Well, we made a promise we swore we’d always remember
No retreat, baby, no surrender
Like soldiers in the winter’s night
With a vow to defend
No retreat, baby, no surrender
-Bruce Springsteen
BREWER, Maine: In the case of McBreairty v. Brewer, the federal court ordered the parties to brief the issue of whether a journalist can publish a photograph if the photo had been created in violation of a privacy statute. It is not good form to take an absolute position in a legal debate. We should always leave some room to fall back, somewhere we can retreat to if we are proven wrong.
But sometimes, we do not do that.
This is one of those times. If you acquire information, a photo, a film, anything lawfully, you may publish it. There is no retreat from this position. The government in this case feels otherwise. In fact, they double down on their censorious desires. With the help of the Center for American Liberty, we are pushing back on this attack on the First Amendment.
And there will be no retreat, no surrender.
Our brief: https://randazza.com/wp-content/uploads/McBreairty-Brief-Concerning-Photograph.pdf
The Government’s Brief: https://randazza.com/wp-content/uploads/026-Brewer-Defendants-Brief-Concerning-1A-Protecting-of-Photo.pdf
A Government Actor’s Brief: https://randazza.com/wp-content/uploads/McBreairty-v.-Brewer-School-Dept-MacDonald-Brief-re-Article-Photo.pdf
We will update this with the court’s order, when it rules in our favor.
