When public employees speak in their capacity as citizens on matters of public concern, even to criticize their employers, their speech is protected. Decided May 30, 2006 (argued October 12, 2005). Opinion of the Court: Anthony Kennedy → go there Dissenting: Stevens, Souter, Breyer. Applied: the First Amendment → go there Topic: Freedom of speech and of the press. Garcetti v. Ceballos, 547 U.S. 410 (2006), is a U.S. Supreme Court decision involving First Amendment free speech protections for government employees. The plaintiff in the case was a district attorney who claimed that he had been passed up for a promotion for criticizing the legitimacy of a warrant. The Court ruled, in a 5–4 decision, that because his statements were made pursuant to his position as a public employee, rather than as a private citizen, his speech had no First Amendment protection. Wiki link