CA Democrats Advance “Stop Nick Shirley Act” to Criminalize Investigative Journalism
14th April 2026
CA State Assemblymember Carl DeMaio is slamming state Democrats for voting to advance a controversial new law (AB 2624) to silence citizen journalists and shield taxpayer-funded organizations from public scrutiny.
DeMaio has gone as far as dubbing AB 2624 the “Stop Nick Shirley Act” for the chilling effect it will have on free speech.
AB 2624 comes as independent journalists like Nick Shirley have used viral videos to expose fraud and abuse in government-funded programs using on-the-ground footage and firsthand documentation.
AB 2624 claims to be about protecting immigrant organizations from “threats of violence,” when in fact the legislation would apply to any left-wing group that claims to provide any services to legal or illegal immigrants. For example, under AB 2624 entities like the Somali “Learing” Daycare centers would all be covered if they operated inside California.
During a recent Assembly committee hearing, DeMaio directly confronted the bill’s author, Mia Bonta, over language that would allow individuals affiliated with certain organizations to demand the removal of video recordings — even if taken in public — and even impose costly financial penalties against those who publish the videos online.