Michigan AG's #DetroitLeaks Takedown Demand, and Seditious Libel
The AG is threatening criminal prosecution because the videos allegedly contain "false and misleading information" about Michigan elections' vulnerability to fraud.
Civil Liberties
SCOTUS Considers Whether James King Has Any Recourse Against the Cops Who Choked and Beat Him for No Good Reason
According to the government, a law aimed at helping victims like King prevents him from holding his assailants accountable.
First, Sixth Amendments Require Allowing TV Coverage of Derek Chauvin Trial
So holds a Minnesota trial court, because ordinary public access is precluded as a result of the epidemic.
Even With a Biden Win, Portland's Protesters Vow to Keep Smashing Stuff
Portland’s protesters aren’t going to fade away after the election, but are they stuck in a rut?
The First Amendment and Mandated Creation of Computer Code
"Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that the code they must draft to comply with the Dealer Law communicates substantively with the user of the program" and thus implicates the First Amendment.
Michigan Voters Demand That Police Get Warrants for Electronic Data
Constitutional amendment overwhelmingly passes.
Not Libel to Defame a Pseudonymous Chat Group User …
so long as the user's true identity is unknown to the audience, and the pseudonym has no "legally cognizable independent reputation" (as when the pseudonym is used by an author to sell books).
Protests, Roadways, and Liability
(1) Black Lives Matter demonstrations. (2) Trump-fans-vs.-Biden-bus demonstrations.
12 Good Things That Might Happen Today, None of Which Involve Trump or Biden
American voters have the chance to usher in a few libertarian policies this election, courtesy of these state ballot measures.
In Texas, Wearing the Wrong Thing to the Polls Could Land You in Jail
A new lawsuit says the state's electioneering statutes violate the First Amendment.
The Guillotine Mystique
The French Revolution has long inspired progressive radicals ready for change at any cost.
Supreme Court Rejects Qualified Immunity Defense for the First Time in Years
The case doesn't make any change in legal doctrine. But it may be intended to send a message to lower courts.
Supreme Court Sends DeRay Mckesson Black Lives Matter Protest Case Down to the Louisiana Supreme Court
The Court avoids, at least for now, the First Amendment question by instructing the Fifth Circuit to ask the Louisiana Supreme Court to decide whether Louisiana state law even allows negligence liability in the case.
Snowden Announces Plans To Become Russian Citizen
The surveillance whistleblower has a child on the way and little sign a pardon is forthcoming.
Major Cities Spend Weekend Prepping for Possible Election Night Riots
Plus: Fate of Texas drive-thru ballots still uncertain, exposure to diverse news sources is up, Oregon may lessen penalties for possessing drugs, and more...
The Dangerous Lure of Political Violence
How seriously should we take the threats of protesters who recently built guillotines outside of Jeff Bezos' house?
How To Tell If You're Being Canceled
Kindly Inquisitors author Jonathan Rauch on the never-ending battle to defend free speech
Judge Whose A.G. Spouse Bashes Backpage Won't Recuse Herself From Backpage Trial
Judge Susan Brnovich said no reasonable person would question her impartiality just because her husband already says they're guilty.
Fifth Circuit Speaks Out Against Campus Speech Codes (in University of Texas Case)
Speech First, a pro-campus-free-speech advocacy group, can go on with its challenge to UT-Austin's speech codes—and the panel strongly suggests those codes (backed by anonymous reporting to the Campus Climate Response Team) are unconstitutional.
Protests and Looting Continue After Philadelphia Cops Fatally Shoot a Knife-Wielding Man Experiencing a 'Mental Crisis'
Walter Wallace's family says the officers could have defused the situation without using lethal force.
Published Criticism of Lawyer Isn't Retaliation Forbidden by Disability Law
"The Court cannot punish or hold Defendants liable merely for publishing a summary of Plaintiff's disciplinary action and their commentary about that decision."
Need Proof That Encryption Backdoors Lead to Hacking? It Happened to Our Own Government.
The National Security Agency arranged for security systems to be secretly compromised. Then the Chinese government allegedly found its way in.
A New Round of COVID-19 Restrictions Drives Illinois Eateries to Rebellion
Who could have predicted that intolerable rules won’t be tolerated?
Narcos TV Show Doesn't Infringe Virginia Vallejo's Memoir
A good illustration of a basic principle: Facts are not protected by copyright.
Criminal Libel Conviction Over Fake-Name Online Reviews
An interesting new case from Wisconsin.
Surprise: DOJ Is Not a Big Fan of Privacy-Preserving Cryptocurrencies
Privacy is a right, not a “high risk” and “possibly criminal” activity
Utah Legislator: If You Don't Want to Be Attacked by Police Dogs, 'Stay Home'
The state legislature is considering reforms in response to the use of dogs against cooperative suspects.
Zoom's Refusal to Host Events That Include Terrorist Group Leader Leila Khaled
Prof. Steven Lubet (Northwestern Pritzker School of Law) has an excellent analysis.
'This Building Has Caused More Problems Than It Solved'
Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos on schooling during COVID-19, the future of higher ed, and why her cabinet department probably shouldn't exist at all
Gossip About Real Housewives of Orange County "Bravolebrities" Is on "Public Issue"
So holds the California Court of Appeal, interpreting the California anti-SLAPP statute.
School District Bans All "Political Speech" on Student T-Shirts
Pretty clearly unconstitutional, it seems to me, whether applied to pro-Trump T-shirts (as in a recently-filed lawsuit) or to other such material.
Police Chief Gets Restraining Order Barring "Cop Watcher" from Publicly Videorecording Her
But the Oregon Court of Appeals rightly reverses.
Lawyer Dean Boland Asks Google to Deindex Court Opinions, Newspaper Articles, Blog Posts About Him
Including from Above The Law, Jonathan Turley, PopeHat, Simple Justice, TechDirt, Reuters, Bloomberg, L.A. Times, Cleveland Plain Dealer, and more.
