The battle over sealed search warrant records has come to a moot end, as the appellate court dismisses an appeal following the unsealing of the contested documents. On August 7, 2024, Media Coalition filed a complaint in the Court of Appeal of the State of California against the Los Angeles Superior Court, seeking to unseal search warrant records initially sealed by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
The case traces back to September 2020 when peaceful protests on Imperial Highway in Los Angeles escalated into violence. The protest on September 8, 2020, was declared an unlawful assembly after participants were seen blocking traffic and creating a hostile environment. Subsequently, seventeen individuals were arrested, and their cell phones were seized under a search warrant obtained by the Sheriff's Department. These search warrant records were then sealed.
Nearly two years later, Media Coalition—comprising Knock LA and First Amendment Coalition—filed a motion to unseal these records. The trial court held hearings in October and December 2022. After reviewing the documents in camera with a representative from the Sheriff's Department, Judge Margaret Miller Bernal ordered a partial unsealing with redactions on December 12, 2022.
Despite this partial victory, Media Coalition sought full transparency and filed an appeal on March 14, 2023. In an unexpected turn of events, two months later on May 11, 2023, the Sheriff's Department requested to unseal all search warrant records except for the affiant’s name—a request that was granted by the trial court.
The appellate court found that this subsequent order rendered Media Coalition's appeal moot. According to legal principles cited from Hensley v. San Diego Gas & Electric Co., courts are not meant to render advisory opinions but rather decide actual controversies where effective relief can be provided. With the primary relief already granted—the unsealing of records—the appellate court concluded that any further ruling would be merely academic and dismissed the appeal.
Media Coalition argued that their appeal wasn't entirely moot since transcripts of in-camera hearings remained sealed. However, these transcripts only concerned procedural reviews of already-unsealed documents and offered no additional practical benefit.
Furthermore, Media Coalition urged for an advisory opinion to guide future cases involving law enforcement agencies seeking to seal records without legal grounds. Yet, existing legal precedents such as People v. Jackson already provide sufficient guidance on this matter.
Ultimately, Judge Chavez delivered the decision to dismiss the appeal due to mootness while emphasizing judicial economy and avoiding potentially confusing precedents based on resolved disputes.
Attorneys involved include Susan E. Seager and Jack Lerner representing Media Coalition with David Loy from First Amendment Coalition; Jin S. Choi from Lawrence Beach Allen & Choi represented real parties in interest like Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; Judges presiding over this case included Margaret Miller Bernal at trial level with Chavez J., Lui P.J., and Hoffstadt J., concurring at appellate level under Case ID B329695.
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