Opinion ID: 1783619
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: First Amendment overbreadth doctrine

Text: The First Amendment doctrine of substantial overbreadth is an exception to the general rule that a person to whom a statute may be constitutionally applied cannot challenge the statute on the ground that it may be unconstitutionally applied to others. Massachusetts v. Oakes, 491 U.S. 576, 581, 109 S.Ct. 2633, 2637, 105 L.Ed.2d 493 (1989). Overbreadth doctrine has wide-ranging effects, for a statute found to be substantially overbroad is subject to facial invalidation. It is strong medicine, to be applied sparingly and only as a last resort. Broadrick v. Oklahoma, 413 U.S. 601, 613, 93 S.Ct. 2908, 2916, 37 L.Ed.2d 830 (1973). The scope of the doctrine must be carefully tied to the circumstances in which the facial invalidation is truly warranted. Id. The overbreadth involved must be substantial before the statute involved will be invalidated on its face. Id., 413 U.S. at 615, 93 S.Ct. at 2918. When a court is dealing with a federal statute challenged as overbroad, it should, of course, construe the statute to avoid constitutional problems, if the statute is subject to such a limiting construction. New York v. Ferber, 458 U.S. 747, 769, 102 S.Ct. 3348, 3361, 73 L.Ed.2d 1113 (1982), and citations therein at fn. 24. Further, if the statute is not subject to a narrowing construction and is impermissibly overbroad, it nevertheless should not be struck down on its face; if it is severable, only the unconstitutional portion is to be invalidated. United States v. Thirty-seven Photographs, 402 U.S. 363, 91 S.Ct. 1400, 28 L.Ed.2d 822 (1971). A state court should also deal with a state statute in the same way. If the invalid reach of the law is cured, there is no longer reason for proscribing the statute's application to unprotected conduct. New York v. Ferber , at fn. 24. In other words, when a state court is dealing with a state statute challenge of overbreadth, it should construe the statute to avoid constitutional problems if the statute is subject to such a limiting construction, and this construction is binding on the federal court. Id.