Chapter 3 Vocabulary

injunction

(law) a judicial remedy issued in order to prohibit a party from doing or continuing to do a certain activity

overbreadth

A law is unconstitutionally overbroad if it regulates substantially more speech than the constitution allows to be regulated.

public forum

A public place such as a street, sidewalk, or park where people have a First Admendment right to express their views on public issuses.

commercial speech

Communication in the form of advertising. It can be restricted more than many other types of speech but has been receiving increased protection from the Supreme Court.

narrowly tailored

Constitution requires specificity in regulations (terms defined etc.) Must be narrow in scope and not impact expression unnecessarily (be over breadth)

content-based regulation

Content-based restrictions on the subject matter or viewpoint of speech must meet strict scrutiny. The court will consider whether there are less speech-restrictive alternatives to achieve the government's purpose.

overblock

Filtering on public computers that may prevent library users from accessing legally permissible material.

underblock

Filtering on public computers that misses material that the government wishes to restrict.

least restrictive means

If one right must be restricted to protect another right, the restriction must be as minimal as possible.

symbolic speech

Nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband. The Supreme Court has accorded some symbolic speech protection under the first amendment.

protected speech

Pure speech, speech plus and symbolic speech are forms of speech that are protected by the government. Citizens are allowed to use these freedoms without being prosecuted, as long as they follow certain guidelines.

expressive conduct

The Government can regulate the non-speech elements of expressive conduct if it serves an important government interest, is unrelated to the suppression of the ideas, and is not greater regulation than necessary.

fighting words

Words that by their very nature inflict injury on those to whom they are addressed or incite them to acts of violence

strict scrutiny

a Supreme Court test to see if a law denies equal protection because it does not serve a compelling state interest and is not narrowly tailored to achieve that goal

place

a job in an organization

time

a period of time considered as a resource under your control and sufficient to accomplish something

clear and present danger

a risk posed to public safety by certain speech or conduct; the government has the legal authority to suppress such speech and conduct

manner

a way of acting or behaving

obscenity

an offensive or indecent word or phrase

First Admendment

freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, right of assembly, right to petition

prior restraint

government censorship of information before it is published or broadcast

unprotected speech

libel, obscenity, fighting words, and commercial speech, which are not entitled to constitutional protection in all circumstances

vague

not clearly understood or expressed

offensive speech and conduct

speech and conduct that is offensive to others

compelling state interest (CSI)

the government interest of the highest order to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens

child pornography

the illegal use of children in pornographic pictures or films

chilling effect

the impact of vague or overbroad laws that repress free speech rights by making people fear criminal reprisal for the content of their speech

facail review

the review of facial