The Curious Lawyer: Bill of Rights - The Fifth Amendment

Everyone knows that the First Amendment safeguards freedom of speech from government intervention, but does that protection extend to speech that is hateful, offensive or incites violence? Peter Afrasiabi reviews the history of free speech protections in the United States — from famous cases involving flag burning, Nazi marches and anti-war protests — and carries it through to present day controversies including cyberstalkers who send messages threating violence and former President Donald Trump who made statements targeting protesters at a campaign rally.

This program looks at an actual case of a weaponized legal system, what the Supreme Court called a “crusade,” by exploring the Cold War trials of Harry Bridges. Experienced intellectual property lawyer Peter Afrasiabi, who authored the definitive book on the Harry Bridges trials from National Archive and FBI FOIA records, takes one of the four trials Bridges was subjected to, and looks at how the legal system was contorted to produce what was persecution by prosecution, identifying along the way some of the issues that led the Supreme Court to so conclude.

Join Professor Saltzman as he explains and provides insight into each of the 19 Supreme Court cases decided during the 2021-2022 term that involved criminal law issues.

In the latest installment of “The Curious Lawyer” series, Peter Afrasiabi reviews landmark Supreme Court decisions in cases involving draft card and flag burning and other anti-war messaging, publication of the Pentagon Papers, conscientious objectors to the draft and claims that the war itself was illegal.