First Amendment

Read the latest news stories on first amendment rights on Newser.com

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Va. Court Voids Spam Law
Va. Court Voids Spam Law
Sep 12, 2008 1:32 PM CDT

Va. Court Voids Spam Law

Statute violated First Amendment rights; man who sent 10M emails daily can go free

(Newser) - Virginia’s anti-spam laws are unconstitutional because they prohibit behavior shielded by the First Amendment, the state’s supreme court ruled today. The ruling overturns the conviction of Jeremy Jaynes, who received the nation’s first felony spam conviction in 2004, the Richmond Times-Dispatch says. Prosecutors alleged Jaynes sent up...

Seinfeld Defense: Lawsuits are Funny

Sez silly suits are fodder for routine

(Newser) - Jerry Seinfeld insisted yesterday that he didn’t slander a woman suing his wife for cookbook plagiarism because silly lawsuits are fodder for good comedy. The comic cited episodes from Seinfeld as well as his kid-friendly Bee Movie in a court filing as examples of the First Amendment-protected comedic license...

Maryland Cops Spied on Peaceniks

Activists branded terrorists & drug dealers

(Newser) - Groups opposing the death penalty and the war in Iraq were infiltrated and spied on by undercover Maryland State Police officers, according to police logs obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union. Some activists were placed on terrorist and drug trafficking databases with no evidence they were involved in any...

Teenagers Have Rights, Too
Teenagers Have Rights, Too
Opinion
Jul 12, 2008 7:10 PM CDT

Teenagers Have Rights, Too

Schools shouldn't use high court ruling to silence 'disruptive' students

(Newser) - "Teenagers have constitutional rights." That shouldn’t be controversial, but several schools are in court arguing that the First Amendment doesn't apply to students, writes Frank LoMonte in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Morse v. Frederick set a precedent last year, when Supreme Court judges ruled that students could be...

Philly Guides Seek Liberty From Licensing Law

Test requirement violates First Amendment, guides argue

(Newser) - Three tour guides in the cradle of democracy are taking the city to court over a law they say tramples on their constitutional rights, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. The law compels Philadelphia guides to pay a fee and take a test to get a tour license—and the plaintiffs argue...

Hate Speech: Is US Protection Too Broad?

Free speech protections increasingly at odd with European model

(Newser) - Several years ago American conservative journalist Mark Steyn published a piece denigrating Islam in Maclean's, the leading newsweekly in Canada. While its tone was sharp, its content was no more inflammatory than the material in American rightwing publications. But now Maclean's is facing trial for publishing hate speech, writes Adam...

Justices Don't Buy MLB's Fantasy Pitch

Using players' real names in for-profit leagues is free speech, Supreme Court rules

(Newser) - The Supreme Court refused today to hear an appeal by Major League Baseball against a ruling that allowed fantasy sports leagues to use real players' names and stats without paying a licensing fee, the Los Angeles Times reports. MLB contended such leagues shouldn't "exploit players' identity for commercial gain;...

Swiss Bank Drops Wikileaks Lawsuit
Swiss Bank Drops Wikileaks Lawsuit
Mar 6, 2008 3:32 PM CST

Swiss Bank Drops Wikileaks Lawsuit

Case of posted documents raised free-speech issues

(Newser) - The Swiss bank that sued over private documents posted on Wikileaks.org has withdrawn the motion, the AP reports. Bank Julius Baer did not say why it pulled the case, but the cease-fire brings an end to a case that raised First Amendment questions when a judge ordered the site...

Wikileaks Judge Reverses His Own Injunction

In 'oops!' moment, jurist says original ruling was likely unconstitutional

(Newser) - The judge who (tried to) shut down Wikileaks by issuing an injunction against the whistleblowing site has changed his mind and lifted the order, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Judge Jeffrey White said his original order, designed to protect a Swiss Bank's information, raised "serious questions of prior restraint...

Wikileaks.org Closing Doesn't Secure Bank's Client Info

Privacy groups file to intervene in case

(Newser) - Legal action resulting in the closing of whistleblower site Wikileaks.org has backfired for the Swiss bank that sought to protect confidential information about their clients, the AP reports. Popular outrage over the closing of the site over its posting of documents from Bank Julius Baer has cause the widespread...

