Nick Shirley, America First Legal Sue California Over Controversial Fraud Reporting Laws

Independent journalist Nick Shirley and the America First Legal Foundation have filed a federal lawsuit seeking to block enforcement of a new California law that places severe restrictions on the ability of journalists and independent auditors to document and report fraud.

The case, Shirley v. Bonta, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California in Sacramento against Attorney General Rob Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley Weber on September 4.

Shirley is an online reporter whose videos on alleged fraud in taxpayer-funded programs first drew wide attention in late 2025. He reported on Somali-operated daycare centers in Minnesota, later turning to similar facilities, Armenian-run hospices, and immigration-related organizations in California. His work has reached millions of viewers across YouTube, X, Instagram, and TikTok.

The legislation in question builds on the Safe at Home program, which has operated since 1999. That program allows eligible individuals — including survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, elder abuse and certain “health care workers” providing abortions or sex change procedures — to use a substitute mailing address administered by the California Secretary of State. Government agencies generally accept this address in place of a residential address in public records, which shields eligible individuals from threats, the state claims.

Under the new law, eligibility extends to designated immigration support services providers, their employees, and volunteers at nonprofit organizations, community legal clinics, law offices, and health facilities who face “threats, harassment, or violence” linked to their work. Applicants must register with the state and document a relevant threat or incident within the prior year.

The legislation also prohibits knowingly posting, selling, or sharing a participant’s personal information or image online with the specific intent to facilitate harassment, violence, credible threats, or to place the individual in “reasonable fear” for their safety.

Republican lawmakers, led by Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, nicknamed the measure the “Stop Nick Shirley Act.”

POLL: Should Ilhan Omar Be Deported If Found Guilty Of Immigration Fraud?

🚨 WOW! Nick Shirley is officially filing a LAWSUIT against Gavin Newsom's California after the Stop Nick Shirley Act was codified into law — which will PENALIZE him for exposing immigrant center fraudsters

"This bill violates the 1st Amendment."

"It's time for we the people to… https://t.co/e3c1wnmVqr pic.twitter.com/fLYdzlH7sh

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 4, 2026

The complaint highlights the legislative timeline: Shirley posted that he had arrived in California on January 31, 2026, while Bonta publicly criticized related fraud allegations days later. Mia Bonta then introduced the legislation on February 20.

The lawsuit alleges that AB 2624 imposes content-based and viewpoint-discriminatory restrictions on speech in violation of the First Amendment, is unconstitutionally overbroad and vague under the Fourteenth Amendment, and functions as an ex post facto law under Article I, Section 10 of the Constitution. Plaintiffs argue liability turns on whether speech concerns immigration-support providers rather than similarly situated organizations on the other side of immigration policy debates, that written takedown demands and potential liability chill lawful reporting on public expenditures, and that the law already affects Shirley’s work even though it is not yet operative.

They seek a declaration that the challenged provisions are unconstitutional on their face and as applied, plus preliminary and permanent injunctions against enforcement, along with attorney fees. No monetary damages are requested from the state.

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