Eugene Volokh is the Thomas M. Siebel Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford, and the Gary T. Schwartz Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus and Distinguished Research Professor at UCLA School of Law. Naturally, his posts here (like the opinions of the other bloggers) are his own, and not endorsed by any institution.
Eugene Volokh
Latest from Eugene Volokh
MIT "Could Not Tolerate That a Scientist Be Permitted to Speak About His Uncontroversial Research"
"after daring to express unrelated views that, although controversial, happen to be held by a majority of the American public."
Former Oklahoma U Volleyball Player's First Amendment Claim Can Go Forward
Kylee McLaughlin is claiming coaches engaged in "pressure and retaliation ... due to her political beliefs and her reactions to claims of racism," because of the coaches' "political or social justice beliefs, including support for critical race theory, opposition to President Trump, and a belief that white persons like plaintiff are privileged and racist."
California Offering COVID Boosters to 50-to-64-Year-Olds in "Communities of Color"
How about communities of pallor? Looks like they'll have to figure out that they should claim "increased risk due to social inequity."
Victory for WMU Student Athletes with Religious Objections to Vaccination
Western Michigan University mandated vaccinations for participation in team sports (but not for students generally); it said religious exemption requests would be available on a case-by-case basis; but then apparently categorically denied them.
Thursday Open Thread
What's on your mind?
Ohio Court Refused to Block Stephanie Grisham from Repeating Allegations Against Congressional Candidate, Ex-Trump Staffer Max Miller
Miller had asked the court to issue a temporary restraining order; no, said Judge Emily Hagan (Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas).
Emerson College Suspends Student Group for Distributing "China Kinda Sus" Stickers
Criticism of a foreign country (or at least this foreign country) is now apparently forbidden by Emerson.
Interesting Unsealing Decision in NXIVM Sex Cult Case
Supportive letters submitted by the defendant at sentencing can’t remain secret.
Hostage Negotiations, Marijuana, and Police Officers' Rights in Disciplinary Proceedings
An interesting decision under the North Carolina's unusual constitutional provision protecting people's right to "the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor."
"The Court's Business Is Done in Public"
"regardless whether the motion [to seal] is opposed or unopposed."
Denials of Professional Licenses Based on Past Social Media Posts
Joshua Gray was denied a Maine private investigator license on the ground that his past posts erred in criticizing a Maine State Police lieutenant; we’ve filed an amicus brief supporting the petition asking the Supreme Court to review the matter.
Ex-Wife Criminally Punished for Talking to Newspaper About Her Police Sergeant Ex-Husband
The court concluded that the conversation violated a previous order barring the ex-wife "from making any other public allegations against the Petitioner, Joe Stark, on social media (on any platform) or to his employer which may affect Petitioner's reputation or employment."
Does Auto Insurance Policy Cover Spreading STD When Having Sex in a Car?
And can the parties remain pseudonymous in the lawsuit related to this?
Black Lives Murdered
U.S. homicides increased nearly 30% from 2019 to 2020. Homicides of blacks spiked even more, making up 56% of the victims whose race was known instead of 53% in 2019. This amounted to over 2000 extra yearly deaths among blacks.
"What If Trigger Warnings Don't Work?"
"New psychological research suggests that trigger warnings do not reduce negative reactions to disturbing material—and may even increase them."
Thursday Open Thread
What's on your mind?
Draft of Proposed Amicus Brief in Anti-Libel Injunction / Society for Creative Anachronism Case
Should I file it in a Gothic font?
The First Amendment and Restrictions on "Off-Site" Signs
Here’s an amicus brief our UCLA First Amendment Amicus Brief Clinic just filed, on behalf of the Cato Institute.
N.J. Court: Newark May Impose Employee Vaccine Mandate Without Negotiating with Union
The appellate court reversed a Public Employment Relations Commission, which had partly restrained the implementation of the mandate.
"Must SCOTUS Injunctions Abide By Precedent?"
A very interesting post by my former colleague (now at the University of Virginia) Richard Re.
"I Eat Ass" Bumper Sticker Might Be Obscene and Thus Constitutionally Unprotected
So holds a district court, concluding that the law is unclear enough that a police officer was entitled to qualified immunity based on his arresting a man for the sticker.
Sheriff Violated First Amendment by Ordering Teen to Take Down Post Saying She Had COVID
“Defendants may have preferred to keep Marquette County residents ignorant to the possibility of COVID-19 in their community for a while longer, so they could avoid having to field calls from concerned citizens, but that preference did not give them authority to hunt down and eradicate inconvenient Instagram posts.”
