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Old 08-24-2010, 18:15   #1
Streck-Fu
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Stolen Valor Act unconstitutional?

I think the Stolen Valor Act is a valid law to prevent advantage or profit by claiming medals won and service history if not actually true. But then, the government messed up by claiming any false speech to not be protected by the 1st Am.

LINK

DENVER -- A law that makes it illegal to lie about being a war hero is unconstitutional because it violates free speech, a federal judge ruled Friday as he dismissed a case against a Colorado man who claimed he received two military medals.

Rick Glen Strandlof claimed he was an ex-Marine who was wounded in Iraq and received the Purple Heart and Silver Star, but the military had no record he ever served. He was charged with violating the Stolen Valor Act, which makes it a crime punishable by up to a year in jail to falsely claim to have won a military medal.

U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn dismissed the case and said the law is unconstitutional, ruling the government did not show it has a compelling reason to restrict that type of statement.

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney in Denver said prosecutors are reviewing the decision and haven't decided whether to appeal. The spokesman said that decision would be made by the U.S. Justice Department in Washington and prosecutors in Denver.

Strandlof's lawyer, Bob Pepin, said he hadn't spoken to Strandlof since the ruling was issued. Pepin said he would advise Strandlof not to comment publicly because the case might be appealed.

"Obviously, we think this is the right decision, or we wouldn't have been making the objections to the statute to begin with," he said. Pepin said Strandlof has been living in a halfway house in Denver while his case is in the courts.

The law has also been challenged in California and in a case now before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Denver attorney Christopher P. Beall, who filed a friend-of-the-court brief for the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado, said the Stolen Valor Act is fatally flawed because it doesn't require prosecutors to show anyone was harmed or defamed by the lie.

"The government position was that any speech that's false is not protected by the First Amendment. That proposition is very dangerous," Beall said.

"It puts the government in a much more powerful position to prosecute people for speaking out on things they believe to be true but turn out not to be true," he said.

Beall said the ACLU was not defending the actions Strandlof is accused of, but took issue with the principle behind the law.

Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., who sponsored the Stolen Valor Act in the House, predicted the decision will be overturned on appeal.

"This is an issue of fraud plain and simple," Salazar said in a written release. "The individuals who violate this law are those who knowingly portray themselves as pillars of the community for personal and monetary gain."

Pam Sterner, who as a college student wrote a policy analysis that became the basis of Salazar's bill, said the issue isn't free speech but misrepresentation. Sterner, a former Coloradan who now lives in Virginia, said authentic medal winners' credibility suffers when impostors are exposed because the public becomes suspicious of even true stories of heroism.
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Old 01-12-2016, 15:11   #2
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'Stolen Valor' conviction overturned by federal appeals court

Text from: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/01/12...l?intcmp=hpbt4


'Stolen Valor' conviction overturned by federal appeals court
Published January 12, 2016
· Associated Press


"A federal appeals court on Monday tossed out a veteran's conviction for wearing military medals he didn't earn, saying it was a form of free speech protected by the Constitution.

A specially convened 11-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the First Amendment allows people to wear unearned military honors.

Elven Joe Swisher of Idaho was convicted in 2007 of violating the Stolen Valor Act, which made it a misdemeanor to falsely claim military accomplishments. President George W. Bush signed it into law in 2006, but the U.S. Supreme Court struck it down in 2012 as a violation of free speech protections.

Investigators looked into Swisher's military claims after he testified at the 2005 trial of a man charged with soliciting the murder of a federal judge. Swisher wore a Purple Heart on the witness stand.

Swisher testified that David Roland Hinkson offered him $10,000 to kill the federal judge presiding over Hinkson's tax-evasion case. Swisher said Hinkson was impressed after Swisher boasted that he killed "many men" during the Korean War.

Prosecutors say Swisher enlisted in the Marine Corps a year after the Korean War ended but was never wounded in the line of duty. Swisher was honorably discharged in 1957, and discharge documents indicate that he didn't receive any medals, according to the 9th Circuit ruling.

During his 2007 trial, prosecutors showed the jury a photograph of Swisher wearing several military medals and awards, including the Silver Star, Navy and Marine Corps Ribbon, Purple Heart, and the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with a Bronze "V."

Swisher's attorney Joseph Horras of Boise, Idaho, couldn't immediately be reached for comment Monday.

After the Stolen Valor Act was struck down, Congress passed a new law making it a crime to profit financially by lying about military service. President Barack Obama signed it in 2013.

