Huntington Beach can’t restrict minors from accessing books with sexual content in the city’s libraries, an Orange County judge said in a tentative ruling Friday, Sept. 5.

The decision stemmed from a lawsuit that some Huntington Beach residents and a local nonprofit filed against city leaders, alleging that efforts to restrict children’s books amounted to censorship that violates the state’s Freedom to Read Act.

In her ruling, Judge Lindsey Martinez directed the attorney for the group that brought the lawsuit to submit a writ of mandate in the next 30 days detailing how the city would have to comply with the law.

People rally during an April 2024 press conference held by supporters of two ballot initiatives put before voters concerning Huntington Beach’s libraries. (Photo by Jeff Gritch

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