California’s public record laws are focused on a basic principle: a lack of transparency hurts the public interest and leads to abuses of power.

The California Legislature passed a bill that would force disclosure of information about emergency calls at immigrant detention centers. A Democratic lawmaker put it forward after reading news storie...

Dozens of immigrants have died in private detention facilities. Many suffer medical neglect. There's fear journalist Richard Parias may need his arm amputated after ICE shot him. How bad is it? We d...

The bill comes as watchdog organizations and state officials point to documented cases of medical neglect and inhumane treatment within the state’s ICE facilities.

First Amendment Coalition's Paloma Esquivel explains why detention centers remain difficult to scrutinize and what public records can reveal about what happens inside.

Most immigrant detention centers are privately run and shrouded in secrecy. A bill would make records of 911 calls from the centers public.

Most immigrant detention centers are privately run and shrouded in secrecy. A bill would make records of 911 calls from the centers public.

Newly released internal records show insiders on California’s troubled $456 million Next Generation 911 project lost confidence in the system’s chief architect years before he left the state agency…

A couple of weeks ago, the litigants in the Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation multi-district case tried...

Administrators at Redwood High School in Marin County have been accused of violating a state law that protects the First Amendment and free press rights of student journalists at the Redwood Bark,…

As local police expand roles in immigration enforcement, limited transparency around ICE collaboration raises accountability concerns. Experts share strategies for accessing records, analyzing data,…

On Tuesday, Law Dork, with Public Justice, filed a motion to improve access to a key court case challenging ICE's new effort to detain thousands of law-abiding refugees.

Thursday’s arrests of Lemon and independent journalist Georgia Fort demonstrate the administration’s lawless crusade against routine journalism

Oakland Police Department must end its restrictive press policy.

First Amendment advocates are now calling for an end to a policy requiring journalists to have police-issued credentials.

First Amendment advocates are now calling for an end to a policy requiring journalists to have police-issued credentials.

Oakland Police Department must end its restrictive press policy.

We’re thrilled to offer our latest Reporter’s Field Guide to help journalists report on elections.

An overview of our Reporter's Field Guide detailing journalists' access rights on and around Election Day, with plenty of time for questions.

Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis responded by saying county supervisors, including the three who voted to appoint him in May, are “confused.” Nevertheless, he’s agreed to post press releases on the co...

Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis responded by saying county supervisors, including the three who voted to appoint him in May, are “confused.” Nevertheless, he’s agreed to post press releases on the co...

The First Amendment Coaltion threatened litigation after Shasta Scout was allegedly exlcluded from receiving news releases from Curtis' office.

Esta guía está diseñada para ayudar a los periodistas que cubren la inmigración en California a comprender el acceso a los registros públicos estatales y locales, las cortes de inmigración y los…

Because the public can’t participate in a secretive, censorial government

If passed, legislation to bar reporters from accessing officials’ and candidates’ home addresses would ‘hurt trust in government and elections,’ group says.

See the 2024 Impact Report >>