While the Supreme Court has previously sided with the Federal Communications Commission over its decision to ramp up its enforcement of indecency rules, today it ruled that the FCC screwed up when it decided to start slapping mammoth fines on broadcasters without warning.

In its unanimous decision, the court said that whether or not things like Charlotte Ross’ bare butt on NYPD Blue — which resulted in a $1.4 million fine levied against ABC — are violations of the FCC decency rules, broadcasters were not given fair warning that they would be subject to multimillion dollar sanctions for possible violations.

In the court’s published opinion, the FCC failed to give broadcasters “fair notice prior to the broadcasts in question that fleeting expletives and momentary nudity could be found actionably indecent.”

However, the Supremes have said the FCC is “free to modify its current indecency policy.”

Supreme Court Rules Against FCC in Indecency Case [WSJ.com]

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