Supreme Court rejects citizen journalist's case against Texas officials who arrested her for reporting
NBC News • • general
Key Points:
- The Supreme Court declined to hear a case brought by citizen journalist Priscilla Villarreal, who claimed her First Amendment rights were violated when she was arrested for soliciting information from a police officer in Laredo, Texas.
- The key legal issue was whether the officials could claim qualified immunity, which would shield them from being sued; the court's refusal means Villarreal's civil rights claim cannot proceed.
- Villarreal had contacted a police officer to confirm details about a suicide and car accident, leading to her arrest under a state law prohibiting solicitation of information from public employees, though charges were later dropped.
- Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, criticizing the court for ignoring what she called a clear First Amendment violation and expressing concern over the court's tendency to side with police in qualified immunity cases.
- In a separate qualified immunity case, the court ruled in favor of a Vermont police officer accused of excessive force against a protester, a decision also opposed by Sotomayor and other liberal justices.
