WEATHER ALERT
Lawsuit filed over Florida bill that bans children under 14 from having social media accounts
Read full article: Lawsuit filed over Florida bill that bans children under 14 from having social media accountsThe Computer & Communications Industry Association announced that they have filed a lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of Florida’s HB3, the law that bans children under 14 from having social media accounts.
Amendment 4 backers sue Florida over letters as state officials target
Read full article: Amendment 4 backers sue Florida over letters as state officials targetA political committee leading efforts to pass a ballot proposal on abortion rights filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday alleging the state violated the First Amendment by threatening television stations over an ad supporting the measure.
Court weighs Florida’s teacher pronoun restrictions
Read full article: Court weighs Florida’s teacher pronoun restrictionsA federal appellate-court panel heard arguments Tuesday in a challenge to a Florida law requiring educators to use pronouns that align with their sex assigned at birth, in a case that has drawn national attention from the Biden administration, teachers unions and LGBTQ advocates.
TikTok compares itself to foreign-owned American news outlets as it fights forced sale or ban
Read full article: TikTok compares itself to foreign-owned American news outlets as it fights forced sale or banTikTok has pushed back on arguments that the popular social media platform is not shielded by the First Amendment.
He flipped off a trooper and got charged. Now this state is on the hook for $175,000
Read full article: He flipped off a trooper and got charged. Now this state is on the hook for $175,000Vermont has agreed to pay $175,000 to settle a lawsuit on behalf of a man who was charged with a crime for giving a state trooper the middle finger in 2018.
Secret Service head says RNC security plans not final as protesters allege free speech restrictions
Read full article: Secret Service head says RNC security plans not final as protesters allege free speech restrictionsThe head of the U.S. Secret Service says security plans for the Republican National Convention are still being determined as protesters blasted restrictions they claimed will violate free speech with just weeks until the event.
NRA can sue ex-NY official it says tried to blacklist it after Parkland shooting, Supreme Court says
Read full article: NRA can sue ex-NY official it says tried to blacklist it after Parkland shooting, Supreme Court saysThe Supreme Court has cleared the way for a National Rifle Association lawsuit against an ex-New York state official over claims she pressured companies to blacklist it following the 2018 Parkland, Florida, school shooting.
No hate crime charges filed against man who yelled racist slurs at Utah women's basketball team
Read full article: No hate crime charges filed against man who yelled racist slurs at Utah women's basketball teamA northern Idaho prosecutor won’t bring hate crime charges against an 18-year-old accused of shouting a racist slur at members of the Utah women’s basketball team while the team was in Idaho to attend the NCAA Tournament.
Judge blocks Florida teacher pronoun restriction
Read full article: Judge blocks Florida teacher pronoun restrictionA federal judge on Tuesday blocked Florida education officials from enforcing a law requiring a transgender teacher to use pronouns that align with her sex assigned at birth, saying the law violated her First Amendment rights.
Judge rejects Trump's First Amendment challenge to indictment in Georgia election case
Read full article: Judge rejects Trump's First Amendment challenge to indictment in Georgia election caseThe judge overseeing the Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump and others has rejected arguments by the former president that the indictment was seeking to criminalize political speech protected by the First Amendment.
Trump's team cites First Amendment in contesting charges in Georgia election interference case
Read full article: Trump's team cites First Amendment in contesting charges in Georgia election interference caseA lawyer for former President Donald Trump has argued that the charges against Donald Trump in the Georgia election interference case seek to criminalize political speech that the First Amendment protects.
Judge to weigh Florida’s school pronoun restrictions
Read full article: Judge to weigh Florida’s school pronoun restrictionsA federal judge Friday will hear arguments in an attempt by a transgender teacher and a nonbinary teacher to block part of a 2023 law that restricts pronouns and titles that educators can use in Florida public schools.
Requiring ugly images of smoking's harm on cigarettes won't breach First Amendment, court says
Read full article: Requiring ugly images of smoking's harm on cigarettes won't breach First Amendment, court saysA federal appeals court says a requirement that cigarette packs and advertising include graphic images demonstrating the effects of smoking does not violate the First Amendment.
