The Supreme Court struck down a 1999 federal law making it a crime to sell videos depicting scenes of animal cruelty on Tuesday.
In a 8-1 decision, the court found that a law meant to limit the dissemination of "crush videos," which appeal to certain sexual fetishes by showing the killing and torture of animals, was too sweeping and violated free speech rights.
"The First Amendment itself reflects a judgment by the American people that the benefits of its restrictions on government outweigh the costs. Our Constitution forecloses any attempt to revise that judgment simply on the basis that some speech is not worth it, " Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority.