Samantha Cormack
Elonis v. U.S. Court Majority Opinion In this case, Anthony Elonis was accused of threatening his ex-wife, co-workers, a kindergarten class, an FBI agent, and the local police through rap lyrics he posted on Facebook. Elonis claims they were not literal, but instead artistic expression to help cope with the events in his life. This includes his wife and family leaving him, and losing his job at an amusement park. However, the people he was directing it towards took his lyrics as threats. I believe that the court should have to prove if someone had the intent to threaten someone, as I will explain later. There are a many strong key points that are in Elonis’ favor. The first main point, and probably the strongest point, would be that Elonis put a disclaimer in his comments. According to the brief of the case, Elonis put a disclaimer at the end of his comments in attempt for his statements to not be taken seriously, stating “This is not a threat.” Because Elonis said this even before the charges, its heavy evidence that he did not actually intend to commit the crimes stated in his comments and lyrics. If he did, he wouldn’t go through the trouble of putting a disclaimer. This is important because it provides evidence against the fact that he intended to harm the people he so mentioned. The second point would be that every American citizen has the right to freedom of speech, including Elonis. The very first amendment on the constitution states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” This amendment proves that Elonis is entitled to say whatever he pleases, this includes his song lyrics. This is the first amendment for a reason, and it should be taken seriously and respected. Of course there are limits to the first amendment, like shouting ¨Fire!¨ in a peaceful public place is illegal, however saying this can cause real physical harm to citizens around. This is not the same as song lyrics, like in Elonis´ case. At first, I found the opposing argument to be in the right. After reading Elonis’ lyrics, they did seem pretty threatening. The lyrics were absurdly specific, and I can see why somebody would take it as a threat. However, there is just not enough evidence to suggest that Elonis actually wanted to commit any of these crimes. In fact, there is more evidence against these statements being actual threats. One of the key points being that he puts a disclaimer on his comments saying “This is not a threat.” I believe that the precedent set here should be that we need to prove if somebody has the intention of threatening somebody, rather than it being solely decided on the victims’ interpretation of what is and isn’t a threat. In the future, if somebody says something totally harmless, such as “I don’t agree with you,” a statement they didn’t intend to be hurtful, does that person deserve to be punished if the victim takes it as a threat? This is the precedent that would be set if the U.S. council claims victory in this case. Even if someone says something like ¨I´m going to kill kindergarteners,¨ they will still need enough evidence to prove that they actually meant it. This phrase could mean something totally different to the person who is actually saying it. They do not deserve to be punished for something they possibly didn't even intend. We can't have people falsely accused in prison. That is not the way America should be. Everyone deserves a fair trial, and freedom of speech. We can’t disregard the first amendment on the bill of rights in this case. Freedom of speech is important, and is a very essential part of America. Setting the wrong precedent would go against Freedom of Speech. It is so ordered.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI'm Samantha Cormack, and this is my blog for my 10th grade year of 2018-2019! If you would like to know more about me, visit the home page and you will find my biography. Archives |