Indicted for Threatening 7th Circuit Judges, Web Talk Show Host Looks to First Amendment Defense

Hal Turner, the Web talk show host indicted for encouraging the killing of three federal judges, pleaded not guilty Tuesday. His lawyer told the magistrate judge that Turner was a former FBI informant who had helped authorities thwart an assassination attempt on Barack Obama. The lawyer also suggested a possible First Amendment defense when he told the judge that Turner was only expressing opinions, albeit "outlandish" ones, when he posted Web messages saying the judges "deserve to be killed."