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FAC Sues San Francisco Police, Mayor Breed for Records Related to Raid on Journalist

The First Amendment Coalition today continued its fight for transparency in the police raid on a San Francisco journalist, filing a lawsuit over city officials’ refusal to release public records.  FAC sued the San Francisco Police Department and Mayor London Breed under the California Public Records Act and San Francisco Sunshine Ordinance, an effort to …

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Calling California Lawyers: Register for Subpoena Defense Training in S.F., L.A.

Join the First Amendment Coalition, the Press Freedom Defense Fund of First Look Media, and noted media lawyers Thomas Burke and Duffy Carolan for a training session on representing journalists who face subpoenas for their confidential sources and unpublished materials, a fundamental threat to press freedoms. The seminar, part of FAC’s Subpoena Defense Initiative, will …

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Statement by FAC’s David Snyder on Newly Unsealed Carmody Search Warrant Materials

The following is a statement by First Amendment Coalition Executive Director David Snyder: The search warrant application unsealed today shows, beyond any reasonable doubt, that the San Francisco Police Department knew Bryan Carmody is a journalist before they sought a search warrant for his office — and that they provided ample evidence of that fact …

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FAC Again Prevails in Unsealing Search Warrants Executed on SF Journalist Bryan Carmody

Three San Francisco judges on Friday ordered the public release of sealed applications for three search warrants executed on freelance journalist Bryan Carmody — for his home, office and phone. The release of these materials should help answer a central question in the Carmody saga: how the San Francisco Police Department was able to obtain search …

Read moreFAC Again Prevails in Unsealing Search Warrants Executed on SF Journalist Bryan Carmody

Ginny LaRoe Named as FAC’s Programs and Outreach Director

The First Amendment Coalition is pleased to announce the appointment of Ginny LaRoe, a veteran reporter and editor with substantial experience in legal affairs news, as FAC’s Programs and Outreach Director. LaRoe spent more than a decade on staff at newspapers in five states, primarily focused on the criminal justice system and local government. She …

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Police Failed to Tell Judge of Bryan Carmody’s Status as Journalist Before Obtaining Warrant, Unsealed Records Show 

Police failed to tell the judge who issued a search warrant for Bryan Carmody’s phone that Carmody is a journalist, records unsealed today show—a key omission that helps explain how the San Francisco Police Department was able to obtain warrants for Carmody’s phone, home and office in clear violation of California and federal law. The records, …

Read morePolice Failed to Tell Judge of Bryan Carmody’s Status as Journalist Before Obtaining Warrant, Unsealed Records Show 

FAC Succeeds in Unsealing Search Warrant Executed on SF Journalist Bryan Carmody

A San Francisco judge yesterday ordered police to publicly release sealed documents relating to a search warrant executed on freelance journalist Bryan Carmody, whose home and office were raided by SFPD in an unlawful show of force that shocked journalists and free-press advocates across the country. The order, the result of a motion filed by …

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RSVP: The Future of Free Expression Online in America

The exponential rise of hate speech, fake news, and terror content has led to growing pressure for major internet platforms and governments around the world to regulate greater amounts of online content, while also upholding free speech principles. In the U.S., the First Amendment limits the ability of the U.S. government to regulate online speech …

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FAC Receives $100k Gift from Craig Newmark Philanthropies

FAC has received a $100,000 gift from Craig Newmark Philanthropies to support the organization’s work to defend free speech, the free press, and public participation in civic affairs. This generous and substantial commitment will enable FAC to continue to grow its programs and reach new audiences—work that is more important than ever in light of unprecedented threats …

Read moreFAC Receives $100k Gift from Craig Newmark Philanthropies

FAC Prevails in Effort to Force CA Attorney General to Disclose Police Misconduct Files

A San Francisco judge today ordered California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to begin disclosing police-misconduct files sought by the First Amendment Coalition (FAC)—a victory for government transparency against one of the few remaining police agencies in the state to refuse to comply with Senate Bill 1421, California’s new landmark police transparency bill that went into …

Read moreFAC Prevails in Effort to Force CA Attorney General to Disclose Police Misconduct Files