In his regular column for The Journal of Art Crime, art law specialist Donn Zaretsky looks at the First Amendment rights of photographers in the Spring 2011 issue.

Mr. Zaretsky, an attorney with the firm John Silberman Associates and publisher of the Art Law Blog, asks the question "Can a state declare an entire subject matter off limits to photographers?" He questions the constitutionality of a proposed law recently introduced in Florida that would restrict digital or video recording of images taken by photographers without the written consent of the owner. "Clearly, what the legislature wants to do here is the one thing they cannot do: criminalize the PETA-style undercover farm videos," Zaretsky writes. "They can strengthen their trespassing laws, if they wish. But they cannot restrict speech "because of its messages, its ideas, its subject matter, or its content."

The Journal of Art Crime, edited by ARCA founder and president Noah Charney, is the first peer-reviewed academic journal on the interdisciplinary study of art crime. You may subscription to the Journal through ARCA's website (where you can also read guidelines for submissions) or   purchase individual subscriptions through Amazon.com.