speech-protection

18 cases — ← All topics

Case Title Lower Court Docketed Status Flags Tags Question Presented
25A1137 James Ryan Earl v. Texas Texas 2026-04-15 Application counterman-v-colorado facial-overbreadth first-amendment speech-protection texas-penal-code-42.07 threatening-communication Question not identified.
25-6181 Graham Schiff v. Warden Fourth Circuit 2025-11-20 Rehearing Response WaivedRelisted (2)IFP certificate-of-appealability constitutional-rights first-amendment habeas-corpus judicial-misconduct speech-protection I. First Amendment and Certificate of Appealability Standard Whether this Court should grant certiorari —or exercise its supervisory authority —to dir…
24-673 Randal M. Hall v. Travis Trochessett, et al. Fifth Circuit 2024-12-20 Denied arrest-basis circuit-split first-amendment interference-statute qualified-immunity speech-protection 1. Whether the First Amendment can countenance an arrest based on a husband's advice to his wife to take a clearly non-criminal action. 2. Whether th…
23-6305 Brendan Hunt v. United States Second Circuit 2023-12-19 Denied IFP appellate-review circuit-split constitutional-fact first-amendment free-speech independent-review speech-protection standard-of-review true-threat A jury's determination that a particular expression constitutes a "true threat" takes it outside the First Amendment. The consequence is that the stat…
23-5902 Kaleb J. Cole v. United States Ninth Circuit 2023-10-27 Denied Response WaivedRelisted (2)IFP civil-rights constitutional-rights criminal-conviction due-process first-amendment free-speech retaliation speech-protection worldview-perception worldviews 1. Whether the First Amendment/ Post Counterman v. Colorado permits a criminal conviction for retaliatory speech which is inherently threatening not o…
23-282 Cynthia Stepien, on Behalf of Herself and Her Minor Child, et al. v. Phil Murphy, Governor of New Jersey, et al. Third Circuit 2023-09-22 Denied Response Waived civil-rights constitutional-rights due-process first-amendment free-speech pandemic-masking school-restrictions schoolchildren speech-protection state-intrusion 1. Whether the Court of Appeals erred in refusing to hear the merits of a First Amendment challenge to the forced masking of schoolchildren where the …
22-7397 Daniel Kim v. Massachusetts Massachusetts 2023-04-28 Denied Response WaivedIFP criminal-procedure criminal-speech due-process fighting-words first-amendment free-speech jury-determination jury-instructions speech-protection state-court true-threats 1. Whether a state court is prohibited from unilaterally determining whether a defendant's written speech on his blog is protected or criminal, withou…
22-138 Billy Raymond Counterman v. Colorado Colorado 2022-08-11 Judgment Issued Amici (20)Relisted (5) first-amendment free-speech objective-standard reasonable-person speech-protection subjective-intent true-threats Whether, to establish that a statement is a "true threat" unprotected by the First Amendment, the government must show that the speaker subjectively k…
21-1007 Robert A. Hawkland v. Burke Hall, et al. Fifth Circuit 2022-01-18 Denied Response Waived first-amendment free-speech governmental-agency internal-investigation official-duties public-employee retaliation speech-protection Without hearing any evidence and contrary to the fact-based allegations of petitioner's complaint that his speech was not made within the ordinary sco…
21-497 T. E. L., a Minor v. Florida Florida 2021-10-04 Granted Relisted (2) criminal-statute due-process elonis-v-united-states first-amendment free-speech intent-requirement speech-protection supreme-court-precedent virginia-v-black watts-v-united-states 1. Whether Florida Statute § 790.162 (2007), which makes it a second degree felony to threaten to "throw, project, place or discharge any destructive …
21-298 Bobby Wilson v. Phoenix Newspapers, Inc., et al. Arizona 2021-08-30 Denied Response Waived context defamation false-publication first-amendment freedom-of-press freedom-of-speech malice media-liability speech-protection 1. Is a per se false publication that was proven fabricated solely by the defendant sufficient proof alone of malice? Liability for the publication of…
20-1384 Amy Everett v. Cobb County, Georgia, et al. Eleventh Circuit 2021-04-02 Denied Response Waived cease-and-desist civil-rights constitutional-rights custom-and-practice due-process first-amendment free-speech law-enforcement-discretion malicious-prosecution qualified-immunity speech-protection 1. In the face of clear law, under Reno v. ACLU and traditional categories of unprotected speech, was it error to treat Everett's email s, which she c…
20-5597 Rory Swenson v. Illinois Illinois 2020-09-04 Denied Response WaivedIFP criminal-law first-amendment free-speech intent intent-standard listener-perception speech-protection true-threat true-threats virginia-v-black May speech that does not contain any expression of an intent to commit an act of unlawful violence be criminalized as a "true threat" unprotected by t…
19-893 Shimon Waronker v. Hempstead Union Free School District, et al. Second Circuit 2020-01-17 Denied civil-rights corruption due-process employment-retaliation first-amendment free-speech government-corruption public-employee public-official speech-protection whistleblower 1. Whether the First Amendment protects the speech by a public official that is required by law and that reports and exposes corruption. 2. Whether s…
19-285 Jerud Butler v. Board of County Commissioners for San Miguel County, et al. Tenth Circuit 2019-09-03 Denied Amici (5) such that it is entitled to protection under the civil-rights due-process first-amendment free-speech government-speech judicial-proceeding judicial-system judicial-testimony public-concern public-employee speech-protection Whether a government employee's truthful testimony at a judicial hearing qualifies as speech on a matter of public concern, such that it is entitled t…
18-949 Jamal Knox v. Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 2019-01-22 Denied Amici (8)Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) criminal-threat first-amendment free-speech reasonable-person speech-protection subjective-intent terroristic-threats true-threat true-threats Under Watts v. United States, 394 U.S. 705 (1969) (per curiam), the First Amendment does not protect "true threats." Federal courts of appeals and sta…
18-851 Bryan Christopher Marshall v. United States Fourth Circuit 2019-01-04 Denied Response Waived armed-career-criminal-act categorical-approach criminal-sentencing drug-distribution drug-statute due-process federal-law first-amendment law-enforcement predicate-offense sentencing speech-protection statutory-interpretation 1. Whether a state drug statute that lists a variety of means by which it can be violated, including one which does not meet the definition of a drug …
18-60 Amira Olivia Gunn v. North Dakota North Dakota 2018-07-11 Denied Response Waived civil-rights constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process first-amendment fourteenth-amendment free-speech speech-protection Whether Gunn was convicted of speech protected by the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment, applicable to the States under the Due Process Clause…