#vaguelaws — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #vaguelaws, aggregated by home.social.
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UK watchdog says #CounterterrorismLaw could hit #protests, #FreeSpeech
By Sam Tabahriti, April 29, 2026
LONDON, (Reuters) - "Britain's terrorism watchdog on Wednesday said the government risked stretching counterterrorism laws beyond their original purpose by using such powers against #ActivistGroups, blurring the line between protests and national security threats.
"In his annual report examining the use of Britain's terrorism legislation during 2024, independent reviewer Jonathan Hall said the subsequent banning of pro-Palestine group Palestine Action had exposed "real uncertainty" over whether serious damage to property alone should qualify as terrorism.
"The law's broad wording could without clearer limits risk pulling protest activity into terrorism policing, even where there is no intent to harm people, Hall said.
" 'There is no legal authority on what 'serious damage to property' means,' Hall wrote, saying the definition could extend beyond violent attacks to acts such as criminal damage, depending on how courts interpret the threshold."
#PalestineAction #UKPol #SilencingFreeSpeech #CriminalizingDissent #VagueLaws #AntiProtestLaws
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UK watchdog says #CounterterrorismLaw could hit #protests, #FreeSpeech
By Sam Tabahriti, April 29, 2026
LONDON, (Reuters) - "Britain's terrorism watchdog on Wednesday said the government risked stretching counterterrorism laws beyond their original purpose by using such powers against #ActivistGroups, blurring the line between protests and national security threats.
"In his annual report examining the use of Britain's terrorism legislation during 2024, independent reviewer Jonathan Hall said the subsequent banning of pro-Palestine group Palestine Action had exposed "real uncertainty" over whether serious damage to property alone should qualify as terrorism.
"The law's broad wording could without clearer limits risk pulling protest activity into terrorism policing, even where there is no intent to harm people, Hall said.
" 'There is no legal authority on what 'serious damage to property' means,' Hall wrote, saying the definition could extend beyond violent attacks to acts such as criminal damage, depending on how courts interpret the threshold."
#PalestineAction #UKPol #SilencingFreeSpeech #CriminalizingDissent #VagueLaws #AntiProtestLaws
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UK watchdog says #CounterterrorismLaw could hit #protests, #FreeSpeech
By Sam Tabahriti, April 29, 2026
LONDON, (Reuters) - "Britain's terrorism watchdog on Wednesday said the government risked stretching counterterrorism laws beyond their original purpose by using such powers against #ActivistGroups, blurring the line between protests and national security threats.
"In his annual report examining the use of Britain's terrorism legislation during 2024, independent reviewer Jonathan Hall said the subsequent banning of pro-Palestine group Palestine Action had exposed "real uncertainty" over whether serious damage to property alone should qualify as terrorism.
"The law's broad wording could without clearer limits risk pulling protest activity into terrorism policing, even where there is no intent to harm people, Hall said.
" 'There is no legal authority on what 'serious damage to property' means,' Hall wrote, saying the definition could extend beyond violent attacks to acts such as criminal damage, depending on how courts interpret the threshold."
#PalestineAction #UKPol #SilencingFreeSpeech #CriminalizingDissent #VagueLaws #AntiProtestLaws
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UK watchdog says #CounterterrorismLaw could hit #protests, #FreeSpeech
By Sam Tabahriti, April 29, 2026
LONDON, (Reuters) - "Britain's terrorism watchdog on Wednesday said the government risked stretching counterterrorism laws beyond their original purpose by using such powers against #ActivistGroups, blurring the line between protests and national security threats.
"In his annual report examining the use of Britain's terrorism legislation during 2024, independent reviewer Jonathan Hall said the subsequent banning of pro-Palestine group Palestine Action had exposed "real uncertainty" over whether serious damage to property alone should qualify as terrorism.
"The law's broad wording could without clearer limits risk pulling protest activity into terrorism policing, even where there is no intent to harm people, Hall said.
" 'There is no legal authority on what 'serious damage to property' means,' Hall wrote, saying the definition could extend beyond violent attacks to acts such as criminal damage, depending on how courts interpret the threshold."
#PalestineAction #UKPol #SilencingFreeSpeech #CriminalizingDissent #VagueLaws #AntiProtestLaws
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UK watchdog says #CounterterrorismLaw could hit #protests, #FreeSpeech
By Sam Tabahriti, April 29, 2026
LONDON, (Reuters) - "Britain's terrorism watchdog on Wednesday said the government risked stretching counterterrorism laws beyond their original purpose by using such powers against #ActivistGroups, blurring the line between protests and national security threats.
"In his annual report examining the use of Britain's terrorism legislation during 2024, independent reviewer Jonathan Hall said the subsequent banning of pro-Palestine group Palestine Action had exposed "real uncertainty" over whether serious damage to property alone should qualify as terrorism.
"The law's broad wording could without clearer limits risk pulling protest activity into terrorism policing, even where there is no intent to harm people, Hall said.