After Swisher's conviction, Congress removed a provision making it illegal to wear unearned medals."

...
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Old 01-12-2016, 16:26   #3
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Great news, I've been wanting to flash my FBI badge for sometime now.

Freedom of speech right?


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Old 01-12-2016, 16:35   #4
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Great news, I've been wanting to flash my FBI badge for sometime now.

Freedom of speech right?


There's some guys hanging out up in OR that could probably use a culinary change of pace.
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Old 01-12-2016, 16:38   #5
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I always wanted to be a Judge. Nothing stopping me now, who needs a law degree.
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Old 01-12-2016, 16:41   #6
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The "laws" that apply to federal law enforcement are the same exact ones that apply to the military and medals.

So what the liberal pillow biting white knuckle 9th circuit court is saying is that's it's also ok to wear federal badges/medals. There's no difference.
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Old 01-12-2016, 16:43   #7
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The difference being is that the federal police will arrest you and call it another name.

Impersonating a federal agent is the same thing as impersonating a military person, same law. Only one will get you arrested.

We really have a screwed up system.
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Old 08-24-2016, 09:38   #8
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"Stolen Valor" Act Signed into Law (in Delaware)

http://www.capegazette.com/article/s...20Bird%20Brief

<<Transcript follows>>

People seeking benefits by posing as veterans or active duty military personnel could now face a stiff fine under a measure just signed into law by Gov. Jack Markell. Sponsored by Rep. Rich Collins, R-Millsboro, House Bill 80 (as amended) expands the crime of criminal impersonation to include those who falsely claim to be current or past members of the U.S. military for the purpose of "obtaining money, property, or other tangible benefit." The legislation also applies to veterans who try to benefit by deceptively claiming a higher rank then they achieved.

Those found guilty of the new Class A misdemeanor will pay a steep price for their transgression.

"The penalty is $1,000 and the judge is not allowed to reduce or suspend that fine," Collins said. "I think veterans deserve all the respect we can possibly give them. This law will serve to help protect the legacy they worked so hard to create."

More than a dozen legislators and members of veterans' organizations recently attended a signing ceremony for the law in Markell's Dover office, with many sharing stories of scams perpetrated by individuals who could now be found guilty of violating the new statute.

"I think there is more of this than is being reported," said Sen. Bruce Ennis, D-Smyrna, the co-prime sponsor of the bill.

Commissioner Ronald Sarg, with the Delaware Commission of Veterans Affairs, said it is an easy crime to perpetrate since it is not difficult for someone "to put on fatigues and pretend to be a veteran."

Collins said the law will hopefully give authorities a tool to crack down on such acts and potentially curtail them.

Rep. Ruth Briggs King, R-Georgetown, a co-sponsor of the bill, said she believes the law will raise public awareness, making it more difficult to commit this type of fraud.

The measure passed the General Assembly unanimously. It takes effect immediately.
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Old 08-24-2016, 10:09   #9
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Yeah that's nice, now find one liberal district attorney in Delaware that is going to prosecute someone for it....... (don't hold your breath)
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Old 08-24-2016, 17:43   #10
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Yeah that's nice, now find one liberal district attorney in Delaware that is going to prosecute someone for it....... (don't hold your breath)
And there's the rub. Across the country Stolen Valor cases are a priority about like jaywalking.
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Old 08-25-2016, 14:25   #11
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And there's the rub. Across the country Stolen Valor cases are a priority about like jaywalking.
Bingo.
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Old 08-25-2016, 15:22   #12
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The difference being is that the federal police will arrest you and call it another name.

Impersonating a federal agent is the same thing as impersonating a military person, same law. Only one will get you arrested.

We really have a screwed up system.
So, can I get a lobotomy, put on a dress and call myself Nancy Pelosi?
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Old 08-25-2016, 15:28   #13
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Unfortunately, stolen valor will never mean as much -- or be as important to -- anyone that isn't a veteran. That's why it isn't investigated as rigorously as other crimes. That, as well as ignorance of its existence. It's cases like those that have to be followed through with by the complainant in order to make sure they are being investigated to the fullest.
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Old 08-25-2016, 16:30   #14
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Here is a real peach....

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/08/25...pt-claims.html
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Old 08-25-2016, 16:37   #15
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The worst of posers are those that are veterans and lie about their service for benefits that many who truly need them are suffering and unable to obtain them.

He is a crumb...and will never be able to pay those amounts back, so let him do ALL the time he has earned.
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