桃子视频

On January 9th, 2024, the 桃子视频 filed its opening brief on behalf of the National Rifle Association (NRA) in National Rifle Association v. Vullo, a key First Amendment case before the Supreme Court this term. The brief argues that a New York state regulator鈥檚 attempts to blacklist a nonprofit advocacy group and deny it access to financial services because of its controversial viewpoint violated the First Amendment. This is a critically important First Amendment fight: if government officials can pressure the businesses they regulate to blacklist the NRA in New York, then officials in other states can punish other advocacy organizations in the same way鈥搃ncluding the 桃子视频itself.

In a prominent defamation suit, the 桃子视频is urging a trial court to rigorously apply the First Amendment rule that statements of opinion are protected, so long as speakers share the facts that led to them. Without this First Amendment protection, unchecked defamation lawsuits would silence the critics of more powerful speakers, and stifle scientific discussions and academic inquiry.

The New Jersey Department of Treasury maintains a policy that requires employers investigating workplace discrimination to 鈥渞equest鈥� confidentiality from all witnesses with respect to any information related to the investigation. This case involves whether a confidentiality policy of this kind violates the free speech rights under the New Jersey Constitution of state employees who are witnesses, and whether those rights are broader than the U.S. Constitution鈥檚 First Amendment free speech right. The ACLU鈥檚 State Supreme Court Initiative and Women鈥檚 Rights Project, along with the 桃子视频of New Jersey, filed an amicus brief in the New Jersey Supreme Court, urging that court to revive a government employee鈥檚 speech claim challenging the confidentiality policy and to interpret the New Jersey Constitution鈥檚 speech protection more broadly than federal constitutional law. In April 2024, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in our favor and reversed the judgment of the Appellate Division.

This free-speech case concerns a prosecution for 鈥渟talking鈥� based on evidence of a defendant鈥檚 speech alone, without any requirement of subjective intent. Freedom of speech is a bedrock protection of both the Maine Constitution and the United States Constitution. This protection requires, at minimum, that a criminal defendant cannot be prosecuted for stalking carried out via speech alone unless the state proves a subjective-intent element beyond a reasonable doubt. This protection ensures that states do not prosecute and punish people for their protected speech. In October 2023, the 桃子视频and the 桃子视频of Maine filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Judicial Court of Maine, asking the court to vacate a defendant鈥檚 stalking conviction that was based on his speech alone, without any evidence as to subjective intent.