HRDC Files Suit Over Censorship in California Jail
On January 10, 2025, the Human Rights Defense Center (HRDC), non-profit publisher of PLN and Criminal Legal News (CLN), filed suit in federal court for the Northern District of California against Sonoma County and its Sheriff Eddie Engram, as well as Dep. Melissa Parmenter, Division Operations Captain of the County’s Main Adult Detention Facility (MADF). The lawsuit alleges unlawful censorship of HRDC materials and violation of “rights which were established decades ago,” according to HRDC Executive Director Paul Wright, who added: “Prisoners have a well-established right to receive books and magazines via the mail from publishers and vendors.”
In addition to PLN and CLN, HRDC publishes various informative books regarding legal procedure and prison reform. According to Jonathon Picard, HRDC’s Litigation Director, “HRDC’s books and magazines inform prisoners about educational opportunities, their constitutional rights, and provide a means for self-improvement while incarcerated. Banning these publications from reaching those who are in jail is an affront to the First Amendment.”
Since October 2023, HRDC has mailed 47 items—including books, magazines, court rulings, informational brochures, and correspondence—to individuals confined at MADF, but all were returned. Furthermore, HRDC was not given any notice nor afforded any opportunity to appeal these apparent censorship decisions at the jail.
In its complaint, HRDC alleges that Defendants have violated its First Amendment free speech rights and Fourteenth Amendment due process rights under the United States Constitution, as well as Art. I, § 2 of the California Constitution. As a result of these violations, HRDC claims that it has suffered damages, including “suppression of HRDC’s speech” and “impediment of HRDC’s ability to disseminate its message,” as well as “frustration of HRDC’s non-profit organizational mission; the loss of potential subscribers and customers; and, the inability to recruit new subscribers and supporters; the loss of reputation; and the cost of printing, handling, mailing, and staff time, among other damages.” The suit seeks injunctive relief, declaratory relief and damages, as well as attorney fees and costs.
HRDC is represented by Picard and attorneys Sanford Jay Rosen, Ernest Galvan, and Marc J. Shinn-Krantz of Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld LLP in San Francisco. See: Human Rights Def. Ctr. v. Cty. of Sonoma, USDC (N.D. Cal.), Case No. 3:25-cv-00361.
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Related legal case
Human Rights Def. Ctr. v. Cty. of Sonoma
| Cite | USDC (N.D. Cal.), Case No. 3:25-cv-00361 |
|---|---|
| Level | District Court |