Supreme Court of the United States
Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project
June 21, 2010561 U.S. 1
Summary
The Court held that 18 U.S.C. § 2339B's prohibition on material support to foreign terrorist organizations does not violate the First or Fifth Amendments as applied to the plaintiffs' proposed activities of providing training and expert advice to groups like the PKK and LTTE. The Court rejected claims of vagueness, overbreadth, and impermissible burden on speech and association, deferring to Congress's judgment that such support facilitates terrorist activities. Justice Breyer dissented, arguing the statute should be interpreted to require specific intent to further terrorist ends to avoid constitutional doubts.