Rodolfo Hernandez
May 9th 2015
The Elonis Decision (Opinion Paper)
Jus 271: Due Process Criminal Justice
Anthony Elonis Vs. United States was a strong case which helps break down how far can freedom of speech be taken and the thin line between being free to say what you want and violating someone on the other end of that speech. I believe people in today’s society use freedom of speech as a way to abuse the reasoning behind the law that was created to protect. Many people use freedom of speech in ways that come to close to violating the law. We must understand that just because we are given a freedom this does not allow us the rights to violate the freedom of others.
Elonis use the freedom of speech amendment to get his point across in
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Every person in society takes words and threats differently so if this individual felt really threated by Elonis who has the right to say this is not real in her eyes. How Elonis’s threats affect his ex wife and children needs to be considered by the law. If they perceive they are in physical danger regardless of how the message was relayed to them the laws must react just as if this was done in person. Freedom of speech is a great thing that we stand by but when you look into the case and you see threats made in such detail against his wife such as Elonis saying he wanted to “smother his wife with a pillow and then he planed on dumping her body in a creek so it would look like a rape” (Lithwick), how can statement made like this be taken lightly by any individual who feels they have lost everything. There was another thing he stated that may have been the biggest concern on a law enforcement side of things he said “There’s one way to love you but a thousand ways to kill you. I’m not going to rest until your body is a mess, soaked in blood and dying from all the little cuts. Hurry up and die, bitch, so I can bust this nut all over your corpse from atop your shallow grave. I used to be a nice guy but then you became a slut. Guess it’s not your fault you liked your daddy raped you. So hurry up and die, bitch, so I can forgive you.” …show more content…
These questions had to be asked and addressed regardless of how he states this is his freedom to do so. Elonis made several threats to law enforcement through his Facebook status, a status on Facebook is used to say what you doing and how your feeling so during that moment as he decides to go public with his emotions/lyrics he chooses to use a social network as his platform o threaten government officials what other normal person would expect any different outcome other then to be pursued by the same government he
In Garrett Epps's article "Free Speech Isn't Free," he discusses the United States law involving freedom of speech. One of the major points addressed is that it's not necessarily free because it has the ability to harm other people emotionally. Also, the way it's done in America isn't the only way to go about it. Epps introduces the idea of the law being in place so that people will have verbal disputes instead of immediately resorting to physical violence. Epps begins his personal argument with the insinuation he was going to evaluate both the positive and negative aspects of free speech equally. However, he ultimately uses the all of the data provided to present free speech as a trivial tool used the American public. It allows them to emotionally
Everyone in America, from adults to students have freedom of speech. This freedom is provided by the first amendment. In the case Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, students fights for the freedom of speech in their school newspaper. One side of the case was three students who thought their free speech was violated and the other side was the principal defending the school. After the court's decision, this case had a big impact on the school and many other people. Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier talks about students not giving up their freedom of speech in a school setting.
The first amendment is being abused by more people now than ever before. People like to shout, “First Amendment” when they find themselves in a controversial situation because of certain things they wrote or spoke about. People are being less responsible for their actions and are blaming the constitution for their slip-ups. In “Free-Speech Follies” by Stanley Fish, Fish addresses the First Amendment issue. Fish claims that people use the First Amendment to try to get themselves out of trouble or criticism and that they need to start being responsible for their actions and need to start having a sense of judgment.
The First Amendment of the United States gives citizens the five main rights to freedom. Freedom of speech is one of the rights. If people did not have the freedom of speech there would be no way of expressing one’s self and no way to show individuality between beliefs. This Amendment becomes one of the issues in the Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District Supreme Court case that happened in December of 1969. In the case of Tinker v. Des Moines there were five students that got suspended for wearing armbands to protest the Government’s policy in Vietnam. Wearing these armbands was letting the students express their beliefs peacefully. Many people would consider that the school did not have the authority to suspend these petitioners because of the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution.
Freedom of speech has been a controversial issue throughout the world. Our ability to say whatever we want is very important to us as individuals and communities. Although freedom of speech and expression may sometimes be offensive to other people, it is still everyone’s right to express his/her opinion under the American constitution which states that “congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press”. Although this amendment gave people the right express thier opinions, it still rests in one’s own hands as how far they will go to exercise that right of freedom of speech.
