This Just In: Good News for Sailors and George Carlin

By James F. Tierney

You may have heard about the Pennsylvania woman who was charged with disorderly conduct for "loudly cursing at her overflowing toilet," which a neighbor -- an off-duty police officer, no less -- heard. The Boston Globe reports that the judge threw out the charges against her because her speech was "protected speech pursuant to the First Amendment." The Globe also reports that the woman's ACLU lawyer, Barry Dyller, "said rulings over the past 20 years have established that 'colorful language' isn't illegal."