{"id":2373161,"date":"2024-11-25T11:03:02","date_gmt":"2024-11-25T16:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-sidesteps-first-amendment-fight-over-graphic-tobacco-warnings-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-11-25T11:08:17","modified_gmt":"2024-11-25T16:08:17","slug":"supreme-court-sidesteps-first-amendment-fight-over-graphic-tobacco-warnings-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-sidesteps-first-amendment-fight-over-graphic-tobacco-warnings-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court sidesteps First Amendment fight over graphic tobacco warnings &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsupreme-court-sidesteps-first-amendment-fight-over-graphic-tobacco-warnings-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2373161&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Supreme Court recently chose not to hear \u2064a First Amendment \u2063case brought \u2064by <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">tobacco companies\u200c contesting federally mandated graphic \u2062warning labels<\/a> on cigarette packaging. This decision\u200b leaves in\u200c place a \u200c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-to-hear-appeal-over-ky-abortion-law\/\" title=\"SCOTUS to hear appeal over Ky. abortion law\">lower court ruling<\/a> that\u200d upheld the regulations. Companies such as R.J. Reynolds and ITG \u2062Brands \u2063argued that \u200cthe Food \u200cand Drug Administration&#8217;s (FDA) requirement for alarming health warnings infringed upon \u200ctheir constitutional\u200b rights\u200b by essentially\u200d forcing them\u200d to promote an anti-smoking message.\u2063 The mandated images include disturbing visuals such\u200b as amputated toes and cancerous tumors, which the companies described as\u2063 exaggerated. The regulation, established in 2020, requires that warnings occupy 50% of \u200bcigarette packs and 20% of advertisements, aiming to deter smoking,\u200c particularly among adolescents. Although the\u2063 FDA has not enforced the rule due to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-more-votes-than-voters-in-key-swing-states\/\" title=\"Trump: More Votes Than Voters in Key Swing States\">ongoing legal challenges<\/a>, it\u200d remains in effect. The tobacco \u200bcompanies maintain that these requirements violate their rights under \u200cthe First Amendment.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Supreme Court sidesteps First Amendment fight over graphic tobacco warnings<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1890550\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Supreme Court<\/a> on Monday declined to hear a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/first-amendment\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">First Amendment<\/a> challenge brought by tobacco companies against federally mandated graphic warning labels on cigarette packs, leaving in place a lower court ruling that upheld the regulations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>R.J. Reynolds, ITG Brands, Liggett, and other tobacco companies had argued that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/fda\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Food and Drug Administration<\/a>&lsquo;s requirement to include visually disturbing health warnings violated their constitutional rights by forcing them to promote the government&rsquo;s antismoking message.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An example image from the Supreme Court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/DocketPDF\/24\/24-189\/322849\/20240819165109407_RJRT%20Petition%20for%20Writ%20of%20Certiorari.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"petition\">petition<\/a> by tobacco companies seeking to keep <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/elite-san-francisco-school-nixes-merit-based-admission\/\" title=\"Elite San Francisco School Nixes Merit-Based Admission\">graphic images<\/a> off their product.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The images, which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/batman-sidekick-robin-comes-out-as-bisexual-teenager-in-new-comic\/\" title=\"Batman Sidekick Robin Comes Out As Bisexual Teenager In New Comic\">include depictions<\/a> of amputated toes, cancerous tumors, stunted fetal development, and erectile dysfunction, were described by the companies as &ldquo;exaggerated&rdquo; and misleading representations of smoking&rsquo;s risks,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/DocketPDF\/24\/24-189\/322849\/20240819165109407_RJRT%20Petition%20for%20Writ%20of%20Certiorari.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according<\/a>&nbsp;to the petition to the high court.<\/p>\n<p>The tobacco companies filed their lawsuit shortly after the FDA issued the regulation in 2020 during the Trump administration. <\/p>\n<p>The rule requires that the warnings cover the top 50% of cigarette packs and 20% of advertisements, with the goal of deterring smoking, especially among teenagers. Although the FDA has not enforced the rule amid legal challenges, the regulation remains technically in effect.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In this Friday, July 17, 2015, photo, Marlboro cigarettes, an Altria brand, are on display at a Smoker Friendly shop in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo\/Gene J. Puskar)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The companies argued that the mandated warnings crossed constitutional boundaries by compelling speech. The First Amendment, they contended, prohibits the government from forcing private entities to disseminate controversial messages.<\/p>\n<p>U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker <a href=\"https:\/\/law.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/district-courts\/texas\/txedce\/6:2020cv00176\/196858\/106\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">initially sided<\/a> with the tobacco companies in 2022, ruling from Tyler, Texas, that the graphic labels violated First Amendment protections.<\/p>\n<p>However, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled in March that the warnings were &ldquo;factual and uncontroversial,&rdquo; rejecting the companies&rsquo; claims and paving the way for their appeal to the high court.<\/p>\n<p>While the Supreme Court&rsquo;s refusal to hear the case does not establish a nationwide precedent, it leaves the 5th Circuit&rsquo;s ruling intact. <\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Lawyers for the government argued the justices should not review the case now because the trial-level court had not ruled on the tobacco companies&rsquo; claim that the FDA violated federal rulemaking policies when it issued the visual warning requirements.<\/p>\n<p>For this, the case could reach the Supreme Court again as litigation continues in the lower court.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1890550\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1890550\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Supreme Court avoids First Amendment dispute on tobacco warnings<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2373162,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/AP24327556423072.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[33332,45662,33211,32275,45661],"class_list":["post-2373161","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-first-amendment","tag-graphic-labels","tag-legal-news","tag-supreme-court","tag-tobacco-warnings"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/AP24327556423072.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2373161","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2373161"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2373161\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2373170,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2373161\/revisions\/2373170"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2373162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2373161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2373161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2373161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}