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Bill would require disclosure of 911 and calls for service from private detention facilities, backers say it will aid accountability
Summary
SB 423 would make disclosure of 911 calls and related records from private detention facilities mandatory unless disclosure would substantially interfere with an active investigation; advocates said such records are vital to document conditions and hold operators accountable.
Sen. Gonzales told the committee SB 423 would make public‑interest records — 911 calls and other calls for service from private detention facilities — presumptively disclosable under the California Public Records Act, unless release would substantially interfere with an active investigation.
"Too often, the only outside record of these incidents comes from 911 calls for emergency responses," Lisa Knox of the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice said in support. Knox and other journalists and civil‑liberties groups described multiple examples where records were unavailable to families, advocates or reporters seeking to document allegations of neglect, violence, or medical emergencies.
Supporters argued mandatory disclosure is essential because private facilities often operate under federal contracts and local agencies exercise broad discretion over release of records. Representatives of journalism and press‑freedom groups joined a list of nonprofit and immigrant‑rights organizations asking the committee to move the bill forward.
No formal opposition spoke at the committee during this hearing; the author asked for an aye vote. The proposal includes a narrow exception for records that would substantially interfere with an active investigation.
