Jul 11, 2025
Judge finds protestors likely to succeed in proving LAPD tactics violate the First Amendment
A federal court this morning granted the application filed by Law Office of Peter Bibring and cocounsel for a Temporary Restraining Order against the LAPD prohibiting their use of less-lethal munitions against journalists who pose no threat and prohibiting LAPD from barring journalists access to areas closed for protests or obstructing journalists' access to report on protests. The court found that plaintiffs were likely to succeed in showing that LAPD's tactics violated the First Amendment. The temporary order lasts for 14 days. The court set a hearing for a longer-term preliminary injunction for July 24 and ordered that LAPD summarize the terms of its order and disseminate it to all LAPD officers who respond to protests within 72 hours.
This is a great first step in making sure journalists don't have to face assault by the police to bring us the news.
The case is Los Angeles Press Club v. City of Los Angeles. Counsel includes Law Office of Peter Bibring, Law Office of Carol Sobel, First Amendment Coalition, Schonbrun, Seplow, Harris, Hoffman & Zeldes LLP, and the Law Office of Susan Seager.
Full text of the order is posted below.
(Image credit: IMAGO/Zuma Press)