Civil Liberties
Some Thoughts on Google v. Oracle, from Prof. Rebecca Tushnet (Harvard)
"Categories, microworks, and market circularity."
New Mexico Abolishes Qualified Immunity
It is the third state to rein in the legal doctrine that protects state actors from accountability for misconduct.
Ex-Rep. Katie Hill's Revenge Porn Lawsuit Against Daily Mail (UK) Dismissed
"Defendant has established that the images are a matter of public concern, as they speak to Plaintiff's character and qualifications for her position as a Congresswoman, allegedly depicting an extramarital sexual relationship with a paid campaign staff member, the use of illegal drugs by a sitting Congresswoman, and a tattoo similar to the symbols formerly used by white supremacists."
N.Y. Appellate Court Upholds Semester Suspension for Attending Unmasked/Undistanced Off-Campus Parties During Epidemic
“While the penalty of suspension is very harsh, it is not shockingly disproportionate to the offense. It does not shock the conscience for a university, acting during a pandemic, to enforce rules designed to prevent the spread of the virus with the penalty of suspension.”
Names of Police Officers Involved in Defensive Shooting of Suspects Aren't Public Records
So holds the Florida Court of Appeal, interpreting the Florida Constitution's crime victims' rights provision. ("If a prosecutor determines that the officer was not a victim and instead charges the officer for his conduct," the names would be released, but no such determination was made here.)
Backpage Judge Accused of Bias Will Remain on Case
Plus: Effort to decriminalize psychedelics gains traction in California, crony capitalism at its worst, and more...
University Trying to Block Distribution of Faculty Senate Meeting Video Excerpts Using Copyright Law
An interesting controversy involving Portland State University.
Europeans Embrace America's Policing Mistakes
The pandemic pushed Americans to consider police reform while other countries moved to unleash their cops.
MSU Conference on Freedom of Speech and Intellectual Diversity on Campus
A free online conference sponsored by the LeFrak Forum on Science, Reason, and Modern Democracy at Michigan State University.
Biden Administration Deploys the Civil Rights Act To Stop a $7 Billion Highway Project in Houston
The Federal Highway Administration is asking Texas officials to hit pause on a massive highway widening project while it examines whether it violates Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Judge Halts Ohio Law Requiring Burial or Cremation of Aborted Fetuses
Plus: Copyright case a win for Google and fair use, California considering repeal of its "loitering with intent to commit prostitution" law, and more...
The No-Fly List Is a Civil Liberties Nightmare
Existing laws are more than adequate to handle the Capitol rioters.
"The People Have Every Right to Look Over Our Shoulder and Review the Documents Before the Court"
"This is beyond the pale. The indiscriminate use of the confidentiality stamp alone warrants the denial of the entirety of the motions."
Justice Thomas Wonders When Supreme Court Will Have To Consider Social Media's Private Deplatforming Power
A moot case about Trump blocking tweets leads to concerns that tech companies have too much control over speech.
A Professor Pushed Back Against 'White Fragility' Training. The College Investigated Her for 9 Months.
The chaos at Lake Washington Institute of Technology is by no means an isolated occurrence.
Some Rhetoric from the Rotenberg v. Politico Complaint
Gripes about publishers getting "private commercial benefit" from "hate speech, propaganda, and statements that seek to destabilize American democracy"; argument that "[t]he public figure doctrine emerged in an era prior to the Internet advertising model that rewards news organizations for the ongoing display of defamatory content."
The Legal Complexities in Rotenberg v. Politico—#1332 Might Surprise You!
Remember: Lawyers’ true superpower is the power to turn all questions into questions about procedure.
When Is It Tortious to Report on Someone's Positive COVID Result?
A privacy controversy in a lawsuit by privacy advocate Marc Rotenberg (formerly of EPIC, the Electronic Privacy Information Center).
No Qualified Immunity for Cop Who Shot and Killed a Suicidal Man, Says Federal Court
“An officer violates the Fourth Amendment if he shoots an unarmed, incapacitated suspect who is moving away from everyone present at the scene.”
Ninth Circuit Lets #TheyLied Suit Against Lawyer Lisa Bloom Go Forward
The lawsuit was brought by casino developer Steve Wynn, over a press release put out by Bloom related to a sexual harassment claim that Bloom's firm brought on behalf of a dancer.
Free Speech Under Threat from E.U. Campaign Against 'Terrorist Content'
Civil liberties advocates warn that the legislation threatens activism, journalism, and satire.
The Right to an Abortion Isn't Going Away
While overturning Roe v. Wade would lead to new restrictions in many states, legal access to abortion would be unaffected in most of the country.
Do Nannies Have "Justifiable Expectation" That They Won't Be Audiorecorded at Work?
No, says the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, though over a dissent.
Amicus Brief in the Student Speech Case
"In Tinker, this Court held that "[i]t can hardly be argued that … students … shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." Yet [the school district] argues that students shed much of their freedom of speech even outside the schoolhouse gate, so long as their off-campus speech is reasonably expected to reach campus."
Police Officers Brutally Beat an Undercover Cop During the St. Louis Protests. A Jury Declined To Hold Them Accountable.
Luther Hall was assaulted so severely he required a spinal fusion.
The Bump Stock Ban Highlights the Danger of Letting Bureaucrats Invent Crimes
A federal appeals court rejects a highly implausible redefinition of machine guns.
Journal of Free Speech Law Pre-Call For Papers: Student Speech and Associational Privacy,
in light of the Supreme Court's forthcoming Mahanoy and Americans For Prosperity cases.
Cops Tried To Force a Man To Delete a Video of Them Beating a Suspect. They Got Qualified Immunity.
The officers knowingly violated the First Amendment, said the court. But that doesn't matter.
Arkansas Lawmakers Interfere in Trans Teens' Medical Choices
A blanket ban on medical procedures for minors is not a prescription for human liberty.
25-Foot Rooftop Videocamera Peering Into Neighbor's Yard Must Be Taken Down
Sounds right to me.
New York City Ends Qualified Immunity for Police Officers
It is the first city in the U.S. to do so.
Pronouns in the University Classroom & the First Amendment
A federal appellate court lets a professor's First Amendment claim go forward, in an opinion that powerfully protects faculty academic freedom more broadly.
Trump's Bump Stock Ban Just Lost Big in Federal Court
“It is not the role of the executive—particularly the unelected administrative state—to dictate” the terms of criminal law, said the 6th Circuit.
Abolishing the Filibuster Is About Power, Not Anti-Racism
Even Joe Biden and Barack Obama were willing to acknowledge this basic fact just a few years ago.
Senator Elizabeth Warren Channels Her Inner Trump
Threatening government action to stop "snotty tweets" is not a good look.
Outrage Over Handcuffed Children Leads States To Consider Raising Minimum Age of Arrest
In 28 states, there's no minimum age for arresting kids.
Florida Cops Sued for Hassling People Over Crimes They Might Commit in the Future
Predictive policing lets authorities add a science-y gloss to hammering people who rub them the wrong way.
Divided Sixth Circuit Panel Rejects Chevron Deference for Interpretation of Criminal Statute
A long awaited decision in a challenge to the Trump Administration's "bump stock" ban tees up some interesting questions for the High Court's review.
The Media's Obsession With Boulder's Blocked 'Assault Weapon' Ban Defies Logic
The suggestion that the ordinance could have prevented Monday's mass shooting is utterly implausible.
No, It's Not Easier To Get a Rifle Than Vote
This awful gun control talking point won’t go away.
