California · Civil Code

CIV §48.9: (a) An organization which sponsors or conducts an anonymous witness program, and its employees and agents, shall not be liable in a civil action for damages resulting from its receipt of information r

Civil

What this law says, in plain English

Organizations operating anonymous witness programs and their employees are protected from civil liability for receiving and reporting information about possible crimes to law enforcement, except when information was knowingly false, a provider's name was shared without authorization when not legally required, or the provider wasn't informed disclosure might be compelled.

Read the full statutory text

(a) An organization which sponsors or conducts an anonymous witness program, and its employees and agents, shall not be liable in a civil action for damages resulting from its receipt of information regarding possible criminal activity or from dissemination of that information to a law enforcement agency. (b) The immunity provided by this section shall apply to any civil action for damages, including, but not limited to, a defamation action or an action for damages resulting from retaliation against a person who provided information. (c) The immunity provided by this section shall not apply in any of the following instances: (1) The information was disseminated with actual knowledge that it was false. (2) The name of the provider of the information was disseminated without that person’s authorization and the dissemination was not required by law. (3) The name of the provider of information was obtained and the provider was not informed by the organization that the disclosure of his or her name may be required by law. (d) As used in this section, an “anonymous witness program” means a program whereby information relating to alleged criminal activity is received from persons, whose names are not released without their authorization unless required by law, and disseminated to law enforcement agencies.

Verify at the official source: California legislative text

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This page is legal information, not legal advice. Code text is sourced from official publications and may lag amendments — always confirm at the official source linked above. Plain-English summaries and relationship data are AI-derived and reviewed on an ongoing basis; verify with a licensed attorney before acting.