FIRST AMENDMENT COALITION

Antiwar website says it was spied on by FBI

Dick Rogers — Wed, 22 May 2013 01:01:52 +0000

A lawsuit in San Francisco federal court seeks documents showing that the FBI has conducted secret surveillance on an antiwar website operated by two Bay Area men. The suit asserts that the FBI began targeting antiwar.com a decade ago and has documents indicating it considered the site a threat to national security. While the suit [...]

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Court upholds paper’s right to publish minor’s name

Dick Rogers — Wed, 22 May 2013 00:26:30 +0000

A California appellate court has ruled that newspapers have a constitutional right to publish the names of children who suffer abuse, as long as the name is newsworthy. According to the Sacramento Bee, the decision in favor of the Redding Record Searchlight upheld a ruling in Shasta County Superior Court. Full story

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Furor over naming reporter as co-conspirator in leak case

donal brown — Tue, 21 May 2013 19:00:39 +0000

On the heels of news that the Justice Department seized phone records of Associated Press reporters, the Obama administration has further roiled the press with the revelation that a Fox News reporter was named in a court affidavit as a co-conspirator in the leak of classified information on North Korean missile activity. The case centered [...]

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A&A: School district denies all complaint related CPRA requests

1stamendmnt — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:00:58 +0000

Q: According to Title 5, California Code of Regulations, Section 4630: “All parties involved in allegations in a complaint shall be notified when a complaint is filed, when a complaint meeting or hearing is scheduled, and when a decision or ruling is made.” Allegations via the above code were filed against our family by parents [...]

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Federal appeals court hears case on Facebook ‘like’ as protected speech

donal brown — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:36:26 +0000

The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals heard arguments on whether a Facebook “like” should enjoy protection as free speech under the First Amendment. An employee of the Hampton, Virginia sheriff’s department was fired after clicking the “like” button on the sheriff’s political opponent’s Facebook page. (Bloomberg News, May 16, 2013, by Tom Schoenberg) A [...]

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A&A: Facebook comments deleted from Senator’s page

1stamendmnt — Mon, 20 May 2013 08:00:26 +0000

Q: I am wondering if it is legal or legitimate for a government official, for example a NYS Senator or U.S. Senator, to block me from commenting on what I presume to be their Facebook page that is managed by them or a government employee on government payroll time? I have had this happen to [...]

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Real outrage is that surveillance of AP reporters’ phone calls was probably legal

Peter Scheer — Mon, 20 May 2013 07:01:19 +0000

The real outrage about the Justice Department’s use of secret subpoenas for the phone records of Associated Press journalists is that, based on the information that has surfaced to date, it was probably legal. Under federal law the Justice Department needs only a subpoena–a piece of paper that a US Attorney generates unilaterally, without any [...]

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A&A: Can an individual publish a legal notice in a newspaper??

1stamendmnt — Fri, 17 May 2013 08:23:15 +0000

Q: Is there any legal reason why an individual would not be allowed to place a paid legal notice in a newspaper? The content is to inform the public about a woman being unlawfully tormented and hunted in the judicial system. A: I believe you are asking whether a newspaper that publishes legal notices is [...]

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Administration dives for cover in AP phone record incident

donal brown — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:58:14 +0000

Attorney General Eric Holder defended the seizure of Associated Press phone records in an investigation of leaks involving the CIA, saying that it was necessary to uphold national security. (The New York Times, May 14, 2013, by Charlie Savage and Scott Shane) But to insure that everyone believed their statements about the importance of free [...]

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Appeal in free speech case over graphic abortion images

donal brown — Tue, 14 May 2013 19:51:52 +0000

The Thomas Moore Society has filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a Colorado Supreme Court decision in a case in which an anti-abortion protester was ruled disruptive for displaying large photos of aborted fetuses near a Palm Sunday procession with about 200 children present. Some of the children were upset by [...]

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