HT a Lauren Weinstein.
juan carlos
Justices probe limits of free speech over Internet
(Chicago Sun-Times): http://politics.suntimes.com/article/washington/justices-probe-limits-free-speech-over-internet/sun-11302014-957am
"Anthony Elonis claimed he was just kidding when he posted a series of
graphically violent rap lyrics on Facebook about killing his estranged
wife, shooting up a kindergarten class and attacking an FBI agent.
But his wife didn't see it that way. Neither did a federal jury.
Elonis, who's from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was convicted of violating
a federal law that makes it a crime to threaten another person. In a
far-reaching case that probes the limits of free speech over the
Internet, the Supreme Court on Monday was to consider whether Elonis'
Facebook posts, and others like it, deserve protection under the First
Amendment."
1. Whether, as a matter of statutory interpreta- tion, conviction of threatening another person under 18 U.S.C. §875(c) requires proof of the defendant’s subjective intent to threaten.
2. Whether, consistent with the First Amendment and Virginia v. Black, 538 U.S. 343 (2003), conviction of threatening another person requires proof of the defendant’s subjective intent to threaten; or whether it is enough to show that a “reasonable person” would regard the statement as threatening."