GraceRandolph Posted July 16, 2023 Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) NEWFANE, N.Y. — The Cornell Law School's First Amendment Clinic has filed a lawsuit on behalf of a Niagara County woman who faces criminal charges over missing cows. They claim a judge exceeded his authority by placing a social media "gag order" on Tracy Murphy as her case awaits resolution. Murphy is a well-known animal rights activist and the founder of Asha's Farm Sanctuary in Newfane. Ten months ago she found herself embroiled in a cattle caper that resulted in criminal charges. It was last August when Murphy said a cow and steer wandered onto her property, which she then kept and cared for. When the owner of the cattle demanded their return, she initially refused, until he could prove they were his, and pay her for the husbandry she extended. After police raided her animal sanctuary to retrieve the animals, Murphy was charged with felony grand larceny, a charge which was later reduced to a misdemeanor. However, Town Judge Bruce Barnes also issued a blanket ban on Murphy's use of social media while her case is pending. "This would mean she can't even open Facebook on her phone and scroll through to see pictures of her relative's kids," said Christina N. Neitzey, a Stanton Fellow with First Amendment Clinic, which claims the order amounts to a violation of Murphy's constitutional right to free speech. "Suppressing first amendment protected activity before it's even happened is what we call a prior restraint, and the Supreme Court has called that one of the most serious and least tolerable infringements on first amendment rights," Neitzey said. Noted first amendment attorney Paul Cambria, who is not involved in the case, thinks the lawyers from Cornell are absolutely right, especially in their contention the judge's order was overly broad and vague. "It's overly broad in the sense that it says she can't access all social media. It would have to (instead) pinpoint something that could affect the case negatively. Secondly, as far as it is vague, it has to say something specific, such as you can't make a statement that could interfere with the fairness of a trial or something like that. And this judge didn't do that." Cambria also believes such an order, issued as a condition of Murphy's continued pre-trial release, runs afoul of bail laws. "The bail laws don't allow for this," said Cambria, while noting the setting of bail involves a determination of risk as to whether or not a defendant will return to court. #IStandWithTracyMurphy Edited July 16, 2023 by GraceRandolph
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