Separation of State and Spam - are Anti-Spam Laws Unconstitutional?

Jeremy Jaynes was charged as a felon under Virginia's regulations intended to stop junk email in 2003.

While being found guilty and sentenced to 9 years in prison, he is currently free under a one million dollar bond.

While there have been a handful of convictions, CAN-SPAM and other state-level laws do not appear to have helped with the problem much.

Now, his lawyer is arguing that the law he was found guilty under is against the U.S. constitution. He is suggesting that the constitution contains an inherent right to anonymous speech, including email spam.

Virginia's State Solicitor disagrees, saying that the constitution doesn't guarantee the use of other's property to engage in speech.

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act banned junk faxes back in 1991. From a constitutionality perspective, the laws seem very similar. Considering the fax law is still on the books, it looks like Jaynes may be indeed heading for prison.

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