Argument of Justice O'Connor
Mr. O'Connor: The second case for announcement is No. 90-1059, Simon & Schuster versus members of the New York State Crime Victims Board.
The case comes to us on certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
New York has a so-called Son of Sam law.
It requires that an accused or a convicted criminal's income from works describing his crime be deposited in an escrow account.
These funds are then made available to victims of the crime and to the criminal's other creditors.
The petitioner, Simon & Schuster, published a book entitled Wiseguy in which Henry Hill, an admitted organized crime figure, described his life of crime.
The respondent, the New York State Crime Victims Board, compelled Simon & Schuster to place Hill's income from the book in an escrow account.
Simon & Schuster then brought this suit seeking a declaratory judgment that the Son of Sam law is inconsistent with the First Amendment.
Both the District Court and the Court of Appeals found the statute constitutional.
In an opinion filed today, we reverse.
The First Amendment prevents a state to regulate speech, based on the content of that speech, only where the regulation is narrowly tailored to advance a compelling state interest.
The Son of Sam law imposes a financial burden on speech only if a particular content.
The state has a compelling interest in compensating crime victims from the proceeds of the crime but little at any interest in limiting that compensation to the proceeds of the criminal speech about the crime.
Because the Son of Sam law reaches a substantial amount of speech that does not enable a criminal to profit from crime while victims remain uncompensated, it is not narrowly tailored to advance the state's interest.
As a result, we hold that the statute is unconstitutional by virtue of the provisions of the First Amendment.
Justice Blackmun and Justice Kennedy have each filed opinions concurring in the judgment.
Justice Thomas took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.
