July 15, 2020 – The Kern County Superior Court has rescinded a problematic order used for months to block people from entering its courthouses, an important step in restoring the public’s First Amendment right of access to hearings and trials in one of California’s largest metropolitan areas. Court officials in Bakersfield issued a new court […]
First Amendment Coalition
Posted inCalifornia
FAC, ACLU Sue for Public Access to Kern County Superior Court
BAKERSFIELD, June 26, 2020 — A cornerstone of our democracy is that court hearings and trials are not held in secret. But that’s what happening in Kern County Superior Court where proceedings — including jury trials — are being held out of public view. In-person access was originally cut off because of the COVID-19 pandemic, […]
Posted inCalifornia
FAC Urges Compliance with California Public Records Law Amid COVID-19 Crisis
March 23, 2020 – In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, some government agencies in California have announced that they intend to stop responding to California Public Records Act requests until the crisis passes. There is no legal basis for this extraordinary step. The California Public Records Act, Gov. Code § 6250, et seq., remains the […]
Posted inCalifornia
California Reporting Project Named the Recipient of FAC's Free Speech & Open Government Award
December 2, 2019 – The First Amendment Coalition is pleased to announce the California Reporting Project is the recipient of the 2019 Free Speech & Open Government Award, given in recognition of the project’s groundbreaking statewide campaign to bring to light records of police misconduct. The project, an unprecedented collaboration of competing newsrooms, started as […]
Posted inCalifornia
FAC Sues CA Attorney General to Force Disclosure of Police Misconduct Files
February 14, 2019 – The First Amendment Coalition (FAC) filed suit today against California Attorney General Xavier Becerra for failing to comply with the state’s new, landmark police transparency law. The suit, filed in San Francisco Superior Court, seeks the release of records regarding serious police misconduct—records that all state and local agencies are now […]
Posted inCalifornia
First Amendment Coalition Sues Bakersfield For Open Meetings, Records Violations
Dec. 27, 2017 – The First Amendment Coalition (FAC) filed suit against the city of Bakersfield over the city council’s repeated practice of holding closed-door meetings to discuss topics that under California law must be heard in public. The lawsuit, jointly filed with Californians Aware (CalAware) in Kern County Superior Court, also demands that the […]
Posted inCalifornia
FAC Prompts Disclosure of California Governor Jerry Brown’s Social Media “Block Lists”
September 27, 2017 – The First Amendment Coalition today released documents from California Governor Jerry Brown showing that he blocked more than 1,500 individual accounts on his Twitter and Facebook accounts–a practice that excluded those people from participating in a vital forum for political discussion and debate surrounding the state’s highest elected official. In releasing […]