Federal Judge Rules Utah City Violated First Amendment by Denying Drag Show Permit
A Utah-based drag show group will be permitted to host an all-ages drag show at a public park in the city of St. George, a federal judge ruled June 16, stating the city discriminated against the group and its protected speech.
Tennessee’s Anti-Drag Law is ‘Unconstitutionally Vague,’ Federal Judge Rules
A federal judge found Tennessee’s anti-drag law unconstitutional June 2, ruling it violates the First Amendment right to freedom of speech.
Disney Sues DeSantis Claiming Retaliation for Denouncing Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill
Disney sued Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis April 26, claiming the governor and the legislature “orchestrated” a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” after the company issued a public statement opposing the Parental Rights in Education bill, widely dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Updated: Resident Sues Minnesota City For Prohibitions On Filming In Public Parks
On September 2nd, the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota ruled that a Bloomington, MN city ordinance banning photography and video recording in a public park violates the First Amendment.
Revisiting New York Times v. Sullivan in the Age of Disinformation
Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch are urging the court to revise New York Times v. Sullivan to curtail the spread of false information. Utah University Law Professor RonNell Andersen Jones thinks they are both barking up the wrong tree.
Utah Police Arrest Woman for Stomping on Pro-Police Flag
A Utah Police officer is charging a 19-year-old woman with a hate crime for “stomping on a ‘Back the Blue’ sign” while “smirking in an intimidating manner,” The Salt Lake Tribune reported on July 9th. The woman could face up to a year in prison or a fine of up to $2,500 for allegedly destroying stolen property “in a manner to attempt to intimidate law enforcement.”
Supreme Court Rules that Student’s Off-Campus Speech Is Protected By the First Amendment
In an 8-1 decision on June 23rd, the Supreme Court ruled that a student’s off-campus speech was protected by the First Amendment. The case, Mahanoy Area School District v B.L., involves a message posted on Snapchat by a then-14 year old student identified as “B.L.”, after she learned she failed to advance from the junior varsity to the varsity cheerleading squad. The message, posted on a Saturday afternoon when she was off-campus, stated, in part, “f*** cheer, f***everything.”
Pennsylvania Police Chief Resigns After Threatening Facebook Critic with Arrest
A police chief in Pennsylvania has pleaded guilty to a federal civil rights violation for threatening to arrest a private citizen unless he removed Facebook posts that criticized the chief. According to a document obtained by The New York Times, Buglio pled guilty on May 25th to “one count of deprivation of civil rights under color of law and agreed to resign from his position within 10 days of his plea agreement."