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Police are wrong: Cop-cam videos must be released as public records

[…] immediately see body camera and dashboard camera footage. The LAPD’s videotape nondisclosure policy has other legal problems. The Public Records Act states that whenever an agency releases a government record to any "member of the public," that agency waives the right to confidentiality, a California appellate court said in a 1974 case called Black Panther […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
October 6, 2016
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Op-ed: California Governor Should Commit to Transparency in Clemency Process

[…] our courts: "People in an open society do not demand infallibility from their institutions, but it is difficult for them to accept what they are prohibited from observing." David Snyder is the executive director of the First Amendment Coalition, a California nonprofit dedicated to advancing free speech, open government and public participation in civic affairs.
- Government Transparency and Accountability
July 7, 2021
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Obfuscating Mercy: How the California Supreme Court Finally Addressed Secretive Pardons

By Selina MacLaren and Thomas R. BurkePro bono counsel to the First Amendment Coalition The California Supreme Court recently announced a rule change to make it easier for the public to view clemency files for twice-convicted felons. The new rule rejects the governor’s decades-old practice of automatically sealing clemency files, but places the […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
September 17, 2021
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FAC News

Now Hiring: FAC Legal Fellow

[…] journalists and others, with a particular focus on those in traditionally underserved communities. FAC’s legal work is focused on enhancing public access to federal, state and local government records and proceedings and protecting the First Amendment rights of free speech and press. FAC also works to provide legal assistance to journalists served with subpoenas […]

October 14, 2021
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New episode of ‘Civic’ podcast features FAC’s David Snyder on press protections at protests

[…] and ears of the public," Snyder told "Civic" host Laura Wenus. "They are the only people, in most instances, who are in position to tell us what government is doing in our name." Senate Bill 98, introduced by state Sen. Mike McGuire, would would provide some additional protections for journalists at protest scenes and […]
- Press Freedom
June 11, 2021
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Cases Press Release

Media Coalition Asks Court to Unseal Search Warrant Targeting Protesters Kept Under Seal for Two Years

[…] Years FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Updated: The court on Nov. 10 granted the motion to unseal but delayed release of the records pending further proceedings. LOS ANGELES —California government watchdog group First Amendment Coalition and independent news organization Knock LA this week are asking a court to unseal a two-year-old search warrant obtained by the […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
September 19, 2022
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Blog Cases

Latest FAC suit secures release of Sonoma County Superbowl Contract

[…] Host Committee for the Super Bowl—- contained so many trade secrets that it couldn’t be released in redacted form. We were skeptical that a contract involving a government agency, and providing opportunities for tourism promotion, could be chock full of the kind of sensitive business and financial information constituting "trade secrets." Now that the […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
March 9, 2016
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Blog Cases

LAPD’s use of “Stingray” cell-phone monitoring tool revealed by FAC public records request

BY PETER SCHEER–The records published below–released to the First Amendment Coalition by the Los Angeles Police Department–confirm LAPD’s use, in criminal investigations, of a controversial technology for tracking cell phones. Devices using this technology, "International Mobile Subscriber Identity" locators, operate by mimicking a cellphone tower, causing cell phones that are within range to […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
February 15, 2013
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Cases Press Release

Kern County Superior Court Agrees to Ensure Public Access During Pandemic

[…] contrary to the requirements of the First Amendment," said David Snyder, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition. "Secret court proceedings are anathema to our system of government, and so we are grateful that they once again are open to the people of Kern County." Read the settlement agreement here. Read the June 2020 […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
January 11, 2021
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Guest Commentary: Did the Media go too far in Disclosing a Secret Dossier on Russia’s supposed “kompromat” against Trump? Nyet.

[…] and Russian intelligence services; about compromising x-rated videos of Trump in the company of prostitutes during a 2013 trip to Moscow; about alleged financial inducements from Putin’s government to Trump; etc. But, on the whole, the news media handled this story responsibly in the face of difficult choices. For months the New York Times, […]
- Press Freedom
November 15, 2016