Cal. Penal Code § 13665
Law Enforcement Agency Regulations
Redline — January 1, 2021 → current.View current text →
Current — January 1, 2023
As of January 1, 2021
(a) A police department or sheriff’s office shall not share, on social media, booking photos of an individual arrested on suspicion of committing a nonviolent crime unless any of the following circumstances exist:
(1) A police department or sheriff’s office has determined that the suspect is a fugitive or an imminent threat to an individual or to public safety and releasing or disseminating the suspect’s image will assist in locating or apprehending the suspect or reducing or eliminating the threat.
(2) A judge orders the release or dissemination of the suspect’s image based on a finding that the release or dissemination is in furtherance of a legitimate law enforcement interest.
(3) There is an exigent circumstance that necessitates the dissemination of the suspect’s image in furtherance of an urgent and legitimate law enforcement interest.
(a) A police department or sheriff’s office shall not share, on social media, booking photos of an individual arrested on suspicion of committing a nonviolent crime unless any of the following circumstances exist:
(1) A police department or sheriff’s office has determined that the suspect is a fugitive or an imminent threat to an individual or to public safety and releasing or disseminating the suspect’s image will assist in locating or apprehending the suspect or reducing or eliminating the threat.
(2) A judge orders the release or dissemination of the suspect’s image based on a finding that the release or dissemination is in furtherance of a legitimate law enforcement interest.
(3) There is an exigent circumstance that necessitates the dissemination of the suspect’s image in furtherance of an urgent and legitimate law enforcement interest.
(b) (1) A police department or sheriff’s office that shares, on social media, a booking photo of an individual arrested for the suspected commission of a nonviolent crime shall remove the booking photo from its social media page within 14 days, upon the request of the individual who is the subject of the social media post or the individual’s representative, unless any of the circumstances described in subdivision (a) exist.
(b) With respect to an individual who has been arrested for any crime, including crimes defined in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5, a police department or sheriff’s office that shares, on social media, an individual’s booking photo shall do both of the following: (1) Use the name and pronouns given by the individual. A police department or sheriff’s office may include other legal names or known aliases of an individual if using the names or aliases will assist in locating or apprehending the individual or reducing or eliminating an imminent threat to an individual or to public safety or an exigent circumstance exists that necessitates the use of other legal names or known aliases of an individual due to an urgent and legitimate law enforcement interest. (2) Remove the booking photo from its social media page within 14 days unless any of the circumstances described in paragraphs (1) to (3), inclusive, of subdivision (a) exist.
(2) A police department or sheriff’s office that shares, on social media, a booking photo of an individual arrested for the suspected commission of a crime identified in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 shall remove the booking photo from its social media page within 14 days, upon the request of the individual who is the subject of the social media post or the individual’s representative, if the individual or their representative demonstrates any of the following:
(A) The individual’s record has been sealed.
(B) The individual’s conviction has been dismissed, expunged, pardoned, or eradicated pursuant to law.
(C) The individual has been issued a certificate of rehabilitation.
(D) The individual was found not guilty of the crime for which they were arrested.
(E) The individual was ultimately not charged with the crime or the charges were dismissed.
(3) This subdivision shall apply retroactively to any booking photo shared on social media.
(c) Subdivision (b) shall apply retroactively to any booking photo shared on social media.
(d) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) “Nonviolent crime” means a crime not identified in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5. (2) “Social media” has the same meaning as in Section 632.01, except that social media does not include an internet website or an electronic data system developed and administered by the police department or sheriff’s office.
Official source: California Legislative Information. Reproduced from public-domain California statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.