First Amendment News

California passed a law making it a misdemeanor to interfere with or harass those headed for vaccination clinics. The law creates a 30-foot buffer for protesters and prohibits them from passing out leaflets, holding up signs or counseling anyone without consent. (The Sacramento Bee, October 9, 2021, by Hannah Wiley) FAC’s David Snyder thinks the new law is unconstitutional in fostering content discrimination, and, with the 30-foot buffer, preventing even civil conversations about vaccines that

The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism is initiating a project to improve journalist’s coverage of global warming. “By providing its members with unique access to world-leading experts, professional forums for exchanging ideas with peers, and by connecting members with relevant scientists and research, the network will help reporters and editors think through the professional, organizational, and ethical questions journalism faces when it comes to climate coverage,” says the Reuters Institute, October 12, 2021.

The American Civil Liberties Union says a Second Amendment case set for U.S. Supreme Court review has important First Amendment ramifications. A New York law requires those registering for a concealed carry license to show a specific need for self-defense. The ACLU argues that limits on gun carrying in public spaces are constitutional and essential in making those spaces safe for assembly, association and free speech. (ACLU, October 1, 2021) Although the conservative majority of

Recently signed into law, California Senate Bill 98 gives journalists access to closed-off protests and prohibits law enforcement from obstructing journalists in working the events. Law enforcement may not arrest journalists for failure to disperse, violating curfew or resisting arrest. (Sacramento Bee, October 10, 2021, By Andrew Sheeler) The Los Angeles Society of Professional Journalists reported that during the last year there were over 50 incidents in California of journalists injured, detained or arrested. (Times

A Homeland Department Inspector General’s report found that the border patrol was not retaliating against journalists lawfully reporting on migrant caravans in 2018 and 2019. The report’s conclusion belied details in the report that showed harassment of journalists by border patrol personnel. (techdirt, October 5, 2021, by Tim Cushing) Daniel Lippman, Politico, September 23, 2021, concluded that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) placed lookouts on five journalists reporting on the caravans with the