Civil Liberties
"The New Taboo: Quoting Epithets in the Classroom and Beyond" Now Published
The article is co-written by Prof. Randall Kennedy (Harvard), a leading scholar of race and the law, and me.
A Ban on Menthol Cigarettes Will Lead to More Confrontations Between Black People and Police
If public health scolds get their way, they will worsen the nation’s overcriminalization problem.
Marco Rubio Echoes the Chinese Tyrants He Supposedly Hates
If you're going to attack Mark Zuckerberg for cozying up to Xi Jinping, maybe you should try harder not to sound like a Chinese dictator.
SCOTUS Just Agreed To Hear a Major New Second Amendment Case
The Supreme Court will hear arguments next term in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Corlett.
Warrantless Border Searches Draw Call for Supreme Court Action
The feds say they can paw through your phone and laptop any time you enter or leave the country.
A Sanctuary State of the Right
Montana's new law refusing to help enforce federal gun restrictions is similar to liberal "sanctuary cities'" refusal to assist in federal immigration enforcement. Both are protected by Constitution.
"President Trump, Justice Thomas, and the Future of Social Media": A National Constitution Center Podcast Episode,
with Center head Jeffrey Rosen; Katie Fallow, senior staff attorney at the Knight First Amendment Institute; and me.
Dr. Luke Isn't a Public Figure for Purposes of His Libel Lawsuit Against Ke$ha
So the New York intermediate appellate court held yesterday, by a 3-2 vote.
Americans Can't Agree About How Often Mass Shootings Occur, Let Alone the Right Policy Response
A new RAND analysis shows how difficult it is to answer basic questions about this rare variety of homicide.
REAL ID Deadlines Threaten America's Post-COVID Travel Plans. Could We Please Kill This Law?
More than half of Americans don’t have these new licenses. Airports are supposed to start checking them by October.
Biden's Plan to Stop Ghost Guns Is Doomed To Fail
"There's this growing gap between what's on paper and what is enforceable in law," says Kareem Shaya, the co-founder of Open Source Defense.
Tim Scott Is Proposing a Major Reform to Qualified Immunity
The GOP has resisted reining in the doctrine. That might change.
Duty to Retreat and Duty to Comply with Demands
If you support the duty to retreat (before using deadly force), what do you think of the duty to "comply[] with a demand ... [to] abstain from performing an act"?
Experts Agree That Outdoor Post-Vaccination Masking Is Useless
Plus: U.S. approves sanctions on Myanmar's state-run businesses, Howard University dissolves its classics department, and more...
The Chauvin Verdict Is a Reminder That We Still Need To Abolish Qualified Immunity
Most victims of police misconduct never get to take their cases to court.
Lawmakers Look To Stop the Feds From Secretly Buying Your Private Data
A 2018 Supreme Court decision was supposed to protect your location data from federal snooping. That’s not what happened.
Myanmar Protests Show an AR-15 Will Protect a Lot More Freedom than a Slingshot
If small arms can’t defeat a modern military, why are the people of Myanmar so determined to fight for freedom?
3/4 of States Are Now Stand Your Ground; only 12 Are Duty to Retreat
But what exactly do these terms mean?
NYT: Tech Crackdowns Are Only Bad When Other Countries Do Them
By invoking the magic of good intentions, the Times justifies the U.S. acting like Russia and China.
"Retroactive" Liability after Barr v. AAPC
Judge Stephanos Bibas "does not see how" he can follow the plurality opinion
Social Media Platforms as Common Carriers?
An interesting conversation I had with UMass law professor (and associate dean) Shaun Spencer, organized by the UMass Law Federalist Society.
Montana Becomes Latest State To Protect Free Speech With the FORUM Act
Now 14 states have legislation explicitly protecting free speech on campus.
The Government Loves To Grab New Powers in the Name of Your Safety
From protests to the coronavirus, it thinks it can protect you from anything.
The Indianapolis Shooting Highlights the Shortcomings of 'Red Flag' Laws
Although police seized the perpetrator's shotgun when he was deemed suicidal, he was never identified as a potential murderer.
Can Schools Punish Kids for Off-Campus Snapchats?
"The notion that a school can discipline a student for that kind of...non-harassing expression is contrary to our First Amendment tradition."
Court Refuses to Seal Case That Plaintiff Wanted to Hide from Potential Employers
Unsurprisingly, the court also refuses to order private caselaw repositories and search engines to hide the information.
Do Mass Shootings Inspire More Mass Shootings? If So, What Can Be Done About That?
Both advocates and skeptics of the copycat theory recommend self-restraint by the news media.
Florida's 'Anti-Rioting' Bill Gives the Government New Powers That Have Nothing to Do With Riots
Among other things, it calls for online censorship to shield identities of public officials and lets the governor control city police budgets.
China Censors the Oscars To Block a Hong Kong Protest Film
Documentary short Do Not Split draws the ire of Beijing.
HHS Blames Trump Policy for 180,000 Unplanned Pregnancies
Plus: Clarity on Adam Toledo's death, Big Tech antitrust bill approved by House Democrats, and more...
Pharma Co. Demands Preliminary Injunction to Take Down Anesthesiology Journal Articles
Pacira Biosciences' redacted brief supporting the motion for the preliminary injunction is now available—but it says nothing about the First Amendment, or about how the injunction could escape the prior restraint doctrine.
Conservatives Embrace Their Own 'Wokeness' With Attacks on Private Businesses
Remember when Republicans believed private businesses had a right to exercise free speech?
Pharma Co. Suing American Society of Anesthesiologists, Seeking Removal of Criticisms in Anesthesiology Journal + Retraction
Pacira Biosciences, Inc. is suing over allegedly "false and misleading statements made about EXPAREL, a pain medication drug."
Threat of Frivolous but Reputation-Damaging Lawsuit Can Be Criminal Extortion,
if it's used as an attempt to get a settlement, the Ninth Circuit rules .
3 Reasons Why Banning 'Assault Weapons' Is a Terrible Idea
A ban won’t stop mass shootings, but it will hinder self-defense.
When Everything Is 'Systemic Racism,' People Will Tune Out the Term
Leveling that grave accusation at every aspect of American life will produce disengagement, alienation, and reaction.
More Than A Dozen States Are Trying To Nullify Federal Gun Control
Conservative state legislators are taking a page from the playbook of pro-immigration activists and the marijuana legalization movement.