" 'There is no legal authority on what 'serious damage to property' means,' Hall wrote, saying the definition could extend beyond violent attacks to acts such as criminal damage, depending on how courts interpret the threshold."
#PalestineAction #UKPol #SilencingFreeSpeech #CriminalizingDissent #VagueLaws #AntiProtestLaws
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#Oklahoma court clarifies #RiotLaw amid legal battle for 2020 #protesters
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals has clarified the state's definition of rioting, affecting the legal proceedings for five protesters charged in 2020.
Jason Burger, July 18, 2025
OKLAHOMA CITY — "The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals has clarified the state's definition of rioting, impacting the legal proceedings for five individuals charged after a protest in 2020 over the death of #GeorgeFloyd.
"In 2020, five protesters were accused of blocking the path of an officer while painting a #mural outside the police department.
" 'The defendants, who were convicted in the state of Oklahoma, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, saying their free speech rights were violated by being forced to plead or go to trial,' said legal expert Ed Blau. 'What this opinion from the court of criminal appeals did was clarify to the federal court that covers Oklahoma — exactly what Oklahoma statutes mean when it comes to rioting.'
The protesters believed the law was vague or improperly defined."
#ProtestLawsOklahoma #VagueLaws #FirstAmendment #CriminalizingDissent
#Authoritarianism #Fascism #ACAB #Clampdown #CriminalizingProtest
#CharacteristicsOfFascism #USPol #AntiProtestLaws #GeorgeFloydProtests #BLM #ICantBreathe #BlackLivesMatter -
It looks like #HandsOff was successful in that now the #TrumpRegime is going to try and silence the organizers!
Core Democratic groups are preparing to be targeted by the #Trump administration
By STEVE PEOPLES
Updated 12:14 PM EDT, April 15, 2025NEW YORK (AP) — "As President Donald Trump pushes the historical boundaries of executive power, some of the Democratic Party’s core political institutions are preparing for the possibility that the federal government may soon launch criminal investigations against them.
"The Democrats’ dominant national fundraising platform, #ActBlue, and the party’s largest #protest group, #Indivisible, are working with their attorneys for just such a scenario, according to officials within both organizations. Trump’s top political allies have suggested both groups should face prosecution.
"Other Democratic allies are planning for Trump-backed legal crackdowns as well. Wary of antagonizing the Republican president, most prefer to stay anonymous for now.
" 'Every one of our clients is concerned about being arbitrarily targeted by the Trump administration. We are going to great lengths to help clients prepare for or defend themselves,' said Ezra Reese, political law chair at Elias Law Group, which represents Democratic groups and candidates and is chaired by Marc Elias, the lawyer who has himself been a Trump target.
"An FBI spokesperson declined to comment when asked about potential investigations into ActBlue and Indivisible. But White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt did not downplay the threat of a potential criminal probe when asked specifically whether Trump wants the FBI, the Treasury Department or any other federal agency to investigate Democratic groups."
#SilencingDissent #CriminalizingProtest #USPol #CriminalizingDissent #Authoritarianism #Fascism #Clampdown #CharacteristicsOfFascism #TrafficInterference #Crackdown #SLAPPs #VagueLaws #ProtestOrganizers #ProtestSponsors #ProtestSupporters #FirstAmendment
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From 2024: States Are Restricting Protests and Criminalizing Dissent
United States of Suppression is a series documenting the recent crackdown on dissent and protests in the U.S. This op-ed discusses what happens when protesting becomes a crime.
By Elly Page and Alana Greer
June 26, 2024Excerpt: "Since 2017, 21 states across the country have passed new laws that restrict protests — nearly 50 in total — with dozens more being introduced annually.
"Most of these new laws increase criminal penalties for conduct, like interfering with traffic, involved in some kinds of protests. Under laws passed in states such as #Arkansas, #Iowa, and #Tennessee, protesters can spend up to a year in jail for 'obstructing' public #streets or #sidewalks, even though these are traditional venues for First Amendment-related activities. After protests against the #KeystoneXL Pipeline, 14 states dramatically increased penalties for trespassing, which would usually amount to a petty offense, if protesters enter lands with #pipelines or #pipeline construction sites.
"In many cases, these laws go further than punishing individual protesters to include the people and organizations that support them, putting organizers and community groups at risk. Under a recent law in #Oklahoma, an organization that 'conspires' with people to hold a protest can face felony penalties if the protest is deemed to be an 'unlawful assembly' — which state law defines vaguely enough to include a three-person protest that 'disturbs the public peace.' "
Read more:
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/states-restricting-protests-criminalizing#CriminalizingDissent
#Authoritarianism #Fascism #Clampdown #CriminalizingProtest
#CharacteristicsOfFascism #USPol #PipelineProtestors #TrafficInterference #DisturbingThePeace #BogusCharges #Crackdown #SLAPPs #VagueLaws #ProtestOrganizers #ProtestSponsors #ProtestSupporters #FirstAmendment