PROTEST LAW After seeking input from the Florida Supreme Court on the meaning of the word “riot,” a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed an injunction related to a 2021 state law aimed at cracking down on violent demonstrations. The decision was reached after the Florida Supreme Court responded to the request in June and issued an opinion saying peaceful protesters are not threatened by the law.
GOVERNMENT MEETING SPEAKERS A panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals backed a chapter of the group Moms for Liberty in a constitutional challenge to Brevard County School Board policies that placed restrictions on speakers at board meetings. The panel said policies targeted at “abusive,” “obscene” and “personally directed” speech violated the First Amendment, especially when not specifically defined in the Board approved policy.
AMENDMENT 4 ADVERTISEMENTS A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order to the DeSantis administration regarding legal threats to Florida television stations who air commercials in support of Amendment 4. As a result, the Florida Department of Health may not seek legal charges against the stations. The judge cited the First Amendment as the basis of his decision.
LAB GROWN MEAT A U.S. district judge denied a request by a California-based company for a preliminary injunction against a new Florida law banning the sale and manufacturing of cultivated meat. The law makes it a second-degree misdemeanor to sell lab-grown meat in the state. The company, which manufactures cultivated chicken, argued the law is unconstitutional and conflicts with federal poultry regulations. The judge rejected the motion, stating the company failed to identify a federal regulation concerning cultivated meat.