United States of America v. Robert J. Stevens: International Society for Animal Rights, Amicus Curiae in Support of the Government

It has been said that the enshrinement of free speech and press in the First Amendment gives those civil liberties a “preferred position” in the constitutional pantheon because they make possible all other rights of Americans.

Although the “preferred position” notion has never commanded a majority decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, still, First Amendment rights have long been considered of paramount importance even though several exceptions have been carved into them by the ...