Federal appeals court rejects Florida 'Stop WOKE' restrictions
Read full article: Federal appeals court rejects Florida 'Stop WOKE' restrictionsA federal appeals court Monday rejected restrictions that Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republican lawmakers placed on addressing race-related issues in workplace training — part of a controversial 2022 law that DeSantis dubbed the “Stop WOKE Act.”
Florida urges Supreme Court to uphold tech law
Read full article: Florida urges Supreme Court to uphold tech lawWith the U.S. Supreme Court poised to hear arguments next month, Florida is disputing that a 2021 state law placing restrictions on large social-media platforms violates First Amendment rights.
Disney hopes prosecutor's free speech case against DeSantis helps its own lawsuit against governor
Read full article: Disney hopes prosecutor's free speech case against DeSantis helps its own lawsuit against governorDisney is hoping a recent decision bolstering a Florida prosecutor’s First Amendment case against Gov. Ron DeSantis helps its own free speech lawsuit against the governor.
Florida disputes speech lawsuits from pro-Palestinian student groups
Read full article: Florida disputes speech lawsuits from pro-Palestinian student groupsGov. Ron DeSantis and the state university system are trying to fend off lawsuits from pro-Palestinian student groups that allege First Amendment violations amid campus debates about the war between Israel and Hamas.
DeSantis seeks dismissal of Disney’s 1st Amendment lawsuit over former Reedy Creek district
Read full article: DeSantis seeks dismissal of Disney’s 1st Amendment lawsuit over former Reedy Creek districtLawyers representing Gov. Ron DeSantis will ask a federal judge Tuesday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts involving the special taxing district formerly known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Florida seeks go-ahead to enforce law aimed at drag shows
Read full article: Florida seeks go-ahead to enforce law aimed at drag showsAfter suffering a setback at the U.S. Supreme Court, attorneys for Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration on Friday told a federal appeals court that a law aimed at preventing children from attending drag shows is tailored to the state's "unquestioned interest in protecting children from exposure to obscenity."
Trump lawyer hints at a First Amendment defense in the Jan. 6 case. Some legal experts are dubious
Read full article: Trump lawyer hints at a First Amendment defense in the Jan. 6 case. Some legal experts are dubiousDonald Trump’s legal team is characterizing his indictment in the special counsel’s 2020 election interference investigation as an attack on the former president’s right to free speech.
Florida House battles pediatricians over gender-dysphoria records subpoena
Read full article: Florida House battles pediatricians over gender-dysphoria records subpoenaA statewide pediatricians association is pushing back in federal court against the Florida House’s efforts to obtain internal communications showing how the group adopted standards of care for the treatment of gender dysphoria
NewsNation reporter arrested during news event on Ohio train derailment
Read full article: NewsNation reporter arrested during news event on Ohio train derailmentA reporter was pushed to the ground, handcuffed and arrested for trespassing while covering a news conference about the derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals in Ohio.
Educators, attorneys urge court to keep blocking Florida’s ‘Stop W.O.K.E. Act’
Read full article: Educators, attorneys urge court to keep blocking Florida’s ‘Stop W.O.K.E. Act’Professors and other plaintiffs are urging a federal appeals court to keep in place a preliminary injunction against a new Florida law that seeks to restrict the way race-related concepts can be taught in universities.
US appeals court: Beauty pageant can bar trans contestants
Read full article: US appeals court: Beauty pageant can bar trans contestantsA federal appellate court says a national beauty pageant has a First Amendment right to exclude a transgender woman from competing, because including her could interfere with the message the pageant has said it wants to send about "what it means to be a woman.”.
‘Ready for Ron’ Florida campaign group sues in petition dispute
Read full article: ‘Ready for Ron’ Florida campaign group sues in petition disputeA political committee trying to draft Gov. Ron DeSantis to run for president in 2024 has filed a lawsuit against the Federal Election Commission in a dispute about a petition with more than 80,000 signatures.
Appeals court OKs Jan. 6 panel subpoena to Arizona GOP chair
Read full article: Appeals court OKs Jan. 6 panel subpoena to Arizona GOP chairA federal appeals court panel won't block a subpoena issued by the U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection that seeks phone records of the Arizona Republican Party’s leader.
Florida fires back in race-related instruction fight
Read full article: Florida fires back in race-related instruction fightLawyers for Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody are fighting an attempt to block a state law and regulations that limit the way race-related issues can be taught in public schools and in workplace training.
