L.A. Police Protective League v. City of L.A.

Summary

The court concluded that the statute criminalizing knowingly false police-misconduct complaints and requiring complainants to sign a warning violates the First Amendment. Although the statute regulates defamatory, unprotected speech and serves a legitimate governmental interest, its criminal penalties, asymmetrical operation, uncertain scope, and intimidating admonition create a substantial risk of deterring truthful or well-intentioned complaints, requiring heightened scrutiny that the statute cannot satisfy. The visible opinion text does not include the final disposition.