Chief’s Counsel: What Hath the Court Wrought? 

The past year, 2024, has seen the U.S. Supreme Court issue several decisions of importance to police leaders—not just as police officers but as employers and government employees. And there is more to come. 

Social Media and Public Officials 

When is a public official’s social media account “private” or “government”? The question matters because, on a private account, the public official can ban, block, and censor posts. On a government account, however, the First Amendment places great restrictions on account holder’s ability to control content. As Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett put it in Lindke v. Freed 

 

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A review of federal court decisions during 2023 confirms that the same principles enunciated in the leading case on the subject, Byrd v. Brishke, which was decided over 50 years ago, are still in pla...
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The 2024 U.S. General Election will be held on November 5 across all 50 U.S. states. It is impossible to drive down a street, enter a shop, or go for a neighborhood walk without seeing campaign sign...
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Molotov cocktails exploding, bricks smashing into windshields, and the storming of barricades—these chaotic scenes highlight the challenges faced by police personnel during public order events. W...
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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) Final Regulations interpreting the Pregnancy Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) took effect on June 18, 2024.1 In addition to actual pregnancy, ...
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The first duty of any civilized government is to protect the life and property of its people through its military and justice functions.1 Policing’s first duty then is, and must be, to protect co...
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In Jimerson v. Lewis, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit brought to the forefront the complexities involved in the decision-making processes of supervisory and command-level offi...
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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits a covered U.S. employer (which includes police departments) from making disability-related inquiries or requiring medical examinations of job applic...
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Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics should be built into all artificial intelligence (AI) programming. The Three Laws provide that a robot may not harm a human being, must obey a human being, a...
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Women in law enforcement are not strong for women, or strong despite being women. They need not be as tough as a man or tougher than men. Women are strong and tough and formidable....
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In the wake of recurring incidents of police corruption and excessive uses of force, the fundamental essence of policing in the United States is under intense scrutiny. Debates continue to reverberate...