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Im sure glad my court of appeals stood up for states rights and ignored basic SCOTUS precedents like NY Times v Sullivan and Cohen v California.

The NY Times v Sullivan precedent only applies to those who are deemed "public figures." While Avery might now be considered a public figure since he is a state senator, it would be difficult to argue that he was one when these e-mails were sent. Cohen v California doesn't in any way deal with words directed against an individual. As the majority decision noted, "The State may not, consistently with the First and Fourteenth Amendments, make the simple public display of this single four-letter expletive a criminal offense."

What might be more applicable in this case is Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc., which deals with defamation claims made by private individuals. The Supreme Court held in that case that states are free to establish their own standards of liability for defamatory statements made about private individuals.