Police say it's illegal to mock government employees

[VMI77]

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/1268 ... ?tab=video

RENTON, Wash. -- Police say a series of cartoons mocking officers and other city workers are criminal, and the people who posted them online are guilty of cyberstalking

[Rex B]

that will last about 5 minutes

[i8godzilla]

Maybe the police and DA should review:

Hustler Magazine v. Falwell

"At the heart of the First Amendment is the recognition of the fundamental importance of the free flow of ideas and opinions on matters of public interest and concern. The freedom to speak one's mind is not only an aspect of individual liberty – and thus a good unto itself – but also is essential to the common quest for truth and the vitality of society as a whole. We have therefore been particularly vigilant to ensure that individual expressions of ideas remain free from governmentally imposed sanctions."

[Keith B]

Sounds to me like the Chief may be using this as a method to find out if the cartoons are more city employees doing. If so, then they can use them against them, if not city employees, then they can drop the investigation.

[mamabearCali]

This is so dead the moment it hits a court. Holy Cow look at any political cartoon anywhere in the country. Yeah--going to hold water like a sieve.

[alvins]

cyberstalking?lol do these people even know what that is?

I see the president being the butt of jokes and badmouthed all the time.you dont see him having people arrested.distasteful yes illegal no.

[Dragonfighter]

I love it. No name or identifying markings of the department being parodied. The chief then comes out and says, "You can't say that about us." So now everyone in the nation knows who it is. Sheesh, what a maroon.

[Pawpaw]

I love it. No name or identifying markings of the department being parodied. The chief then comes out and says, "You can't say that about us." So now everyone in the nation knows who it is. Sheesh, what a maroon.

What were just some dippy little cartoons now have all kinds of credibility.

[ELB]

I love it. No name or identifying markings of the department being parodied. The chief then comes out and says, "You can't say that about us." So now everyone in the nation knows who it is. Sheesh, what a maroon.

What were just some dippy little cartoons now have all kinds of credibility.

Yup. What would be really interesting is to file a FOIA/Open Records/Whatever-Wash-State-Calls-It for all cached browser pages, cookies, etc for every city government computer, including (especially) the police department. The police would balk and claim some kind of exemption for law enforcement purposes, but it would be fun to fight and demand the judge either review the records himself or appoint a special master or somesuch to review the records and sort out the real "law enforcement" records from the general net-cruisin'.

[TxRVer]

Most of the time I don't care for the ACLU, but they are offering to defend the cartoonist.

[C-dub]

Then there's the disappoint mints.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/08 ... bookstore/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[The Annoyed Man]

This is kind of like the radical muslims' response to the Danish Mohammed cartoons.

[puma guy]

It's difficult to believe any judge would issue a search warrant. Maybe the judge is his brother-in-law.

[Tallinthesaddle]

Let's see, you can protest at an veteran's funeral but you can't mock a government employee.....we are getting to be a nation turned upside down by social correctness.

[SewTexas]

Oh dear.....we won't go into what the teen daughter said about the dps agent the first 2 times she took her driving test, she did pass the 3rd time, (first time nerves; 2nd, stupid mistake on the parallel parking), passed on thursday ...that lady was cursed, mocked and more, mostly in the privacy of our car, home, bedroom, but also online...never by name...but heavily mocked....guess we're criminals, oh well, I've always been a bit of a trouble-maker