California bill would limit use of rap, hip-hop lyrics in court

A bill that would limit the admissible use of rap or hip-hop lyrics in a court of law is now on California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk after passing both houses of the legislature.

Assembly Bill 2799, introduced by Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-Los Angeles), would require a judge to consider whether creative expression is “evidence of the defendant’s propensity for violence or criminal disposition,” and whether admitting it would “inject racial bias into the proceedings.”

“The bill would require a court to determine the admissibility of a form of creative expression in a hearing outside the presence and hearing of the jury, and state on the record the court’s ruling and reasoning therefore,” the legislative counsel’s digest states.

If Newsom signs AB 2799 into law, California would be the first state to change its rules of evidence to limit the use of rap or hip-hop lyrics in court.