- Mainstream Loudoun opposed the Library Board of Trustees' overly restrictive Internet Use Policy from the time it was first introduced in the spring of 1997. In an effort to avoid a lawsuit, we sent the board a formal letter on September 3, 1997, outlining the constitutional problems with their policy. Read our press release regarding this letter of demand and a summary of our concerns regarding this policy.
Mainstream Loudoun also proposed a compromise policy in an effort to stave off a lawsuit. Our suggested policy -- now in use after a legal struggle of close to two years -- gave library patrons the option of choosing filtered or unfiltered access for themselves and their children. The library board ignored all our attempts to resolve this issue outside court.
- On December 22, 1997, Mainstream Loudoun, in conjunction with People for the American Way and the D.C. law firm of Hogan and Hartson, filed a lawsuit in federal court to seeking to halt implementation of the Loudoun County Library Board of Trustees' unconstitutional Internet policy. Read our press release regarding this suit. You may also read our full complaint.
- On February 24, 1998, U.S. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia granted a motion filed by the ACLU to intervene on behalf of eight individuals and organizations that publish information over the Internet and contend that their sites have been blocked in the Loudoun County public libraries.
- On February 27, Judge Brinkema held a hearing on a motion to dismiss the case by the Loudoun County Library Board.
- On April 7, 1998, Judge Brinkema handed down her decision, refusing to dismiss the case. Brinkema's strongly worded decision affirms that First Amendment freedoms fully apply to library Internet access. Read a summary of her opinion or the entire decision.
- On September 4, 1998, Mainstream Loudoun filed a motion for summary judgment in the U.S. District Court in Alexandria arguing that Loudoun's Internet Policy so blatantly violates the First Amendment it should be immediately stuck down as unconstitutional without a trial. Read our press release and the complete motion.
- On September 25 Judge Brinkema heard oral arguments for and against a summary judgment and on October 2 issued an order that stated no trial will be needed in the case. Read a summary of both the oral arguments and arguments from Plaintiff's Memorandum in Support of the Motion for Summary Judgment.
- On November 23, 1998, Judge Brinkema issued a summary judgment that declared unconstitutional the Internet use policy adopted by the Loudoun County Library Board. As the first case of its kind, it set a precedent for Internet access in public libraries across the United States. Ruling the policy unconstitutional in every respect, Brinkema's 48 page opinion concluded that the Board's policy "offends the guarantee of free speech in the First Amendment" while citing numerous instances where it fails constitutionality tests. Read a summary of her decision or read the full decision at People for the American Way.
- On April 19, 1999, the Loudoun County Library Board voted 7-2 not to appeal the November ruling that struck down its Internet access policy as unconstitutional. The Internet access policy which has been in effect since the November ruling has been working well. The case is now closed.
For more information about Internet censorship, visit The Ethical Spectacle.
Links || How to Contact Us || Guest Book || Quotes from the Right || Home