Years ago the gruesome murders of 3 8-year-old boys shocked West Memphis Arkansas Stevie branch Christopher byers and Michael Moore second-grade playmates were beaten to death naked tied up in Shallowater.Police arrested three teenagers who were alleged devil worshiping ringleader mean Damien Echols Echols and 16-year-old Jason Baldwin denied involvement but 17-year-old Jessie Misskelley telling authorities they killed the boys Hanson counter in the woods this Kelly who defense attorneys claim has a low IQ now says the confessions workhorse despite a lack of significant physical evidence linking the teens to the crime all three were found guilty Ackles was sentenced to death.17-year-olds Jessie confesses to watching two other suspects choke rape and sexually mutilated three W. Memphis second graders.Reports according to the published report Misskelly told police he watched 18-year-old Damien Echols and 16-year-old Jason Baldwin hit the children with a club and a knife. At a press conference Inspector Gary Getchell said the case against the accused team is very strong the only problem is that the statement of sheriff Berkowitz the citizens of the state that was true was absolutely bull he knew he had to know that Dan has knows it was not a single piece of credible evidence to type any baby that most of these but the two pieces of evidence that existed at that time were a statement by a woman who is facing embezzlement charges.charges that she wouldn't play detective find out what went on in this case she knew was Kelly and she told the police that as a detective Ms. Kelly had taken her baby Neckles twisted panic S that her name was Vicky Hutchison what we know today about that I know that the show that's one piece of evidence the s...
In America we are given certain rights by the government to follow. Such as, the first Amendment, that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press, or the right of people peaceably to assemble and to petition the Government for the redress of grievances.” So, this right is given to us as Americans we should be able to say and do as we please. Yet, what the amendment fails to leave out is that we are not allowed to infringe on our fellow Americans rights to do the same. In, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Larry took the First Amendment right to a new level. When examining Larry Flynt, there were mixed opinions between the masses, some said he was a crusader for the First Amendment, while others said he was a horrible smut peddler. Larry Flynt unpleasantly exploited and abused
The First (1st) Amendment of the United States (U.S.) Constitution, ratified December 15, 1791, “guarantees to all Americans regardless of age, ethnicity, disability, faith, or gender, the freedom of speech, freedom of press, the right to assemble, the right to peacefully assemble, and the right to petition Congress (Government) for a redress of grievances” (Kanovitz, 2010). However, as these types of speech are protected by the 1st Amendment, there are other kinds of speech that are not. The framers of the 1st Amendment intended for this amendment to be broad as to allow the amendment room to adapt to future changes in societal diversities as we live today (Kanovitz, 2010). In these protected rights are solid foundations that secures the opportunity to openly share ideas, thoughts, and various differences in points of view, encouraging interaction...
Since this country was founded, we have had a set of unalienable rights that our constitution guarantees us to as Americans. One of the most important rights that is mentioned in our constitution is the right to free speech. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the
Freedom of speech is the right of civilians to openly express their opinions without constant interference by the government. For the last few years, the limitations and regulations on freedom of speech have constantly increased. This right is limited by use of expression to provoke violence or illegal activities, libel and slander, obscene material, and proper setting. These limitations may appear to be justified, however who decides what is obscene and inappropriate or when it is the wrong time or place? To have so many limits and regulations on freedom of speech is somewhat unnecessary. It is understood that some things are not meant to be said in public due to terrorist attacks and other violent acts against our government, but everything should not be seen as a threat. Some people prefer to express themselves angrily or profanely, and as long as it causes no har...
Based on the First Amendment, the government may not exercise any activities that interference freedom of speech of an individual. For Americans, freedom of speech is clearly become the most basic freedom. Everyone has always thinks freedom of speech is a basic right that everyone automatically has when they were born; on the other hand, freedom of speech is experiencing serious growing pains.
In this case study, Laura and Danny have had significant changes in their lives. Laura has now left with the children and planning on moving with them to El Paso, Texas in a month. She has also filed for divorce from Danny. While Laura is making positive improvements to her life she is still concerned for Danny. She goes to collect what’s left of her belongings when she finds Danny in a state of panic. Danny has let himself go at this point. He started consuming alcohol, has not found a job, and is living with no electricity. Kid decides to pay Danny and Laura a visit and he quickly realizes Danny is in trouble. Danny begs for Kid’s assistance in order to help him start a new life. Danny is worried that he will end up alone and homeless
Freedom of speech cannot be considered an absolute freedom, and even society and the legal system recognize the boundaries or general situations where the speech should not be protected. Along with rights comes civil responsib...
An employee does an unsatisfactory job on an assigned project. Explain the attribution process that this person's manager will use to form judgments about this employee's job performance.
Making decisions is an important part of our everyday life. Decisions define actions and lead to the achievement of goals. However, these depend on the effectiveness of the decision-making process. An effective decision is free from biases, uncertainties, and is deeply dependent on information and critical thinking. Poor decisions lead to the inability to achieve set objectives and could lead to losses, if finance is a factor. Therefore, it is important to contemplate about quality and ways to achieve it in decision-making, which is the focus of this paper. The purpose is to look into the needs of decision-making, including what one should do and what one should not do.