Hawaii Governor is Hit With First Amendment Lawsuit After Media Reporting On Wildfires is Suppressed

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. A legal challenge has been launched this week by the O’Keefe Media Group (OMG) against Josh Green, the Democratic Governor of Hawaii, as well as the County of Maui. Triggering the lawsuit were restrictions which prohibited OMG from capturing images or footage on public lands as they sought to investigate the aftermath of devastating wildfires that have ravaged the area. The suit alleges that these restrictions, demanded under the governor’s statewide emergency decree, went far enough to threaten the arrest of James O’Keefe, founder of OMG, should he persist with his recording activities and reporting on the wildfires and their origin. We obtained a copy of the lawsuit for you here. In a concealed camera footage captured during their investigative excursion, officers of law enforcement relayed this mandate to the journalists. In a bold statement captured in the video, O’Keefe disclosed his motivation for filing the lawsuit as an effort to “…invalidate the criminalization of protected First Amendment activity and to also strip Maui County of any ability to criminally charge anyone who exercises their First Amendment rights.” This legal action seeks to block attempts from the governor to criminalize the fundamental rights of free speech and press freedom protected by both the US and Hawaii constitution. OMG’s legal pursuit, lodged in the United States District Court of Hawaii, also encompasses the case of John Doe, another plaintiff. During the investigative visit to the…Hawaii Governor is Hit With First Amendment Lawsuit After Media Reporting On Wildfires is Suppressed