MEMORANDUM FOR: FSC MEMBERS AND FRIENDS FROM: BILL OLSON & DICK DINGMAN SUBJECT: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., et al. v. Village of Stratton, et al., No. 00-1737 (U.S. Supreme Court) DATE: JUNE 24, 2002 As you may recall, FSCs section 501(c)(3) sister organization, Free Speech Defense and Education Fund (FSDEF), participated as an amicus curiae (friend of the court) in the above-referenced case before the United States Supreme Court. FSDEF, along with certain other interested parties interested in the constitutional principles at stake, co-sponsored an amicus curiae brief arguing that Stratton, Ohios ordinance imposing a registration/permit process on uninvited persons going from door to door for any of various purposes, including explaining or advocating any cause, violated fundamental First Amendment principles. We are pleased to report that, in its June 18 opinion, by a vote of 8 to 1, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the ordinance. The link to the opinion is: http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bin/getcase.pl?court=US&navby=case&vol=000&invol=00-1737 The opinion, in our view, represents strong confirmation by the Supreme Court of anonymous speech and the Freedom of the Press, which formed the nucleus of FSDEFs amicus curiae brief.