The Supreme Court ruled Monday that violent threats online may protected free speech, as long as they are not malevolent or reckless.
The case concerned Anthony Elonis, who posted violent threats about his ex-wife on Facebook after she left him and he lost his job. The threats also referenced other people, including a kindergarten class and FBI agents.
Elonis was convicted for the threats, but maintained that his postings were more akin to violent rap lyrics than actual threats.
The case now heads back to a lower court, which will decide whether Elonis’s threats were malevolent, or artistic free speech.
Read more at USA Today.
