EXCLUSIVE: Social Media Search Warrant sparks legal battle in Santa Barbara, raises serious concerns about free speech
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— Friday morning, dozens of people came to a hearing at the Santa Barbara Courthouse to protest what they say is a violation of their First and Fourth Amendment rights.
UC Police are seeking a search warrant would grant full access to two social media accounts— UCSB Liberated Zone and Say Genocide UCSB.
Police argue they need access to the accounts to investigate possible crimes related to the occupation of Girvetz Hall in June, which came amid protests against Israel’s destruction of Gaza.
“Those protests can be disorderly and even be disruptive, they should be tolerated and even encouraged in a free society,” said Jacob Snow from ACLU in Northern California.
UC Police say protestors at Girvetz Hall caused over $45,000 worth of damages — including destroying a lock and an HVAC unit and creating a mock demonstration of war-torn Gaza inside a classroom.
“ Say Genocide UCSB account says ‘We have taken Girvetz Hall’. It is very clear that the people doing the unlawful occupation of that building where all the criminal activity then subsequently occurred, including vandalism, was individuals associated with that group,” said Attorney Jonathan Miller.
Defense attorneys argue the occupation of Girvetz is at most a misdemeanor trespassing charge, but Deputy District attorney Anthony Davis says there is a way to charge what seems like a misdemeanor as a felony.
“A conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor can be charged as a felony. We’ve actually done it a number of times,” said Davis.
Protestors were also accused of kidnapping a custodian inside the building, but Steele says these claims are baseless.
“The probable cause statement says ‘Oh the janitor was afraid’ is meaningless unless there's an allegation that somebody moved the janitor, and that allegation is not there,” said Steele.
The search warrant police are seeking wouldn’t just give police access to the two social media accounts—it would give them the names and IP addresses of every single person who has interacted with the accounts— including non-followers who happened to look at the posts.
“ That's a dictatorship. That is the Soviet Union, that is Nazi Germany, that is you name the dictatorship in our history. That's what that is. That is not America,” said Steele.
Defense Attorney Addison Steele says the search warrant is flawed in that it makes the assumption without supporting evidence that the information gathered from the 2 social media accounts will show a connection to the people who occupied Girvetz Hall.
Steele also says police are casting too wide of a net.
“It's difficult for me to imagine something more un-American than saying everybody who looked at this particular item, a political speech, and entered an Instagram page that's engaged in political speech, that we're going to give your name to the police so that they can come to your house, call you up, pull you in to the police station to interrogate you because you engaged in passively observing, constitutionally protected free speech,” said Steele.
But Davis argued in court they need all the tools at their disposal, saying “You need that information initially in order to get to the identity of the people who are actually involved in the take over.”
Judge Pauline Maxwell responded, “You need to know everyone that looked at the posts?” to which led to sounds of incredulous laughter emanating from the audience.
Judge Pauline Maxwell hopes both sides can find common ground.
“ I am concerned about it being overbroad. So I hope that we can protect people's privacy Interest and further justice in the case as well,” said Maxwell.
A follow up hearing will be held December 20th at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse.
