California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), flanked by rappers and record producers, signed a bill Friday to limit the use of rap lyrics as evidence in criminal trials.
In a statement, Newsom’s office touted the legislation, AB 2799, as “a first-in-the-nation bill that limits the use of creative expression … to protect against bias.” The bill was one of sixty bills that the governor signed that day, though he drew special attention to the rap bill, which was inspired by a recent racketeering prosecution of rappers in Atlanta.
The Hill noted:
The law, which Newson signed alongside rappers, record producers and record industry executives who were present virtually, is the first in the country to ensure someone’s “creative expression” is not used to “introduce stereotypes or active bias” against a defendant or be used as evidence in a trial against them.
It also requires courts to determine if song lyrics are admissible as evidence and whether content should be linked to an alleged crime.
This comes after Atlanta-based rappers Young Thug and Gunna were among two dozen people arrested earlier this year on charges of racketeering. The indictments against them reference lyrics from their hip-hop songs, and prosecutors allege Young Thug formed a street gang and promoted it through his music.
The text of the legislation does not completely exclude rap lyrics, but creates a very high bar for their admission as evidence. It says:
It is the intent of this Legislature to provide a framework by which courts can ensure that the use of an accused person’s creative expression will not be used to introduce stereotypes or activate bias against the defendant, nor as character or propensity evidence; and to recognize that the use of rap lyrics and other creative expression as circumstantial evidence of motive or intent is not a sufficient justification to overcome substantial evidence that the introduction of rap lyrics creates a substantial risk of unfair prejudice.
Though focused on rap, the legislation also applies to other forms of “creative expression,” defined as “the expression or application of creativity or imagination in the production or arrangement of forms, sounds, words, movements, or symbols, including, but not limited to, music, dance, performance art, visual art, poetry, literature, film, and other such objects or media.”
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.