Surprising Decision on Harassing Church Officials on Social Media

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently ruled
that the federal stalking statute (a criminal statute) was not violated when
a person used Twitter and other Internet websites (including a blog) over
8000 times to harass certain religious officials.  The Court made this
decision because, “[e]ven though the Internet is the newest medium for
anonymous, uncomfortable expression touching on political or religious
matters, online speech is equally protected under the First Amendment . . .
.”  The Court did point out, however, that certain forms of speech are not
“protected speech.”   They include:  (a) obscenity; (b) defamation; (c)
fraud; (d) incitement; (e) true threats; and (f) speech integral to criminal conduct.

For more information or for a consultation regarding your legal issues, please contact McCollum & Associates, LLC, at (301) 864-6070 or jmccollum@jmlaw.net.