Archive | Freedom of Speech

He loses, in Hupp v. Freedom Communications, Inc. (Cal. Ct. App. Nov. 17, 2013), and will likely have to pay the defendant’s attorney fees to boot (under the California anti-SLAPP statute). Plaintiff Paul Hupp’s claim was that the Orange County Register “violated its user agreement ‘by making public comments and not removing said comment about […]

From an East Haven, Ct. Police Department press release: On October 22, 2013, Angelo Appi (DOB 1-3-1967) turned himself into the East Haven Police Department on an arrest warrant charging him with Breach of Peace in the Second Degree. The arrest warrant originated from an incident that took place the previous day in which Appi […]

The case is today’s Ex parte Lo (Tex. Ct. Crim. App. Oct. 30, 2013) — from Texas’ highest criminal court — and the provisions truck down is Tex. Penal Code § 33.021(b): A person who is 17 years of age or older commits an offense if, with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual […]

Special Agent John Dodson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) wants to publish a book about the the “Fast & Furious” scandal.  ATF, like many federal agencies, has a policy limiting outside employment opportunities.  At the very least, this policy means that Dodson needs ATF approval if he wants to get paid […]

So begins Expressions Hair Design v. Schneiderman (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 3, 2013): Under the most plausible interpretation of that section, if a vendor is willing to sell a product for $100 cash but charges $102 when the purchaser pays with a credit card, the vendor risks prosecution if it tells the purchaser that the vendor is […]

So holds today’s State v. Final Exit Network, Inc. (Minn. Ct. App. Sept. 30, 2013). The court concluded that the statute “criminalizes any and all expressions of support, guidance, planning, or education to people who want to end their own lives, whether from a public platform, such as a book, or in the private setting […]

I’m delighted to report that the new UCLA First Amendment Amicus Brief Clinic has filed its first brief, on behalf of the Cato Institute, in Edwards v. D.C. (D.C. Cir.). My students Charles Linehan, Jun Shimizu, and Scott Sia worked on the brief, and my coblogger Erik Jaffe was kind enough to serve as Counsel […]

So holds today’s Bland v. Roberts (4th Cir. Sept. 18, 2013), I think correctly. The trial court had held that “[s]imply liking a Facebook page … is not the kind of substantive statement that has previously warranted constitutional protection,” but the court of appeals disagreed: On the most basic level, clicking on the “like” button […]