LA sheriff investigates how reporter obtained leaked video
Read full article: LA sheriff investigates how reporter obtained leaked videoThe Los Angeles County sheriff disputed allegations he orchestrated the cover-up of an incident where a deputy knelt on a handcuffed inmate’s head for more than three minutes.
Stone tablet marking First Amendment freedoms finds new home
Read full article: Stone tablet marking First Amendment freedoms finds new homeThe faade will be reinstalled at The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. The tablet is engraved with the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly and the right to petition the government. It's a gift from the Freedom Forum, the creator of the Newseum, a museum dedicated to the First Amendment. Ad“It’s so meaningful to bring the text of the First Amendment to Philadelphia,” National Constitution Center President Jeffrey Rosen said in a statement. He said it would “inspire visitors for generations to come.”A dedication ceremony is planned for later this year.
Federal judge postpones Trump ban on popular app TikTok
Read full article: Federal judge postpones Trump ban on popular app TikTokNEW YORK – A federal judge on Sunday postponed a Trump administration order that would have banned the popular video sharing app TikTok from U.S. smartphone app stores around midnight. The ruling followed an emergency hearing Sunday morning in which lawyers for TikTok argued that the administration's app-store ban would infringe on First Amendment rights and do irreparable harm to the business. In arguments to Judge Nichols, TikTok lawyer John Hall said that TikTok is more than an app, since it functions as a “modern day version of a town square." In addition, Hall argued that a ban would prevent existing users from automatically receiving security updates, eroding national security. Trump set the process in motion with executive orders in August that declared TikTok and another Chinese app, WeChat, threats to national security.
Trump defies virus rules as 'peaceful protest' rallies grow
Read full article: Trump defies virus rules as 'peaceful protest' rallies growWASHINGTON – President Donald Trump is running as the “law and order” candidate. But they have largely not tried to block the gatherings of thousands of people, which Trump and his team deem “peaceful protests” protected by the First Amendment. An indoor rally that Trump held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in June was blamed for a surge of virus infections there. Trump held an indoor rally at the Xtreme Manufacturing facility in Henderson, Nevada, on Sunday night. The state restricts gatherings to 50 people — based on White House reopening guidelines —- but thousands of supporters packed into the warehouse space nonetheless.
You have the right to protest as an American. Heres what that means
Read full article: You have the right to protest as an American. Heres what that meansIf you plan to join or organize your own protest, you need to know that you have rights and, even more importantly, what they entail. Below, the American Civil Liberties Union provides context to the rights you have to enact change, and what to do should a protest do awry. [RELATED: George Floyds death: Heres 5 ways you can take action]What are my rights to protest? When you are lawfully present in any public space, you have the right to photograph anything in plain view, including federal buildings and the police, Azis said. If law enforcement shuts down a protest through a dispersal order, it must be as a last resort, according to the ACLU.
Tech-rights group sues Trump to stop social-media order
Read full article: Tech-rights group sues Trump to stop social-media orderNEW YORK A tech-focused civil liberties group on Tuesday sued to block President Donald Trump's executive order that seeks to regulate social media, saying it violates the First Amendment and chills speech. Trump's order, signed last week, could allow more lawsuits against internet companies like Twitter and Facebook for what their users post, tweet and stream. Trump, without evidence, has long accused tech companies of being biased against conservatives. There was pushback against Trump's order from various sources. Civil rights and libertarian organizations and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce also criticized Trump's order.
George Floyds death: Heres 5 ways you can take action
Read full article: George Floyds death: Heres 5 ways you can take actionORLANDO, Fla. Its an incident that has started a national conversation-- the death of George Floyd. People can head to change.org and sign the Justice for George Floyd petition which, as of Saturday at 9:00 a.m., had nearly 7 million signatures and counting. To make sure your contributions are going to the right place, consider donating to the Official George Floyd Memorial Fund on GoFundMe. A man kneels on the street in front of police officers while chanting "I can't breathe" during a protest over the death of George Floyd, Friday, May 29, 2020, in Los Angeles. As a disclaimer, not everyone will be comfortable taking action nor is everyone comfortable taking action in the same ways.