Lion King Puppet Technician Arrested Over 3D-Printed Pistol at Theater
Ilya Vett claims he was making the gun as a "gift" for his brother. But he was still arrested and charged with attempted criminal possession of a firearm.
Civil Liberties
Google and Privatized Authoritarianism
The tech giant appears willing to do almost anything to win access to the vast Chinese market.
Would More Gun Control Lead to More Crime? A Debate
Criminologist Gary Kleck debated Paul Helmke, the former president and CEO of the Brady Center, at the Soho Forum.
House to Vote on 'Human Trafficking' Bill That Strengthens PATRIOT Act Spying
The PATRIOT Act fell out of fashion-but swap "human trafficker" for "terrorist" and let the civil liberties infringements roll!
From a 'Due Process' Perspective, the Brett Kavanaugh Hearing Will Be a Farce
"If this were a legal proceeding, many (if not all) of the members of the [Senate Judiciary Committee] would have to recuse themselves."
Debate: Corporate Data Collection Poses a Threat to Personal Freedom
There are lots of reasons to be concerned about government snooping, but how should we feel when private companies do it?
A Father Defends His Daughter with a Shotgun When Cops Break Into the Wrong House
"You got the wrong address. Don't shoot my daughter."
Criminal Libel Prosecution -- Under a Statute Struck Down 30 Years Before
A woman's case against the defendants who arranged the prosecution (a police department captain, who was her ex-husband and the target of her speech, and his friend who was a police investigator) can go forward.
Faisal Al Mutar Fights Radical Islam with Western Bestsellers
The head of Ideas Beyond Borders is translating books by Steven Pinker, Sam Harris, and others into Arabic and distributing them for free.
Birth Mother Ordered Not to Post Photo of Deceased Adopted Child
When she did post such a photo, she was arrested and prosecuted -- a remarkable case from two years ago, which I just learned about.
Government Boycotts Based on Companies' (and Their Employees') Speech
More on their unconstitutionality.
No, Government Boycotts of Nike Aren't Constitutional
The government may not discriminate against businesses because of the political views the business (or its spokesman) has expressed.
Twitter Should Punish Marco Rubio for Doxing a Miami Steakhouse Owner
Inviting followers to harass this man violates the platform's terms of service.
Newly Released Eric Holder Memo: Feds Can Use FISA to Spy on Journalists
And the guidelines for spying on journalists may be even looser under Trump.
Brett Kavanaugh Fans Try to Attack His Accuser, Go After the Wrong Christine Ford
The perils of poorly sourced stories
"The Schoolhouse Gate": The Unpopularity of Free Speech in Public Schools
The Supreme Court's decision in Tinker is viewed as the high-water mark for students' First Amendment rights, but Justice Black's strident dissent-not the majority-spoke for most Americans at the time.
E.U. Passes Censorship-Inducing Online Copyright Regulations
Online platforms will be subjected to a costly, easily-abused system that will likely pull down legal content.
In Constitution Day Speech, Betsy DeVos Says 'Government Muscle' Is Not the Answer to the Campus Free Speech Problem
"Solutions won't come from new laws from Washington, D.C., or from a speech police at the U.S. Department of Education."
Underground Entrepreneur Uses Library to Smuggle Guns to Canada
His enterprising operation illustrates the valuable role porous borders play in undermining restrictive laws.
Debate: Bakers Should Not Be Forced To Produce Cakes for Same-Sex Weddings
How should we feel about conscience-based discrimination?
Pot Is No More Relevant to the Shooting of Philando Castile Than It Is to the Shooting of Botham Jean
An NRA spokesperson correctly says marijuana is not "germane" to Jean's death but keeps bringing it up when discussing Castile's.
Snowden Validated: European Court Says the Mass Surveillance He Exposed Violates Privacy Rights
Since his whistleblowing, the United Kingdom has granted itself even more power to snoop on citizens.
Flashy Storefront Gun Ads Are Protected by the First Amendment, Says California Judge
Sen. Kamala Harris tried to limit the storefront speech of firearms sellers as California attorney general.
Brett Kavanaugh Calls Carpenter v. United States a 'Game Changer' on 4th Amendment Law
The Supreme Court nominee talks warrantless government surveillance with Sen. Patrick Leahy.
British Lawmaker Wants to Ban Your Private Facebook Groups Because She Worries You're Using Hate Speech
Bill also calls for holding forum moderators legally liable for extreme speech.
Pot Prohibition Makes Self-Defense Illegal
The case against Krissy Noble shows how drug and gun laws conspire to deprive people of a fundamental right.
California Ban on Handgun Ads at Gun Stores Violates First Amendment
So a federal judge just held.
ThinkProgress Accuses Facebook of Censorship After Conservative Factchecker Correctly Points Out an Error
"Brett Kavanaugh said he would kill Roe v. Wade last week." Except he didn't.
Then-Candidate Trump's Speech at Rally Wasn't Constitutionally Unprotected "Incitement" of Violence Against Protesters
So a Sixth Circuit panel just held, and it also concluded that the statements weren't actionable under Kentucky law.
Would Letting More People Carry Guns Reduce Crime?: Debate in NYC, 9/13
The next Reason/Soho Forum Debate pits criminologist Gary Kleck against former Brady Center To Prevent Gun Violence President Paul Helmke.
Connecticut Prosecution for Forgery of Court Order, Aimed at Getting Patch.com Article Altered or Deindexed
The defendant, Imani Pennant, reportedly said that there's a web site that helps people create such orders.
Beware the Press's Self-Serving Calls to Regulate Social Media
Demands for government oversight hide opportunism amid rhetoric about safety.
Who's Ready for an Obama Lecture About Trump?: Podcast
Critiquing an ex-president's warnings about anti-media rhetoric, non-voting, and unelected bureaucrats
Google Obeys Russia's Demand to Remove Putin Critic's YouTube Ads
An aide for the jailed dissident calls Google's actions "political censorship."
Right to Cross-Examine Witnesses in University Disciplinary Proceedings
The Sixth Circuit reaffirms this, including for sexual assault accusations, in a case against the University of Michigan; and the court also allows plaintiff to proceed with his claim that the process was biased against him because of his sex.
In Due Process Lawsuit, Appeals Court Sides with Michigan Student Expelled for Sexual Misconduct
If credibility is at stake, "the university must give the accused student or his agent an opportunity to cross-examine the accuser."
State Civil Protective Order Doesn't Preclude Federal Challenge to Criminal Harassment Statute
An interesting new Younger abstention case from the Ninth Circuit, arising in our challenge to Washington's very broad criminal harassment statute.
No, Trump Staffers Shouldn't Be Subject to a Lie Detector Dragnet to Find the 'Resistance' Mole
Rand Paul betrays his civil libertarian principles when he calls for using junk science to ferret out disloyalty.
Twitter Can Ban Alex Jones, But That Won't Stop Us from Talking About Him
Conspiracy theorist banned for "abusive behavior."
Dianne Feinstein Wants Brett Kavanaugh to 'Reconcile' His Second Amendment Reasoning With 'Hundreds of School Shootings' That Never Happened
The senator is miffed that the SCOTUS nominee thinks people have a right to own the guns she wants to ban.
Regulators Want to Know: Are Social Media Companies 'Intentionally Stifling' Conservatives?
The Department of Justice plans to look into whether social media platforms are "hurting competition and intentionally stifling the free exchange of ideas."
Grieving Parents' Policy Preferences Are Irrelevant to the Constitutionality of Gun Laws
Kamala Harris wants Brett Kavanaugh to give gun violence victims "a fair shake," by which she means adopting her view of the Second Amendment.
