Category: Constitutional Law

Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Society

Activist Fired After She Posts Video Berating Family For Flying Mexican Flag
Screen Shot Youtube
Screen Shot Youtube

Recently I spoke at Utah Valley University about the private regulation of speech, particularly in businesses curtailing not just workplace speech but speech outside of the workplace. We have discussed such incidents where people were fired for YouTube videos or drunken scenes. This “little brother” problem falls outside of the first amendment which addresses government regulation of speech. As a result, businesses have wide latitude in punishing employees for private conduct, though some states have laws protecting some forms of speech and employment such as voting and political activities. We have a new such case involving a woman in Ontario who shot and posted a video of her berating a neighbor for flying a Mexican flag. The video caused many to be understandably angry with Tressy Capps, who didn’t seem to see how obnoxious she appeared in her own posted video. However, it has not escaped her employer, which proceeded to fire her.

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Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Politics, Religion

Iran Executes Man For “Innovations” On Religion And Insulting Job

220px-Bonnat021966909_278774508978953_6179710600367701004_nVarious media outlets are reporting the latest outrage from Sharia courts. Iranian authorities have reportedly executed Mohsen Amir-Aslani, 37, for allegedly “insulting” the prophet Jonah and accused him of committing adultery. For that exercise of free speech and freedom of religion, a Sharia court had him hanged.

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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Religion, Society

Forever Young: Student Protest BYU Ban on Beards

200px-BYU_Medallion_Logo.svg175px-Brigham_Young_by_Charles_William_CarterThere is an interesting protest growing on the campus of Brigham Young University where students are opposing a rule imposed by the school. The subject of the protests is rather unique. No it is not a war protest or some other usual campus cause. It is facial hair. The university has banned beards, a curious rule to be sure for a school named after Brigham Young who would have been banned from campus due to his facial hair.

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Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Justice, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Society

The Holder Years and The Perils Of Politics Over Principle In Government

holderericBelow is my column on the resignation of Eric Holder as United States Attorney General. For civil libertarians, Holder’s tenure as Attorney General under President Obama has been one of the most damaging periods in our history with a comprehensive attack on various constitutional rights and principles from free speech to the free press to international law. In recent polling by NBC and the Wall Street Journal, Holder was the second most unpopular government official after the positively radioactive Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

As someone who previously called for Holder’s firing after the investigation of various journalists under national security powers, I am hardly one who can offer congratulatory sentiments for such a record. However, much like President Obama, one has to wonder what could have been if Holder had chosen a more principled and less political approach to his office. Holder is resigning the same week that a federal judge ordered the release of “Fast and Furious” documents after the Justice Department was accused of a pattern of delay and obstruction. Holder was previously held in contempt by Congress for his withholding documents and conflicting accounts to an oversight committee looking into the scandal. Indeed, Holder was looking at an even more aggressive period with the possible loss of the Senate and increased GOP seats in the House.

Ironically, Holder came into office trying to distinguish himself from such disastrous predecessors as Alberto Gonzales but proved no less political or blindly loyal to his own president. Indeed, both men fought aggressively to expand the powers of the presidency and national security laws over countervailing individual rights and separation of powers principles. It will be civil liberties and not civil rights that will be the lasting, and troubling, legacy of Eric Holder. The column is below:

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Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Politics, Religion, Society

Islamic State Reportedly Tortures And Kills Human Rights Lawyer

124934515-e57055cd-e51d-400f-9705-9aecf3e4626cSamira Salih al-Nuaimi died last week as she lived: a brave symbol of human rights in a region of religious extremist and oppression. Al-Nuaimi, a mother of three and lawyer, was taken from her home in Mosul by Islamic State fighters and taken to a Sharia court for trial for apostasy in her abandoning of true Islamic teachings. This true Islamic path for ISIS then included days of torture and the executive of Al-Nuaimi.

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Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, Politics, Religion, Society

UTAH APPEALS SISTER WIVES RULING

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One month ago, United States District Court Judge Clarke Waddoups handed down his final ruling in favor of my clients in the Sister Wives case. Utah Attorney General, Sean Reyes has now filed his notice of appeal in the case — a move that will take this historic case to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in Denver and potentially to the Supreme Court.

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Academia, Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Media, Politics, Society

China Sentences Uighur Scholar To Life In Prison After Denying Him Access To Evidence

Profesor_Ilham_TohtiChina has continued its crackdown on political speech with a truly disgraceful trial of Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti. The prominent scholar has written about the discontent in his region and lack of rights. The Chinese declared the writings as encouraging separatism. While that would not be a crime in any free nation, China handed him a life sentence after this supporters say that he was denied food and then denied copies of the evidence used against him.

