July 17, 2025

In the News

The College Fix: Censoring ‘All Men Are Created Equal’ cost U. Oregon $724K — will other universities learn?

By Tom Garrett

.....The University of Oregon just learned a very costly lesson about free speech.

This cautionary tale began in June 2022, when Portland State University Professor Bruce Gilley responded to a University of Oregon Division of Equity and Inclusion “racism interrupter” post on Twitter by retweeting it with the comment “all men are created equal.”

Ironically, it seems that UO’s definition of “inclusion” didn’t include tolerance for the principle of colorblindness. Rather than recognizing that Gilley’s quote from the Declaration of Independence was protected speech, a university DEI official blocked Gilley from the @UOEquity account.

With the help of the Institute for Free Speech, Gilley filed suit weeks later to challenge UO’s public-forum viewpoint discrimination. At this point, the university had an opportunity to take an obvious “off-ramp” by voluntarily correcting its unconstitutional social media practices. However, instead of acknowledging wrongdoing and agreeing to make changes, UO aggressively litigated a defense.

Concord Monitor: Free speech group, residents back Bow parents’ free speech appeal in case involving transgender athletes

By Sruthi Gopalakrishnan

.....A Philadelphia-based free speech group and two more residents have filed a legal brief in support of parents challenging a court ruling that sided with the Bow School District after it barred parents from wearing pink wristbands to protest transgender athletes in girls’ sports.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, an advocacy group, filed a friend of the court brief on the lower court’s ruling, while private citizens William Hamlen of New Hampshire and Robert Charles of Maine also filed a similar separate brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Both filings argue that the April 14 ruling by U.S. District Judge Steven McAuliffe poses a serious threat to First Amendment rights.

Hamlen and Charles said in their court filing that the lower court’s decision “silences one viewpoint from an important public policy debate.”

“This lopsided result perverts the public square from a deliberative forum seeking truth to an oppressive show trial,” the document stated.

Courthouse News: Maine super PAC restrictions struck

.....A Maine federal court granted two political action committees their motion for a permanent injunction, quashing a state law that would limit contributions to PACs that make independent expenditures. The law runs afoul of the First and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution in part because its disclosure requirement is overbroad and does not give a “meaningful opportunity for anonymous contributions.”

Read the ruling here.

Supreme Court

Princeton Alumni Weekly: Pardoned, P.G. Sittenfeld ’07 Still Wants the Supreme Court to Take His Case

By David Montgomery

.....Alexander P.G. Sittenfeld ’07 is still battling to clear his name even after an unexpected pardon from President Donald Trump in May removed him from further legal penalties: On Friday afternoon, July 11, the former Cincinnati City Council member filed paperwork asking the Supreme Court to review his 2022 bribery conviction.

It’s a highly unusual move. Sittenfeld’s lawyers have found no other example of someone receiving a presidential pardon and still appealing to the Supreme Court, according to Sittenfeld.

“An item that people don’t typically envision going on their résumé? Supreme Court petitioner,” he wrote in a LinkedIn post Friday afternoon shortly after the filing, his only public comment on this latest turn in his case. “As of today, I am now one.”

In their petition for a writ of certiorari, Sittenfeld’s pro bono lawyers argue that his pardon — which he “gratefully accepted,” they wrote — did not make the case moot, because he still suffered consequences that should be redressed. His conviction was not vacated, and he had to pay a $40,000 criminal fine. In addition, Cincinnati is trying to recover $80,000 of his council member salary. 

Vanguard: ACLU Fights for Constitutional Rights of Woman Convicted in Peaceful Protest

By Leela Davis

.....A South Carolina woman who participated in a non-violent Black Lives Matter protest was sentenced to four years in prison, a punishment the ACLU of South Carolina argues is a clear violation of her constitutional rights.

In 2020, protester Brittany Martin was arrested five days after a demonstration and later convicted—while pregnant—of Breach of Peace of a High and Aggravated Nature (BOPHAN).

Her sentence is reportedly the longest ever recorded for a BOPHAN conviction, exceeding the sentence in a past case, State v. Simms, in which the defendant punched a man unconscious, leading to the man’s death by vehicular trauma. Simms received three years; Martin received four years for delivering a political speech during a protest.

