Garcia v. Google, Inc., 786 F.3d 733 (9th Cir. 2015)
When Garcia provided the 5-second performance in the film Innocence of Muslims, she was told she was performing for a film titled Desert Warrior, an action-adventure thriller set in ancient Arabia. Instead, the director of the film later transformed the film to another film, Innocence of Muslims, an anti-Islam polemic. The director dubbed over Garcia’s original lines so they would go along with the new renamed film. “Is your Mohammed a child molester?” was the new line that was dubbed over Garcia’s voice. The film was uploaded to YouTube and Garcia received multiple death threats.
Garcia made claims against Google (owner of YouTube) and the director of the film including copyright infringement for her 5-second performance in the film. Garcia sought a preliminary injunction for Google to remove the film on YouTube only on copyright infringement ground.
While discussing this issue, the 9th Circuit touches upon the First Amendment values at stake for removing the film. The court cites a Supreme Court case where it held that copyright is not “categorically immune from challenges under the First Amendment.” Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U.S. 186, 221 (2003). The court explained that in doing so (removing the film), it will deprive the public of the ability to view and judge the film which was of substantial interest to the public, therefore constituting a classic prior restraint of speech. The court concluded that based on the historical and heavy presumption against prior restraint of speech and Garcia’s thin copyright claim in a 5-second performance, an injunction cannot be issued.
Law in Style. 