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Note: Heavily edited. Forwarded message:
COURT SAYS COLLEGES CAN RESTRICT INTERNET ACCESS
January 28, 1997 Web posted at: 1:35 p.m. EST
NORMAN, Oklahoma (CNN) -- A U.S. District Court in Oklahoma has ruled universities have the right to limit access to explicit material on the Internet.
A federal judge ruled University of Oklahoma president David Boren, a former U.S. senator, has every right to determine what sites students and faculty can view while on the campus Internet system.
Boren was sued by University professor, Bill Loving, who claimed his First Amendment rights were being infringed upon.
The court ruled against Loving, also an attorney, saying his constitutional rights were not violated and that he is not entitled to injunctive relief.
"I am certainly pleased by the judge's decision," Boren said. "The university did its best to strike a careful balance in order to protect legitimate academic and intellectual freedom while at the same time assuring that the university not act as a distributor of obscene material, which is not protected by the First Amendment." rule