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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Media, Military, Politics

Semper Latte: Cup Salute Seems To Generate More Attention Than Undeclared War In National Debate

1411505445739_wps_3_Americans_weren_t_amused_It is being called “Semper Latte” and, if this is the biggest scandal that President Barack Obama has to worry about, his Administration is safe. Various people are denouncing the President for saluting his Marine guard while holding a cup of tea or coffee. From CNN to the Daily Mail to ABC to the New York Daily News to the Washington Post to the New York Post to NBC to CBS to countless others, the salute is generating heated comments across the country. YouTube clips show the salute over and over along with multiple postings expressing outrage. My reaction is a bit different. The President has launched another declared war that his aides say could last “years.” However, there seem more debate over this tempest in a tea [cup] than the fact that we are bombing another nation.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, International, Military, Politics

United States Bombs Syria In Latest Undeclared War

220px-B-2_spirit_bombingPresident_Barack_ObamaI just completed a two-city debate with former Bush official John Yoo on executive power with a focus on undeclared wars. It appears Yoo won the debate . . . at least with President Obama. Indeed, Yoo appears to have had Obama at “hello” to quote Jerry Maguire. Without any declaration of war, Obama has launched attacks against targets in Syria — an act of war by any measure and a violation of international law.

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Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Media, Politics, Religion, Society

Poll: Egyptians Want Democracy . . . and Stonings

1024px-Election_MG_3455stone-1I had a fleeting sensation of hope yesterday when a poll of 1,000 Egyptians by the Pew Research Center found that 59% percent said that their preferred form of government is democracy. Then a little below the poll found that 82% feel adulterers should be stoned and 84% believe that apostates from Islam should face the death penalty.

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Academia, Constitutional Law

Poll: 64 Percent of Americans Cannot Identify All Three Branches Of Government

500px-Scene_at_the_Signing_of_the_Constitution_of_the_United_StatesIn the wake of Constitution Day, there is a truly depressing survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center that found that 227 years after the signing of the Constitution only 36 percent of Americans can actually name the three branches of government. Thus, 64 percent of Americans cannot name the three parts of our tripartite system.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, International, Politics

Got War? Yoo and Stephens Rally A Coalition Of The War Willing

220px-Bret_Stephens180px-john-yooToday I had my second debate with Berkeley Law Professor and former Bush official John Yoo. The first debate sponsored by Christopher Newport University was held in Newport News four days ago and the second was sponsored by Hillsdale College at a debate held in Washington, D.C. There is a clear theme emerging to get Americans to embrace war as a continuing reality for American policy. Equally notable is how well-connected Republicans are returning over and over to another theme: Rand Paul must be stopped. In his luncheon speech, Bret Stephens of The Wall Street Journal repeatedly mocked Rand Paul and his opposition to the United States engaging in wars around the globe. It seems that there is a real fear that Paul could gain traction with Republicans in steering the U.S. from an interventionist course. There are many positions of Paul that people of good faith can disagree with. I certainly have such differences with him. However, it is specifically his notion of limited presidential authority and a disinclination toward new wars that is the focus of these attacks.

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Bizarre, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Lawyering

High Crimes and [NFL] Misdemeanors? Members Raise Impeachment In Fuller Case

fuller-mugshotWe previously discussed the arrest of U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller in Alabama for misdemeanor battery of his wife. Now members are raising the possibility of impeachment if he does not resign despite the absence of a conviction on the misdemeanor. Rep. Martha Roby (R., Alabama) is citing a rather novel source of extraconstitutional precedent: the NFL Ray Rice case.

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Constitutional Law, Society, Torts

Associated Press Moves To “Rectify” False Story On National Report

screen-shot-2014-09-01-at-8-36-57-am-e14095751988281In a previous posting, I published a warning about another malicious fake news story by National Report which showed a picture identified as an Associated Press photo of Paul Horner, 15, allegedly was given 25 years to life for “swatting” — calling in a fake police report on an online gaming opponent. The problem is that the story is entirely untrue. I discussed how this article went further then prior juvenile postings by National Report designed to trick news organizations and blogs into posting false stories. There is nothing funny about the stories. These are just mean-spirited efforts to embarrass media and bloggers. However, on his occasion they used a picture of a real person and tied Associated Press to their story. At the time, I asked why anyone has not sued these editors, particularly Associated Press. I have now spoken with Associated Press about the incident.

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Constitutional Law, Courts, Lawyering, Media

“Geauxjudge” is Gone: Judge Maggio Removed From Court For Anonymous Postings

article-charlize8n-5-0307We previously discussed the bizarre case of Faulkner County Circuit Judge Mike Maggio who was identified as an anonymous commenter known as “geauxjudge” in a an an interesting controversy in Arkansas where Maggio was was outed from online sites. Maggio previously apologized and withdrew from a race for the appellate court. The controversy raised the question of whether such comments should be a subject for ethical discipline and whether judges should have the right to comment anonymously on such sites. Now Maggio has been permanently removed from the bench for his discussion of a confidential adoption of a child by actress Charlize Theron. He agreed with the Arkansas Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission about the lifetime ban. However, the Arkansas Supreme Court rejected the recommendation because it included Maggio being suspended with pay until the end of the year when his term expires.

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