First Amendment

9th Circuit to Employers: Don’t Look at Workers’ Text Messages

Venturing into what a federal appeals court panel described as a new frontier of electronic communications law, the San Francisco-based 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decided today that employers have no right to read their employees’ text messages without their consent. Plus, even if employers pay for the service,…

Jun 18, 2008 10:03 PM CDT

Lawyer Seeks Cert for Football Players Booted Off Team for Petition Drive

High school football players booted off a team for a petition drive against their coach are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their First Amendment case. Three of the students on the Jefferson County, Tenn., football team were not allowed to play after they circulated a petition criticizing coach…

Jun 18, 2008 5:18 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Libel Suit Against Appeals Judge Gets Tossed

A lawyer’s libel suit against a federal appeals judge has been tossed out of court. U.S. District Judge Dora Irizarry of Brooklyn dismissed the suit against Judge Robert Katzmann of the New York City-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the New York Law Journal reports. Irizarry said Katzmann was…

Jun 17, 2008 3:48 PM CDT

Judges Barring Loaded Words in Criminal Cases

Judges in criminal trials are barring loaded words, ranging from “rape” to “crime scene.” Joshua Marquis, vice president of the National District Attorneys Association, told the National Law Journal he’s gotten “a flood” of e-mails telling him of judges’ decisions to bar certain words. Banned terms include “homicide,” “drunk,” “victim,”…

Jun 16, 2008 11:58 AM CDT

Hate Speech Prosecuted in Other Countries, Including Canada

Hate speech about minorities and religions is protected by the First Amendment in this country. But elsewhere prosecutions are not that unusual. In Canada, the newsweekly Maclean’s was on trial last week before the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal for publishing a cover story that contends the popularity of Islam…

Jun 13, 2008 4:38 PM CDT

Avvo Petitions Illinois Supreme Court for Lawyer List

The lawyer rating website Avvo has filed a petition with the Illinois Supreme Court requesting a disk with information about all of the state’s lawyers. The website of the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission already contains information about the state’s 85,000 lawyers, but it has two limitations, the petition…

Jun 11, 2008 4:57 PM CDT

Lawyer Agrees to Reprimand for Blog Tirade About Judge

A Florida lawyer has agreed to a public reprimand and ended a First Amendment fight over his critical blog post calling a judge a witch. Sean Conway of Fort Lauderdale refused to comment for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on his decision to resolve his case. But his lawyer, Fred Haddad,…

Jun 11, 2008 10:42 AM CDT

Soon to be Playing at LA Federal Courthouse: Hard-Core Porn

Jurors at an ongoing federal trial in Los Angeles will soon be asked to watch some six hours of hard-core porn movies. Their mission: to determine whether the videotapes, some of which reportedly feature bestiality and defecation, have any literary, artistic or scientific value. If not, they will be asked…

Jun 10, 2008 10:46 PM CDT

ISPs to Block Child Porn in U.S., France

As a result of an ongoing probe by New York state authorities, three major Internet service providers have agreed to block access to the Web by groups that use the Web to share child pornography, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced today. Although it is with just one state, the…

Jun 10, 2008 9:15 PM CDT

Appeals Court Throws Out Challenge to ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’

A federal appeals court has thrown out a lawsuit challenging the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, creating a circuit split. The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Congress is given the highest deference in regulating military affairs. The 2-1 opinion (PDF) issued yesterday in Pietrangelo v. Gates…

Jun 10, 2008 11:01 AM CDT

Critics Believe S.C. ‘I Believe’ License Plate Violates Constitution

Two groups are considering a lawsuit over South Carolina’s decision to offer drivers a license plate with a cross and the phrase “I believe.” The state passed a bill authorizing the plates on May 22, and it became law without the signature of Gov. Mark Sanford, the New York Times…

Jun 6, 2008 4:47 PM CDT

Porn Producer Convicted for Obscenity in Florida

An actor and producer who calls himself Max Hardcore was convicted of obscenity charges yesterday by federal jurors in Tampa, Fla. The producer, whose real name is Paul F. Little, was convicted of distributing obscene material on the Internet and through the mail, report the St. Petersburg Times and the…

Jun 6, 2008 3:29 PM CDT

SG Brief Mostly Avoids Four-Letter Words in Fleeting Expletives Case

Outgoing U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement tries to avoid two vulgarities in the so-called fleeting expletives case before the U.S. Supreme Court. A Supreme Court brief submitted by Clement uses the words in the statement of facts but then substitutes “F-Word” and “S-word,” SCOTUSblog reports. At issue is whether the…

Jun 6, 2008 2:41 PM CDT

Lawyer Walks Out of Hearing, Misses 10-Year Disbarment Recommendation

Anti-porn crusader Jack Thompson walked out of his discipline hearing yesterday after the judge refused to let him talk about his objection to the proceedings. The hearing then proceeded as bar counsel Sheila Tuma recommended that Thompson be disbarred for at least 10 years for disciplinary violations, the Daily Business…

Jun 5, 2008 2:47 PM CDT

Reporter Takes 5th in R. Kelly Case; Judge Says He Must Still Provide Notes

A reporter for a Chicago newspaper isn’t headed to jail, because he had a right to take the Fifth Amendment to avoid testifying in the child pornography trial of R&B singer R. Kelly, according to the judge. However, the First Amendment and a claimed reporter’s privilege, which Jim DeRogatis also…

Jun 4, 2008 6:47 PM CDT