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Coalition News

FAC, Media Coalition Oppose Last-Ditch Effort to Gut Landmark Police Transparency Law

FAC December 28, 2018

A coalition of media groups led by the First Amendment Coalition (FAC) today filed briefing in the California Supreme Court to oppose a police union’s effort to undermine the effectiveness of a new, landmark police transparency law. The law requires a wide range of records relating to police misconduct to be available to the public—a sweeping change in California law. Prior to the bill’s enactment in September, California was one of a handful of states

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ProPublica Staffers Win 2018 FAC Award for “Trump Town” Investigative Series

FAC November 28, 2018

The First Amendment Coalition is proud to announce the recipient of its 2018 Free Speech & Open Government Award is the nonprofit newsroom ProPublica, selected for its extensive use of public records to increase transparency around political appointees at the highest levels of government. This year’s award goes to ProPublica staffers Derek Kravitz, Al Shaw, Claire Perlman and Alex Mierjeski, who will be honored Thursday, December 6 at the California Press Foundation’s Annual Winter Meeting

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FAC Seeks to Unseal Gov. Brown’s Request to Pardon Embattled Former State Senator

FAC November 20, 2018

Documents sought are currently barred from public view in the California Supreme Court The First Amendment Coalition (FAC) today filed a motion in the California Supreme Court to unseal records regarding Gov. Jerry Brown’s effort to pardon former state Sen. Rod Wright, who was convicted in 2014 on multiple felony counts, including perjury and voter fraud. The Wright records are just one example of several dozen recent cases where the Governor has sought to pardon

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FAC and Local Community Group Sue San Jose Over Secret Negotiations With Google

FAC November 13, 2018

The First Amendment Coalition (FAC), joined by Working Partnerships USA (WPUSA), sued the city of San Jose to force the disclosure of secret details of its negotiations to sell valuable public land to Google. The suit, filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court, seeks records under the California Public Records Act (CPRA) relating to the planned development of a massive new Google campus on city-owned property, including records about the city’s use of nondisclosure agreements

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FAC Attorneys Awarded $100k for Public Records Win

FAC October 23, 2018

A Santa Clara Superior Court judge has awarded nearly $100,000 in attorneys fees to lawyers representing the First Amendment Coalition (FAC) in its successful California Public Records Act lawsuit against the city of Milpitas. Recognizing that FAC’s suit promoted a “significant public interest…in understanding whether high-ranking city officials were acting improperly,” Judge Sunil R. Kulkarni ordered Milpitas to pay the organization’s  lawyers over $92,000 in attorneys fees and $1,260 in court costs. Former city manager

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