SCOTUS Declines to Hear Appeal on Drones for Newsgathering

posted on 10.07.2024

- Current Restrictions in State Law Remain

The Supreme Court of the United States last week let stand a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals restricting the use of drones for newsgathering purposes, refusing a petition by TAB to hear an appeal filed by the National Press Photographers Association.

The appeals court last year overturned a lower court ruling that held the Texas drone law unconstitutionally restricted the use of drones in newsgathering.

The National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) had filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Highway Patrol challenging the 2015 statute after NPPA members were harassed by law enforcement when attempting to take aerial photographs using drones.

In March of 2022, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman held that using drones to create photographs "finds just as much protection in the First Amendment as the images themselves do," but the Fifth Circuit decision disagreed.

"While drones are no doubt a helpful tool in the journalist's toolkit, restrictions on drone usage do not trigger strict scrutiny," the Court said.

In its ruling, the Court of Appeals cited the Supreme Court's landmark Branzburg decision which said "the First Amendment does not guarantee the press a constitutional right of special access to information not available to the public generally."

Questions? Contact Oscar Rodriguez or call (512) 322-9944.

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