California appeals court backs reporter who published sealed arrest records

The California Court of Appeal upheld a ruling that journalist Jack Poulson was protected under the First Amendment and the state's anti-SLAPP statute for publishing a 2021 arrest report involving former tech CEO Maury Blackman. The court found Poulson lawfully obtained the report and had no way of knowing it was sealed, since it lacked the legally required notation.

Blackman, who led Premise Data, a company with military and government ties, sued Poulson, Substack and Tech Inquiry on 14 claims including defamation; the court found Substack and Tech Inquiry were shielded as neutral platforms under the Communications Decency Act. Lower courts had already awarded attorneys' fees to the defendants, a decision the appeals panel affirmed.

A related 2024 lawsuit by free speech advocates against California's attorney general and San Francisco's city attorney, alleging misuse of penal code provisions against journalists, settled in December 2024, clarifying that information obtained through legal public records requests can be shared.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.