The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that a La Mesa man who posted racial epithets and a call to “shoot” Barack Obama on an Internet chat site was engaging in constitutionally protected free speech, in overturning his criminal conviction. (See story here.) You can read the opinion here.
While there is little doubt that Bagdasarian was an angry, misguided racist, I applaud the 9th Circuit Court for this decision. There is an important Constitutional and historical lesson that especially political speech is protected — regardless of how ignorant it is.
Locally, the police officer in Earle, Arkansas are citing its citizens for “terroristic threatening” if they use the F word in their conversation. If they use the F word more than once, the officer may cite them for “inciting a riot.” An officer told me with a straight face that he did not see how saying “F— you” was not a threat.
That kind of ignorance of the law is a tragedy. It robs citizens of freedom and puts the reputation of law enforcement officers in the same class as baboons. No offense to actual baboons.
I am under the impression that the local judge in Earle is educating the police force about this kind of oppression. It should be embarrassing to anyone who wears a badge.
I bring up Earle because it was similar ignorance of the law that led to the arrest of Bagdasarian in the above court case. Perhaps it was another law enforcement officer who hears something and decides to take matters into his own hands without regard for the law or the Constitution he was sworn to uphold.
Shame on the ignorant officers who decided to arrest Bagdasarian. Shame on the ignorant officers in Earle who have never dared read the laws they so oppressively attempt to enforce. And credit due to the Ninth Circuit and any other court that stops the ignorance and says yes to freedom.
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