Participated in an amicus brief (with the Reporters Committee and other amici) filed with the California Supreme Court in National Lawyers Guild, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter v. City of Hayward. The case involves a request by the lawyers’ guild for written and electronic police records, including police body-worn camera (BWC) footage. The city charged a fee in excess of $3,000, which the guild said violated the California Public Records Act. The trial court agreed with the guild but was reversed by the Court of Appeal. The brief argued that the Court of Appeal’s decision would hinder public and media access to BWC videos and restrict the public’s ability to monitor law enforcement. For those reasons, the brief argued, the appellate decision should be reversed. [2019]
