A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the FDA requirement which forces tobacco companies to display graphic warning labels on cigarette packs violate their free speech rights under the First Amendment.

According to a New York Times report, Judge Richard J. Leon of the United States District Court in Washington ruled that forcing the companies to use the labels, which show staged images like a man breathing smoke out of a tracheotomy hole in his neck and a mouth punctured with what appear to be cancerous lesions, violated the free speech rights of tobacco companies under the First Amendment.
“The government’s interest in advocating a message cannot and does not outweigh plaintiff’s First Amendment right to not be the government’s messenger,” Judge Leon wrote.
His ruling largely echoed arguments he made in a preliminary injunction he issued in November. The significance of Wednesday’s ruling is unclear, since the Obama administration has appealed the injunction. The government is also likely to appeal the new ruling. (pi)