The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently determined that although falsely boasting about receiving a military honor certainly is disgraceful, it should not be deemed a criminal act. This ruling upheld the decision of a California court that concluded the Stolen Valor Act was unconstitutional.

Should lying be protected by the First Amendment? Claiming a military honor one actually did not receive is perhaps one of the lowest lies a person can tell, but does that make it criminal?

The Stolen Valor Act essentially makes it illegal to lie about receiving military honors; such a lie can be punishable by fines or even prison time — essentially criminalizing the lie.

This crisis of constitutionality gained publicity because of a man named Xavier Alvarez. As a new member of the Three Valleys Municipal Water District in California, he introduced himself as a retired Marine of 25 years. He went on to assert he had received the U.S. Congressional Medal of Honor after rescuing the U.S. ambassador during the Iranian hostage crisis. Among other lies, he also insisted he had played hockey for the Detroit Red Wings.

How creative.

In this case, the court had to determine if such speech was protected by the First Amendment or if it fell into the minute category of speech that remains unprotected. He had received his position on the board prior to his claim of military service.

It was determined Alvarez’s lies caused no one harm and did not gain him any tangible benefits, nor was it part of any legal proceeding. Therefore, it was more important to protect the freedom of speech held dear by the majority of Americans than to punish a man for his tall tales.

Although Alvarez himself is a fraud, it should be noted this decision does not undercut laws against fraud. Had Alvarez’s lies been for financial gain, his speech would have lost its constitutional protection.

If the First Amendment did not include lies as free speech, the majority of Americans would be in trouble. Chief Judge Alex Kozinski pointed out that, “Saints may always tell the truth, but for mortals living means lying.”

If Congress was granted the power to punish fabrications regarding military awards, it potentially could open the door to criminalization of other lies told every day.

Imagine if lies such as “I was at the library on Thursday night” or “I would have gotten an ‘A,’ but the professor was completely biased” could all be made into crimes. This certainly would not bode well for many college students who frequently participate in America’s favorite pastime of telling little white lies.

In this case, Alvarez and other such liars cannot be met with criminal punishment, only our scorn. It is ironic when one considers his freedom to espouse such lies is protected by the same people he attempted to impersonate.

Although I agree freedom of speech must be preserved, it is disgusting to see people claim such acts of service for themselves without any of the sacrifice involved.

However, once speech is criminalized — even if it only is lies — a delicate and dangerous precedent is created. I personally would be fearful of a Ministry of Truth determining what is or is not a “socially harmful” lie.

I would, however, like to see Alvarez face off between an actual Marine and Todd Bertuzzi of the Red Wings … just for a little retribution for his lie.

Kristen Kitti is a State News guest columnist and an English senior. Reach her at kittikri@msu.edu.