Even in a country that’s revered for having one of the strongest freedoms of speech on the planet, there is a line that sometimes gets crossed.
For instance, courts have ruled that freedom of speech doesn’t include threats of physical harm, charges that Orcutt resident Anthony Murillo has been facing for the past two years and, after a recent court ruling, may continue to face.
The California Supreme Court denied review of Murillo’s case on Oct. 14 following more than a year of appeals by the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office. The denial may mean Murillo could face a retrial on charges stemming from lyrics in a song he posted on social media.
In 2013, Murillo was charged with two felony counts of making threats and witness intimidation after writing a rap song and posting it to his personal ReverbNation.com account.
A superior court judge dismissed the case, saying the song was free speech, but the DA’s office appealed.
Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley announced in July that her office intends on re-charging Murillo. Because his case was rejected by the Supreme Court, it paves the way for Murillo to be retried.
The song in question allegedly referenced former St. Joseph High School (SJHS) students who accused Murillo’s friend Shane Villalpondo, also a former SJHS student, of raping them in 2011. Many, including the victims, believed that the song contained threats.
In the song, “Moment for Life Remix,” Murillo describes the victims as “hoes” and refers to their first names, according to court documents.
In court documents, prosecutors specifically focus on a portion of the song’s lyrics that include phrases such as “… I’ll have your head just like a dear … I said go and get the Feds … Cuz your gonna to end up dead … Cuz im coming for your head bitch.” [sic]
Murillo also posted photographs of himself posing with pictures of what appears to be a shotgun or rifle, according to court documents, adding that he never intended to hurt the victims.
In July 2014, California’s Second Appeals Court disagreed that his lyrics constituted free speech. Murillo’s attorneys, David Andreasen and William Makler, appealed to the state supreme court, which refused to even hear the case.
Murillo’s case is drawing attention outside the county. Both the American Civil Liberties Union in Southern California and San Francisco’s Electronic Frontier Foundation supported Murillo in his petition to the Supreme Court.
Both groups disagreed with the appellate court’s ruling.
“In this era of widespread digital expression, subjecting individuals to criminal charges on such scattershot analysis risks severely chilling the speech of other aspiring artists, as well as others engaged in casual online communication,” ACLU Staff Attorney Catherine Wagner wrote in the amicus brief.
Murillo’s case closely mirrors that of San Diego rapper Brandon Duncan, aka Tiny Doo, who was prosecuted for his album No Safety in 2014.
According to KNSD Channel 7, prosecutors charged Duncan with gang conspiracy in connection to nine shootings that took place in San Diego between May 2013 and February 2014, claiming that his album was promoting crimes.
A judge dismissed charges against Duncan last March, according to KNSD.
This article appears in Oct 22-29, 2015.