by Kyla Asbury | Mar. 19, 2018, 3:16pm
CHARLESTON – The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals has ruled that completely restricting a person’s access to the internet as a condition of their parole from prison is a violation of the First Amendment.
The West Virginia Parole Board revoked Bobby Ross’s parole based, in part, on him violating a condition of parole prohibiting him from possessing or having contact with a computer or other device with internet access, according to the March 12 opinion.
“We are asked whether this condition of parole is constitutional under the First Amendment,” wrote Justice Menis Ketchum.
In 2017, the United States Supreme Court held in Packingham v. North Carolina that a state statute barring registered sex offenders from accessing social media networking websites was an overbroad restriction of the right to free speech in violation of the First Amendment.
“Like the statute in Packingham, Mr. Ross’s condition of parole ‘bars access to…sources for knowing current events, checking ads for employment, speaking and listening in the modern public square, and otherwise exploring the vast realms of human thought and knowledge,’” the decision states.
Read the entire article from West Virginia Record – LINK BELOW
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Mar. 19, 2018, 3:16pm
https://wvrecord.com/stories/511365463-supreme-court-says-restricting-internet-access-while-on-parole-violates-first-amendment