Outcry Over Leak Site Closure Order
Outcry Over Leak Site Closure Order
Feb 20, 2008 1:04 PM CST

Outcry Over Leak Site Closure Order

Privacy, 1st Amendment advocates fume over judge's decision

(Newser) - Privacy and First Amendment advocates are fuming after a judge ordered an entire website shut down in response to a lawsuit. Wikileaks.org had allowed whistleblowers to anonymously post confidential documents, reports ComputerWorld. A critic calls closing down the whole website in response to a Swiss bank's complaint "like...

Cheney Resists Testifying in 'Attack' Lawsuit

Alleged attacker wants veep to clear up encounter in court

(Newser) - A man collared on suspicion of assaulting Dick Cheney two years ago wants the veep to testify in court—but is it likely? Cheney would only have to if his testimony is unobtainable by other means, one expert said—exactly what Cheney's lawyer argued last week in court. But one...

ABC Faces Hefty FCC Fine for Bare Bottom

Stiff penalty a sign that group is reviving its anti-indecency crusade

(Newser) - The airing of a woman’s bare bottom almost five years ago could cost ABC $1.43 million, if the FCC gets its way. The media watchdog levied the maximum penalty last night against the Disney-owned broadcaster for a 2003 episode of NYPD Blue. The stiff penalty is a sign...

Facebook Court Defeat May Presage a Fall
Facebook Court Defeat May Presage a Fall
OPINION
Dec 2, 2007 1:38 PM CST

Facebook Court Defeat May Presage a Fall

Zuckerberg's attempted censorship 'a major fumble', says columnist

(Newser) - Facebook has been handed a defeat in its attempts to censor the independent Harvard alumni magazine 02138, which published confidential court documents relating to founder Mark Zuckerberg's earlier work for a rival site. That's a good thing, says Kara Swisher of the Wall Street Journal, for whom the attempted injunction...

Anti-Gay Church Ordered to Pay Dead Marine's Family $11M

Jury says protests violate privacy

(Newser) - A fundamentalist Kansas church has been ordered to pay $11 million to the father of a Marine killed in Iraq after a jury decided that anti-gay church protesters violated the family's privacy. Members of Westboro Baptist Church routinely wave anti-gay posters at soldiers' funerals because they claim the war is...

Rudy Would Outdo W on Power Grab
Rudy Would Outdo W on
Power Grab
Oct 30, 2007 12:51 PM CDT

Rudy Would Outdo W on Power Grab

Record shows Hizzoner had little patience for checks and balances

(Newser) - Rudy Giuliani’s record in New York shows a leadership philosophy built on overlooking rules, says Washington Monthly’s Rachel Morris. Should the GOP frontrunner end up in the Oval Office, he would seize even more executive power than his assertive predecessor, Morris predicts.

AT&T Backs Off Controversial Service Terms

Telecom's ToS had forbidden customers from criticizing it

(Newser) - Under an ironic firestorm of criticism for what some termed a First Amendment violation, AT&T has updated its controversial Terms of Service policy to allow users to criticize the telecom giant. The original terms stated that it reserved the right to cancel the account of those who "damaged...

Prisoners Sue Over Religious Book Limits

In the wake of post-9/11 crackdown, First Amendment concerns arise

(Newser) - The removal of  hundreds of thousands of  religious books  from federal prison libraries is drawing fire—not just from inmates, but from chaplains and other religious leaders. In the wake of 9/11, the Bureau of Prisons issued an approved list of religious books for institutions it controls, the Times reports,...

Letting It All Hang Out? Bill Would Put It All Back In

Atlanta proposal calls saggy pants "major concern;" ACLU claims "racial profiling"

(Newser) - Young men will want to hike up their sagging pants, and women cover up bra straps and exposed thongs if Atlanta’s City Council adopts a proposal to amend the city’s indecency laws, the Journal-Constitution reports. The measure, which would fine violators for exposing boxer shorts, thongs and bras,...

How to Shut Protesters Up: A White House Guidebook

ACLU lawsuit forces release of manual

(Newser) - A lawsuit sparked by two protesters wearing anti-Bush T-shirts has forced the White House to reveal its guidebook on dealing with dissenters, the Washington Post reports. The manual calls for a "protest area" separate from event sites and roaming "rally squads" to drown out demonstrators who infiltrate the...

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