Ind. Bill Threatens Students' Online First Amendment Rights

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

H.B. 1015, introduced by Indiana Rep. Eric Koch (R-Bedford), further empowers school principals to combat off-school cyberbullying or endangers students' online First Amendment rights, depending on one's viewpoint.

The Gannett-owned daily (Lafayette, Ind.) Journal & Courier (www.jconline.com) this week reported the proposed measure builds on Indiana's anti-cyberbullying statute [Ind. Code Sec. 35-45-2-2], which prohibits electronic harassment of a person through an obscene communication. H.B. 1015 would allow school administrators to discipline students' out-of-school online doings that run afoul of school purposes or educational function. The broad legislation punishes tortious acts, such as defamation, and juvenile acts, which the Indiana Code does not specifically define, thereby granting principals wider wiggle room.

The Student Press Law Center criticized H.B. 1015 for its vagueness and over-reach against constitutionally protected speech, suggesting it would expose a student who blogged "school is a horrible place" to disciplinary action, according to the J & C article. Koch introduced a similar bill last year that stalled in the Senate over criticism that it was overbroad.

H.B. 1015 would expand existing law that subjects to discipline students who engage in "unlawful" out-of-school conduct against other students or teachers to encompass punishment for "delinquent, criminal or tortious" acts.  Not all school administrators back the proposed bill, lamenting that they lack adequate staff and time to monitor students' home computer behavior, a task they believe would better be carried out by parents.

Teens Poke Classmate in Facebook Ruse; End Up in Pokey

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)The Ft. Worth Star-Telegram reports that two Granbury (Texas) middle-schoolers, ages 12 and 13, who allegedly created a false Facebook page about a 12-year-old classmate, have been charged with online impersonation, a third-degree felony, and face up to 10 years in jail if convicted.

The target of the false page does not participate in Facebook, so the false page flourished for a month and attracted 63 friends before it was shut down, the daily reports. The defendants allegedly featured a celebrity on the fake page who purportedly resembles the victim, and according to the Hood County Sheriff, the page contained profanity and alleged threats against other students that harmed the victim's reputation.

To combat cyberbullying, the Texas legislature passed the online impersonation measure in 2009. Free speech advocates, including the Student Press Law Center, have questioned the constitutionality of the law.

UPDATE: Prosecutor & Student Paper Settle Suit Over College Paper Raid

Image via Wikipedia

The Commonwealth of Virginia will pick up the $10,000 legal fees tab of The Breeze, the college paper of Harrisonburg-based James Madison University, that was raided two months ago (see "TUOL" post 4/20/10).

Breeze Editor Katie Thisdell turned over 900 photos to police during the raid, 600 of which were taken during Springfest, where violence erupted and more than 30 arrests resulted.  Prosecutor Marsha Garst said henceforth, authorities will rely on subpoenas to news organizations, instead of search warrants, absent an imminent threat of bodily harm to an individual.Subpoenas enable a court to weigh the merits of the government's need for information against journalist's privilege.

The resolution is seen as reinforcing The Privacy Protection Act of 1980 [42 U.S.C. sec. 2000aa], which protects newsrooms from unconstitutional seizures by law enforcement.

Authorities Raid College Paper; Confiscate Riot Photos

Image via Wikipedia

Offices of The Breeze, the student newspaper of Harrisonburg, Va.-based James Madison University, were raided by the county attorney's office and police last week, who confiscated hundreds of photos concerning an April 10 off-campus riot at which 30 persons were arrested and more than 40 were injured.

The Roanoke Times reports that The Breeze's editor-in-chief Katie Thisdell reluctantly complied with the request of Rockingham County Commonwealth Attorney Marsha Garst after it appeared authorities were prepared to remove the newspaper's computers.  According to the Times report, authorities copied more than 900 images from computer hard drives, only two-thirds of which depicted the riot. The fracas broke out at a spring gathering that drew more than 8,000 students.

The Breeze is being represented by attorneys from the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va. The SPLC believes authorities may have violated the federal Privacy Protection Act [42 U.S.C. sec. 2000aa], which shields news organizations from government searches  absent a warrant.

U. Wisc. Needs FERPA Guide to Navigate Student Paper Flap

Image via Wikipedia

Student journalists at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee Post have sued the university for allegedly violating the state's public records law (Wis. Stat. sec. 19.31-19.39).

The suit in Milwaukee County Circuit Court involves the university's refusal to identify a student whose voice was recorded at a public committee meeting in reliance on the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ("FERPA") [20 U.S.C. sec.1232g; 34 C.F.R. Pt. 99], commonly known as the Buckley Amendment.  The school declined to provide Post staff with minutes, audio recordings or agendas of the Union Policy Board, the policy arm of the UWM Student Union, although the board's meetings are open to the public.

In the past, the college's administration has cited FERPA as the basis for its refusal to provide to the Post the identity of school employees who sit on student disciplinary hearing panels or taxpayer-funded university-related travel records of student government officers. Frank D. LoMonte, executive director of the Student Press Law Center ("SPLC") criticized UWM for not using common sense in pursuing a stringent, literal interpretation of FERPA.

The Buckley Amendment is intended to protect the privacy of student education records, such as grades, rather than a public body such as the Union Policy Board, even though it is comprised of students.