speech Abuses. He Says Trump Is on a New Level.
"I have not seen ever before a direct infringement on the right to free speech like that," CNN's Jake Tapper says of the Trump administration's actions in the Jimmy Kimmel saga.
Jake Tapper on Censorship, Media Failings, and Presidential Power
Jake Tapper examines the growing pressure on the news media to serve political interests, Donald Trump’s attacks on the press and peaceful protesters, as well as the lasting damage Joe Biden may have done to the Democratic Party.
Trump, an Avowed Second Amendment Champion, Defends a Gun Ban With 'No Historical Justification'
His administration is urging the Supreme Court to uphold a prosecution for violating a federal law that bars illegal drug users from owning firearms.
Texas Can't Force Book Vendors To Rate Books According to Sexual Content, District Court Decides
Aspects of Texas' READER Act meant to keep sexual content out of school libraries have been judged First Amendment violations.
Trump's Appeal of His New York Convictions Highlights the Absurdity of Alvin Bragg's Convoluted Case
The Manhattan district attorney converted a hush payment into 34 felonies via a chain of legal reasoning with several conspicuously weak links.
Virginia Court Reverses $1M Libel Judgment for School Board Chair Called "Sexual Predator/Harasser" by Activist
The speaker's comments, the Virginia Court of Appeals held, "comments constitute non-actionable opinions based on fully disclosed facts."
Federal Immigration Agents Accused of Tear-Gassing Peaceful Protestors, Pointing Gun at Veterans in Chicago
The actions would violate a federal order imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Sara L. Ellis to limit the use of nonlethal weapons and other crowd control tactics.
The 6th Circuit Upholds a School's Sweatshirt Censorship Because 'Let's Go Brandon' Is 'Plainly Vulgar'
That understanding of a familiar anti-Biden slogan hinges on the political message it communicates.
Congress Investigates TeaOnHer App for Letting Men Post About Women Without Their Consent
It sounds like something niche feminist bloggers might have taken up 10 years ago. But this is being led by Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives.
