First Amendment

Court Upholds Order Keeping Lawyer Away From Ex-Judge

A California lawyer will have to stay at least 100 yards away from the judge who handled his divorce under a restraining order upheld yesterday by an appeals court. Lawyer James Disney of Concord had appealed the order, contending it violated his freedom of speech and right to practice law,…

Oct 25, 2007 2:25 PM CDT

Appeals Clerk Explains Why Details of Alleged FBI Coercion Withdrawn from Opinion

The federal appeals court clerk who asked blogger Howard Bashman to take down an opinion from his How Appealing site because of security concerns has told the Washington Post the ruling was not withdrawn at the request of the Justice Department or FBI. The opinion by the New York City-based…

Oct 25, 2007 10:40 AM CDT

Court Upholds Sex Stings Using Undercover Cops in Chat Rooms

A federal appeals court has upheld the conviction of a man snared in a sexual predator sting, saying the statute used to convict him did not impermissibly suppress his right to engage in fantasy speech. The defendant, Frank Gagliardi, was arrested while waiting in his car to meet two 13-year-olds,…

Oct 23, 2007 6:12 PM CDT

Two Cases Challenge Clampdown on Terrorism Talk

The First Amendment is being cited in two cases challenging the government’s attempt to bar controversial Muslim views from being voiced here. “The question before the judges considering the two cases is thus a difficult one,” Adam Liptak writes in his Sidebar column for the New York Times. “What role…

Oct 22, 2007 6:02 PM CDT

Charges Dropped Against Weekly That Revealed Grand Jury Subpoena

Prosecutors have dropped charges against two media executives arrested Thursday night for publishing a story in the Phoenix New Times that revealed details of a grand jury subpoena. Maricopa County, Ariz., Attorney Andrew Thomas said he had no prior knowledge of the arrests of New Times founders Michael Lacey and…

Oct 22, 2007 11:12 AM CDT

Media Execs Arrested for Revealing Grand Jury Subpoenas

Updated: Two executives who founded an alternative weekly newspaper were arrested last night for publishing a story in The Phoenix New Times that revealed grand jury secrets. They were released by 4 a.m. this morning, according to the Phoenix New Times blog, which continues to post updates. A lawyer for…

Oct 19, 2007 1:56 PM CDT

Judge Is Bad-Guy Film Role for Floyd Abrams

First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams has a role as a judge who sends a journalist to jail for refusing to reveal her sources in an upcoming film called Nothing But the Truth. Abrams might consider himself to be playing the bad guy. In real life he represented New York Times…

Oct 18, 2007 6:03 PM CDT

Fantasy Baseball Stats Protected by First Amendment

A fantasy baseball league does not need a license to run online games, a federal appeals court has ruled. The St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the use of the athletes’ names and statistics is protected by the First Amendment, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. “The information…

Oct 17, 2007 4:26 PM CDT

House Passes Reporter Shield Bill

The White House has threatened to veto legislation that passed the House yesterday to protect reporters’ confidential sources. The bill would protect journalists from having to reveal their sources in federal cases unless the information is needed to prevent terrorism or harm to national security, the Associated Press reports. In…

Oct 17, 2007 12:31 PM CDT

Judge Who Won Libel Verdict Defends Ethics Charge

A judge who won a $2.1 million libel verdict against the Boston Herald choked up as he defended himself on ethics charges that he used court stationery to demand even more money to conclude the case. The Massachusetts Commission on Judicial Conduct has accused Judge Ernest Murphy of using court…

Oct 16, 2007 3:47 PM CDT

Group Seeks Access to Sealed Beer Vendor Settlement

The consumer group Public Citizen is seeking to unseal a settlement in a suit by the family of a 10-year-old girl who was paralyzed in a crash with a drunken Giants football fan. The parties settled after an appeals court overturned a $105 million verdict against a stadium vendor that…

Oct 16, 2007 3:26 PM CDT

IL Requires Silence at Start of School Day

The Illinois Legislature has approved a law requiring a moment of silence at the beginning of the school day. Lawmakers acted to override a veto by Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who said the law could erode the separation between church and state, the Chicago Tribune reports. The law is likely to…

Oct 12, 2007 2:51 PM CDT

IL Chief Justice Settles Libel Case

The chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court has settled his libel suit against a Chicago suburban newspaper for a reported $3 million. The agreement settles ongoing litigation after a $7 million libel verdict for Justice Robert Thomas against the Kane County Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune reports. The Chronicle also…

Oct 12, 2007 2:35 PM CDT

Lawyer’s TV Ad Claims Rival is Nonlawyer

A Texas personal injury lawyer has paid for TV ads asserting that a partner in a Corpus Christi law group is not a lawyer. The lawyer in the ad, Thomas Henry, has also filed a complaint with an unauthorized practice of law committee, Texas Lawyer reports. Henry wants a determination…

Oct 10, 2007 1:52 PM CDT

Feds Pursue Obscene in Sea of Porn

Created in response to pressure from conservative groups, a little-known federal task force is trying to hold the line on obscenity. It is targeting for prosecution a small number of fringe film producers in the nation’s booming pornography industry, focusing on movies that, although otherwise legal, may fall within the…

Oct 9, 2007 3:21 PM CDT