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Beyond The Schoolhouse Gate: Should Schools Have The Authority To Punish Online Student Speech?, Brittany L. Kaspar
Beyond The Schoolhouse Gate: Should Schools Have The Authority To Punish Online Student Speech?, Brittany L. Kaspar
Chicago-Kent Law Review
This note analyzes the current circuit split over whether schools should have the authority to punish students for speech made on the Internet. Part I discusses the First Amendment generally and the four Supreme Court cases that have refined its application with respect to on-campus student speech. Part II presents the ensuing circuit split over the constitutionality of disciplining students for online, off-campus speech. Specifically, this section will explain both of the existing perspectives and why neither of the two is ideal. Part III attempts to devise a solution to the current divide by advocating a compromise position. In particular, …
Dueling Values: The Clash Of Cyber Suicide Speech And The First Amendment, Thea E. Potanos
Dueling Values: The Clash Of Cyber Suicide Speech And The First Amendment, Thea E. Potanos
Chicago-Kent Law Review
On March 15, 2011, William Melchert-Dinkel, a Minnesota nurse, was convicted of two counts of assisted suicide, based solely on things he said in emails and online chat rooms. This note examines whether cyber speech encouraging suicide, such as Melchert-Dinkel's, should be protected by the First Amendment. States have compelling interests in preserving life, preventing suicide, and protecting vulnerable persons from abuse, and the majority of them have assisted suicide statutes that could be applied to cyber-suicide speech. However, because cyber- suicide speech does not fit neatly into recognized categories of "low-value" or unprotected speech, punishment may be foreclosed by …