This post summarizes published criminal and related decisions released by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals during March 2023. Cases that may be of interest to state practitioners are summarized monthly. Previous Fourth Circuit case summaries can be found here.
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Fourth Circuit Rules that the First Amendment May Protect a Vehicle Occupant’s Right to Livestream a Traffic Stop
Several years ago, two officers working for the Winterville Police Department stopped a car for a traffic violation. Dijon Sharpe was a passenger in the vehicle. Sharpe had some prior negative interactions with police, so he began using his phone to livestream the stop on Facebook Live. One of the officers saw what Sharpe was doing and attempted to grab the phone, saying “We ain’t gonna do Facebook Live, because that’s an officer safety issue.” Sharpe held on to the phone and continued to livestream the stop. One of the officers told him that recording the stop was fine, but that livestreaming was not permissible and that “in the future,” if he attempted to livestream a stop, his phone would be taken from him. Sharpe subsequently sued, contending that the officers violated his First Amendment rights by trying to prevent him from livestreaming the stop. A federal district court dismissed his complaint. Sharpe appealed, and the Fourth Circuit recently issued a significant opinion in the case. Read on to find out what the court said.
Case Summaries: Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (May 2021)
This post summarizes published criminal law decisions released by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in May 2021 that may be of interest to state practitioners.
Case Summaries: Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (April 2021)
This post summarizes published criminal and related decisions from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals released during April 2021.
Case Summaries: Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (Nov. 2020)
This post summarizes published decisions from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals decided in November, 2020, that may be of interest to state practitioners.