R. Richard
Literotica Guru
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2003
- Posts
- 10,382
Those of you who have been following the PC debate on my free speech contest entry will see the relevance of my post. Here is a guy who decided to irresponsibly push free speech. As a result, he is probably going to jail and the right of free speech take yet another hit.
OTOH, if I were the judge, I would find the man innocent by reason of INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE! That would probably cure the guy of ever trying it again.
Joke-telling genitals don't get free-speech protection
Judges reject cable TV show host's free-speech defense
A penis that tells jokes on late night public access television may be expressive of something. But it is not the kind of free expression protected by the First Amendment, the Michigan Court of Appeals has decided, confirming the indecent exposure conviction of the show's producer and host.
Timothy Huffman, 47, who lives north of Grand Rapids, was convicted in Kent County after the penis episode aired twice in spring 2000 on the Grand Rapids public access cable channel GRTV.
In affirming the conviction in an opinion released Wednesday, the appeals court said any "incidental restriction" on the First Amendment is "no greater than is essential to the furtherance of the governmental interest in promoting public morality by prohibiting public nudity."
Huffman, whose defense was assisted by the American Civil Liberties Union, claimed the three-minute segment, "Dick Smart," was an expression of free speech and not obscene.
Reached at his home Wednesday, Huffman said he is the victim of "a relentless prosecutor."
"I'm truly trying to stand up for the constitution. It's a matter of principle," he said.
Huffman, an unemployed musician-cook who is the father of five children, said he'd been targeted for prosecution because he has a criminal record and lacked the resources to defend himself.
"We asked them in court, 'Why don't you prosecute 'Schindler's List'? It has nudity,' " Huffman said. "And they said to me, 'You're no Steven Spielberg.'
"I'm the low-life scapegoat that they can say, 'Look. This is what happens when you put this stuff on Grand Rapids TV.' "
Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Tim McMorrow said Huffman is not being singled out, nor was he charged for expressing himself.
"This is really not a First Amendment case," he said. "The First Amendment protects his right to an opinion, not the right to appear naked on TV."
Huffman was sentenced and served one day in jail, one year of probation and was ordered to pay $1,035 in fines and court costs.
He said he continues to produce the TV show "Tim's Area of Control" on GRTV and a two-hour program that airs in the wee hours of Saturday morning. Huffman said he mostly sticks to adult humor and music.
The offensive-talking penis did a form of Rodney Dangerfield-esque comedy. ("Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was in the Army, ya know. I didn't do much, ya know what I mean? I just hung around.")
Huffman said he and the station's then-supervisors believed the program was well within the bounds of free speech protection.
He said he also hoped it would bring in a wider audience: "You need to have something that gets people to stop changing channels," he said. "I thought it would be good exposure... pardon the pun."
Huffman said he would seek an appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court.
In the meantime, he said he also will be going to jail on another conviction, also for indecent exposure, that stemmed from a dispute with a neighbor. Huffman said he believed the latest charge was unjust. But, unlike the talking penis, it's not a free-speech case.
OTOH, if I were the judge, I would find the man innocent by reason of INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE! That would probably cure the guy of ever trying it again.
Joke-telling genitals don't get free-speech protection
Judges reject cable TV show host's free-speech defense
A penis that tells jokes on late night public access television may be expressive of something. But it is not the kind of free expression protected by the First Amendment, the Michigan Court of Appeals has decided, confirming the indecent exposure conviction of the show's producer and host.
Timothy Huffman, 47, who lives north of Grand Rapids, was convicted in Kent County after the penis episode aired twice in spring 2000 on the Grand Rapids public access cable channel GRTV.
In affirming the conviction in an opinion released Wednesday, the appeals court said any "incidental restriction" on the First Amendment is "no greater than is essential to the furtherance of the governmental interest in promoting public morality by prohibiting public nudity."
Huffman, whose defense was assisted by the American Civil Liberties Union, claimed the three-minute segment, "Dick Smart," was an expression of free speech and not obscene.
Reached at his home Wednesday, Huffman said he is the victim of "a relentless prosecutor."
"I'm truly trying to stand up for the constitution. It's a matter of principle," he said.
Huffman, an unemployed musician-cook who is the father of five children, said he'd been targeted for prosecution because he has a criminal record and lacked the resources to defend himself.
"We asked them in court, 'Why don't you prosecute 'Schindler's List'? It has nudity,' " Huffman said. "And they said to me, 'You're no Steven Spielberg.'
"I'm the low-life scapegoat that they can say, 'Look. This is what happens when you put this stuff on Grand Rapids TV.' "
Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Tim McMorrow said Huffman is not being singled out, nor was he charged for expressing himself.
"This is really not a First Amendment case," he said. "The First Amendment protects his right to an opinion, not the right to appear naked on TV."
Huffman was sentenced and served one day in jail, one year of probation and was ordered to pay $1,035 in fines and court costs.
He said he continues to produce the TV show "Tim's Area of Control" on GRTV and a two-hour program that airs in the wee hours of Saturday morning. Huffman said he mostly sticks to adult humor and music.
The offensive-talking penis did a form of Rodney Dangerfield-esque comedy. ("Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was in the Army, ya know. I didn't do much, ya know what I mean? I just hung around.")
Huffman said he and the station's then-supervisors believed the program was well within the bounds of free speech protection.
He said he also hoped it would bring in a wider audience: "You need to have something that gets people to stop changing channels," he said. "I thought it would be good exposure... pardon the pun."
Huffman said he would seek an appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court.
In the meantime, he said he also will be going to jail on another conviction, also for indecent exposure, that stemmed from a dispute with a neighbor. Huffman said he believed the latest charge was unjust. But, unlike the talking penis, it's not a free-speech case.
