Free Speech Ruling

via Xeni Jardin BoingBoing:

"Supreme court rules web porn is Free Speech"

Today, America's highest court ruled that a law intended to punish child pornographers is an unconstitutional restriction for online free speech.

The high court divided 5-to-4 over a law passed in 1998, signed by then-President Clinton and now backed by the Bush administration. The majority said a lower court was correct to block the law from taking effect because it likely violates the First Amendment. The American Civil Liberties Union and other critics of the law said that it would restrict far too much material that adults may legally see and buy, the court said. "Today's ruling from the court demonstrates that there are many less restrictive ways to protect children without sacrificing communication intended for adults," said ACLU associate litigation director Ann Beeson in a statement. Beeson argued the case before the court in 2001 and again last March.

Link to Wired News (there's a .pdf link to the actual ruling)

The Electronic Frontier Foundation pipes in here.