Author: David L. Hudson Jr.
The Case of Manuel Duran Ortega Deserves Close Examination
While these criminal charges were dropped, local officials turned Duran Ortega over to the Department of Homeland Security. Duran Ortega left El Salvador in 2006 and escaped into the United States. He had to leave El Salvador because a rival television station convinced law enforcement in El Salvador to arrest him on trumped-up charges.
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Federal Appeals Court Rules Letter Possessed by Jailhouse Lawyer Not Protected Speech
A Wisconsin-based inmate did not have a First Amendment right to help another inmate draft a group petition, a federal appeals court has ruled. The decision is disturbing and shows the lack of respect that some courts have for inmates’ free-speech rights.
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Gay Rights Activist and Supreme Court Victor Left His Mark on the First Amendment
Raymond Wayne Hill, who passed away at the age of 78 on November 24, was known for his championing of gay rights causes and his social activism. He co-founded Houston’s first LGBTQ organization, helped to galvanize the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, and served as executive director of the Houston Human Rights League.
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Court Grants Preliminary Relief to Student Wearing T-shirts about Gun Ownership and Weapons
A public high school student in Wisconsin engaged in protected expression when he wore t-shirts with images of and messages about guns and gun ownership to his school, a federal
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Rhetorical Hyperbole Protects Free Speech
Rhetorical hyperbole is a concept important to the protection of free speech under the First Amendment. Many benefit from the principle, including protestors, sportswriters, editorialists and even the President of
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2018 State of First Amendment Survey Reveals People Believe in Media as Watchdog
The most encouraging part of the 2018 State of the First Amendment survey is the public’s embrace of the ideal of the media serving as the watchdog of a free
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Kentucky Inmate Loses Access to Courts Claim Based on Lack of Law Library and Legal Materials
A Kentucky inmate who alleged that a detention center’s lack of a law library and his inability to conduct independent legal research hindered his access to the courts lost his
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Court Majority Wisely Rejects Expansive Application of Professional Speech Doctrine
A positive development emerged from the Supreme Court’s invalidation of two compelled notices in a California law that required pro-life pregnancy centers to provide notices about the availability of abortion
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Golden Nuggets for Free-Expression Advocates in an Unusual Case
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Lozman v. City of Riviera Beach, Florida (17-21) has some golden nuggets for free-expression advocates even though at first glance the opinion might seem
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Supreme Court Reached the Right Result – But the Opinion Could Have Been Stronger
The U.S. Supreme Court reached the correct result in Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky (2018), striking down a supremely overbroad law that prohibited individuals from wearing political badges, political buttons,
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