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1st Amendment and Free Speech/Is Flag-Burning "Free Speech"?
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Question
Is Flag-Burning "Free Speech"?
Hi Nery,
The US Supreme Court has held that laws banning the burning of a flag to be a violation of the First Amendment. This is because it found such laws to be targetting the expressive content of the actions, rather than the act itself. A more general law banning the setting of any fires in a particular area would cover the act of flag burning as well. But a law that targets burning only flags would be found unconstitutional under current precedents.
If you are interested in the case law, you should take a look at Texas v. Johnson 491 U.S. 397 (1989)
http://straylight.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0491_0397_ZS.html
and US v. Eichman 496 U.S. 310 (1990)
http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0496_0310_ZS.html
I hope this helps!
- Mike
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Answers by Expert:
Michael Troy
Expertise
I will answer general questions regarding freedom of speech, petition, or religion. I specialize in cases involving public employment or education, as well as issues related to campaign finance. But I can`t give specific legal advice involving specific cases you might have.
Experience
As an attorney for the Center for Individual Rights, I worked on a number of free speech cases, including Rosenberger v. Univ. of Virginia, in which the Supreme Court upheld my clients' right to run a student newspaper without discrimination because of its religious conent. I also worked on White v. Julian, which protected the right of people to protest against a homeless shelter in their neighborhood.
I also worked for the Federal Election Commission on several cases regarding the right to participate in the election process.
Organizations
Former Attorney for Center for Individual Rights.
Publications
Washington Post
Washington Times
Education/Credentials
J.D. from Univ. of Michigan Law School
Awards and Honors
Truman Scholar
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