Civil Liberties
University of Florida Bans Professors From Testifying Against State Voting Law
"Outside activities that may pose a conflict of interest to the executive branch of the State of Florida create a conflict for the University of Florida," said the university in a statement.
Fourth Circuit Affirms: No Heckler's Veto; Fear of Violent Reaction to Speakers' Views Can't Justify …
denial of access to government property, even in a "nonpublic forum" or "limited public forum"
Garry Kasparov: Greatest Soviet Chess Champion on the Awful System That Created Him
The grandmaster and human rights activist talks about the lessons the world—especially American democratic socialists—must remember three decades after communism's collapse.
Cops Arrested Her for Exercising Her First Amendment Rights. They Got Qualified Immunity—but the Appeals Court Wasn't Having It.
"This is not just an obvious constitutional infringement—it's hard to imagine a more textbook violation of the First Amendment."
Supreme Court Seems Poised To Rule Against New York Gun Law
A majority of the Court voiced skepticism about the state’s conceal-carry licensing scheme.
The Right to Ask Government Officials Questions
The Die Hard 2 Principle makes a special appearance.
School Board Sued for Censoring Residents and Erasing Criticism
The Pennsbury School Board is not only chilling speech, but also editing out community members’ critiques of the school board from YouTube videos of their meetings.
The Second Letter from the Academic Freedom Alliance to the University of Florida
A requirement that professors serving as expert witnesses against the state do so pro bono is still unconstitutional
The Texas Abortion Ban Is a Roadmap to Privatized Oppression
Even justices who take a dim view of Roe v. Wade recognize the law’s chilling implications.
Limiting Principles and the Texas SB 8 Case - Why Texas' Law is a Greater Slippery Slope Menace than a Ruling Against it Would be
If Texas' SB 8 subterfuge works, it would be a dangerous road map for attacking other constitutional rights. The slippery slope risks on the other side are minor by comparison.
Facebook Is Shuttering Its Face Recognition System
Privacy advocates applaud the move.
Abortion Providers Seem Likely to Prevail in Texas SB 8 Case
Today's Supreme Court oral argument suggests they will get the votes of six or more justices. If so, it will be a crucial victory for judicial protection of all constitutional rights, not just abortion rights.
The Supreme Court Declines To Determine if You Have a First Amendment Right To Film the Police
Denver cops received qualified immunity after performing a warrantless search of a man’s tablet and trying to delete a video he took of them beating a suspect.
Kavanaugh Highlights Texas Abortion Law's Threat to 'Second Amendment Rights, Free Exercise of Religion Rights, Free Speech Rights'
The justice grilled a Texas official over the implications of his state’s abortion law.
May Beauty Pageants Limit Themselves to "Natural Born Women"?
Or for that matter to women, to unmarried women, or to women based on age, race, national origin, religion, citizenship (other-"natural-born" or otherwise), and the like?
German Insurance Companies Demand Perilous Playgrounds So That Kids Can Learn About Risk
"This is fantastic progress in understanding childhood as the right time for children to learn to recognize and mitigate risk."
Supreme Court Rebuffs Attempt To Open Up Access to Classified FISA Court Reports
Do Americans have a right to know the extent that the government surveils them?
Academic Freedom Alliance Letter on the University of Florida Situation
The university's effort to suppress expert testimony in a lawsuit against the state is contrary to academic freedom and the First Amendment
The Firearms Policy Coalition Offers a Simple Way to Resolve the Texas SB 8 Case
The Firearms Policy Coalition amicus brief offers a simple and effective way to neuter the threat to judicial review posed by SB 8.
Univ. of Florida Blocks Professors' Expert Witness Work in Case Against Florida Government
A clear academic freedom violation, and likely a First Amendment violation as well: "A concept of loyalty that sweeps so broadly is not one that may legitimately trump compelling interests in speaking on matters of public concern."
Which Genie Will the Supreme Court Let Out of the Bottle?
However the Supreme Court handles the S.B. 8 litigation, it may unleash mischief in other policy areas.
The Firearms Policy Coalition Targets S.B. 8 on the Merits
An amicus brief in Whole Women's Health v. Jackson warns of how S.B. 8's structure could be used to target other constitutional rights.
Last Month's Drop in Texas Abortions Was Far Smaller Than Supporters of the State's Ban Claimed
The actual number of abortions that S.B. 8 prevented by the end of September may be closer to 500 than 3,000.
The U.S. May Stand Alone as a Haven for Free Speech
The First Amendment shields Americans from censorship, but authoritarian legislation in Britain and Canada warns of what could be in store if that protection fails.
Libel Lawsuit Over Allegedly Forged Police Report Finding Plaintiff Had Assaulted His Girlfriend
"After Murray relocated to another state, he contacted the Oceanside Police Department. He then learned the police report he received from Eva-Zacchara had been altered to support her version of events. The real police report concluded 'no assault could be substantiated.'"
"Speaker Removed from Orange County [Fla.] School Board Meeting for Reading from a Book Found at School Library"
But note that the school board chair opined that the book shouldn't be in the library, either.
