Judge blocks Missouri’s ‘Facebook law’

A Missouri judge temporarily blocked a controversial law that prohibits teachers from talking to students over Facebook and other sites, ruling that it is an unacceptable infringement on free speech.

Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem's injunction prevents the law from going into effect until at least February, the St Louis Post-Dispatch reports, "allowing time for a hearing on whether the law should be permanently blocked."

Missouri's teachers union and Ladue teacher Christina Thomas filed suit against the law earlier this month. Thomas said she was told by her school district that she couldn't be Facebook friends with her own child under the rule, which banned teachers from using Internet sites that give them "exclusive" access to former and current students.