Crime can pay.

• Position: Stateline - California - Brief Article

Concerned about freedom of speech, the California Supreme Court recently struck down the state's "Son of Sam" law that barred felons from profiting from sales of their crime stories. The statute required that convicted criminals give all money earned from book, movie or other deals to their victims or the state. The nation's first such law was passed in 1977 in New York after serial killer David Berkowitz was offered big money for his story. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down that law in 1991, forcing several...