Pushy paparazzi to pay dearly

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LOS ANGELES

They lurk in bushes, camp out in cars and hover in helicopters. Some are brazen enough to openly brandish their cameras, like old Western gunslingers.

They may be hated, but their work -- candid pictures of celebs in unguarded moments -- is coveted. They are the paparazzi, purveyors of pix that are the lifeblood of the weekly star-tracking mags and tabs. Their photos demand huge sums of money and are circulated worldwide. And as the public hunger for such glossy grist has grown they've become ever more relentless and ruthless. But starting yesterday , there are some new reins on the paparazzi parade.

That's when a new California law went into effect that increased penalties against overly aggressive photographers -- dubbed "stalkerazzi" -- who forcefully thrust their cameras into famous faces or crash their car into a celebrity's vehicle. They'll now be liable for three times the damages they inflict, plus lose any payments their published photos might earn. Publishers can also be held liable.

"Now the paparazzi are going to have to think twice about chasing down a celebrity anywhere in California," said Assemblywoman Cindy Montanez, who drafted the bill, which was signed into law in October by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. (The former actor had an infamous paparazzi moment in 1998 when photographers used their cars to surround his SUV as he and wife Maria Shriver picked up their child from school.)

The new law was inspired by a rash of recent celebrity car chases, Ms. Montanez said. In May, a photographer following Lindsay Lohan crashed into the actress's car in West Los Angeles. The photographer was booked for assault with a deadly weapon, but prosecutors found insufficient evidence to press charges.

In August, actress Scarlett Johansson was involved in a minor car crash in a Disneyland parking lot after being followed by paparazzi, and actress Reese Witherspoon said photographers tried to run her car off the road in April. No criminal charges resulted from those incidents, but the Los Angeles District Attorney's office continues to investigate paparazzi photographers' aggressive tactics, spokeswoman Jane Robison said.

Ms. Montanez said the new legislation "targets those who break the law in their attempt to get the photograph."

While some celebrity shooters think the new law is needed to curb increasingly aggressive behavior, others call it unfair and unnecessary. And it may even be unconstitutional.

Though the legislation is aimed at paparazzi photographers, it could have "a chilling effect" on newspapers and other media, said Jim Ewert, legal counsel for the California Newspaper Publishers Association.