Photo: Mark Murrmann
Today the Ninth Circuit reaffirmed the First Amendment right to report the news by denying a petition for rehearing in Garcia v. County of Alameda, in which FAC represents a reporter who seeks to inform the public about sideshows and street takeovers.
In August 2023, Alameda County criminalized journalism by making it illegal to be present within 200 feet of a sideshow for the purpose of observing it. On September 4, 2025, the Ninth Circuit decided that the ordinance likely violates the First Amendment as applied to recording and reporting on sideshows because it is a content-based restriction on speech.
Today’s order upholds press freedom by confirming the Ninth Circuit’s decision that censorship of newsgathering in a public place is unconstitutional. Now that the county’s petition has been denied, the case should return to the trial court for entry of an order protecting our client’s right to cover sideshows while the case continues.