After being released from prison on Nov. 27, 2024, Martin filed a petition for a writ of certiorari, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear her case...

The ACLU maintains that Martin’s sentence for a non-violent protest is “an outrage and a clear violation” of her constitutional rights, specifically the First Amendment.

The Courts

Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): Legislature May Choose What Viewpoints May or May Not Be Taught in Public Schools

By Eugene Volokh

.....From today's decision in Walls v. Sanders, by Eighth Circuit Judge Steven Grasz, joined by Judges James Loken and Raymond Gruender (which I think is generally correct):

Free Expression

Fox News: Georgetown professor removed as department chair after publicly hoping for symbolic Iranian strike on US

By David Spector

.....A professor at Georgetown University has been removed as chair of his department and is on leave after he publicly hoped Iran would launch a "symbolic strike" on a U.S. military base, the university’s president said.

"I’m not an expert, but I assume Iran could still get a bomb easily. I hope Iran does some symbolic strike on a base, then everyone stops. I’m surprised this is what these FDD/Hasbara people have been auto-erotically asphyxiating themselves for all these years," Dr. Jonathan Brown, the Alwaleed bin Talal chair of Islamic Civilization in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, posted on X in June after the U.S. struck Iran's nuclear enrichment sites. 

He added, "Ironically, the main takeaways (in my non-expert opinion, and I’m happy to be corrected) from all this have nothing to do with a US attack: 1) Iran can take a licking; 2) if Israel attacks Iranian cities, it gets f---ed up pretty bad. I mean I’ve been shocked at the damage Iranian missiles caused; 3) despite his best efforts, Reza Pahlavi HVAC repair services still only third best in Nova."

Candidates and Campaigns

New York Times: Faith Leaders Can Now Endorse. Will That Swing the N.Y.C. Mayor’s Race?

By Maya King

.....Many of New York’s faith leaders said they regard the new policy as a slippery slope, and worry that their institutions may be viewed as political chess pieces for candidates to win and maneuver.

“I’m concerned that opening this Pandora’s box can lead to undue influence by political parties, PACs, parties, etc. upon clergy — pastors — to endorse a particular political candidate,” said the Rev. A.R. Bernard, a founder and senior pastor of the Christian Cultural Center, an influential Black congregation in Brooklyn. He added, “I’m concerned when the preacher can be bought.” …

For some, the change offers a chance to leverage newfound political influence. Some Muslim faith leaders and organizers seek to increase political engagement among the city’s more than one million Muslims and push city leaders to prioritize policies relevant to their communities. That effort has coincided with Mr. Mamdani’s bid to become the city’s first Muslim mayor.

The States

Reason: 2 New Jersey Journalists Face Criminal Charges for Publishing Information From a Police Blotter

By Jacob Sullum

.....Last September, Red Bank Green, a news site covering Red Bank, New Jersey, published information from a local police blotter, including a description of an August 31 arrest for simple assault—an arrest that was expunged the following March. When the arrestee complained to Red Bank Green, the site added a note about the expungement but declined to remove the item, since it was still an accurate report of what had happened. As a result of that decision, Red Bank Green reporter Brian Donohue and the site's publisher, Kenny Katzgrau, face criminal charges.

Ed. note: Also read Eugene Volokh's blog post excerpting the motion to dismiss, N.J. Criminal Prosecution of News Reporters for Not Removing Post About Expunged Arrest.

Fox 35 Orlando: Florida attorney general sues to defend homeowners' right to pro-Trump signs

By Abigail Lafferty

.....Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit in Volusia County on behalf of two homeowners he says were targeted for displaying political signs supporting President Donald Trump.

Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): N.Y. Legal Aid Attorneys' Claim Can Proceed Against Union, Alleging Retaliation Over Lawsuit Against Anti-Israel Union Resolution

By Eugene Volokh

.....From Kopmar v. Ass'n of Legal Aid Attorneys, decided yesterday by Judge Paul Oetken (S.D.N.Y.) (though see also another post this morning rejecting a different part of the claim):