Atlanta man defending online speech

Stephen Lee Johnson was looking to help reform the state's Division of Family and Children Services, not stand up for First Amendment rights. But sometimes you aim for one thing and hit another.

Johnson maintains a website, www.angelfire.com/ga4/justice, in which he routinely excoriates DFACS. But Magistrate Judge Priscilla Killingsworth has issued an order of arrest for Johnson, saying that he was a threat to the safety of others, based on the contention that his website made 'false and malicious comments.'

Johnson has yet to be arrested, but he's not taking any chances. Although he's not talking to the press, he's being represented by the Georgia chapter of the ACLU, which says the arrest order against Johnson constitutes prior restraint - that is, the government is prohibiting without just cause Johnson's right to publish what he wants.