Lawsuit: Burning Man used Nevada police to block filming of cleanup

The owner of a popular YouTube channel has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that organizers of the Burning Man festival prevented filmmakers from recording cleanup efforts in 2024 by using public law enforcement as private security.

Sparks resident Robert Forney and his daughter Emma Forney claim their fundamental rights to free speech and free expression were violated after several people with the popular festival, which takes place annually in Northern Nevada, “aggressively accosted them and threatened them,” according to a 17-page complaint filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada.

A nearly two-hour video posted to Facebook on Aug. 30 appears to challenge the festival’s claim it is the world’s largest so-called “leave no trace” event. The video, titled ‘What Burning Man Doesn’t Want You to See,’ details attempts to document what the video says is the litter and debris left in the playa where the main festival takes place, resulting in pollution and safety hazards that Forney’s production company contends in the video are worse than festival organizers publicly acknowledge.

The suit alleges that Bureau of Land Management and local law enforcement acted at the direction of Burning Man organizers when they issued the Forneys a trespass warning in September 2024.

Nevada Secretary of State filings show that Forney and his wife, identified in the lawsuit as Carrie Grandfield, manage EWU Media LLC, also listed as a plaintiff in the suit. On its website, EWU, short for “EXPLORE WITH US,” describes itself as a media company that covers true crime and breaking news. As of Friday, its YouTube channel had posted 489 videos and has 6.9 million subscribers.

Listed as defendants are the Burning Man Project and Black Rock City LLC; the BLM; Bill Groffy, the BLM’s acting director; Eric Kriley, the BLM’s law enforcement and security director; Jon Raby, the BLM’s Nevada state director; Pershing County; the Pershing County Sheriff’s Office; and Kathrin Rogers, a Pershing County sheriff’s deputy. Washoe County, the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office and Deputy Jackson Crews were also named as defendants.

The lawsuit acknowledges that Burning Man had obtained a permit to close a specified area of the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area, and that the permit was valid from July 25 to Oct. 1, 2024. But the complaint contends that the permit was “orally and retroactively” extended to Oct. 1 from Sept. 28 unbeknownst to the Forneys or the public.

‘Suing to vindicate its right to access and film on public land’

“EWU Media is suing to vindicate its right to access and film on public land and report on the impact of Burning Man,” said attorney Maggie McLetchie, whose firm McLetchie Law is representing the plaintiffs, in a statement. “A private group should not be in charge of who can access information about that group’s use of land that belongs to all of us. And law enforcement should not take orders from the ‘Black Rock Rangers’, Burning Man’s imaginary law enforcement agency.”

McLetchie declined to make her clients available to interview.

Dominique Debucquoy-Dodley, the Burning Man Project’s director of communications, said Thursday the Burning Man Project had not yet been served with the lawsuit but was aware the complaint had been filed.

“Burning Man views the complaint as frivolous, without legal or substantive merit, and will vigorously defend the claims against it and take all appropriate legal action against EWU Media LLC in response,” Debucquoy-Dodley said in an email.

A BLM spokesperson declined to comment. Pershing County District Attorney Bryce Shields told the Las Vegas Review-Journal neither the county nor Rogers had been served, but that the county does not comment on pending litigation. Washoe County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Leslie Masterpool said the agency does not comment on ongoing litigation.

The lawsuit claims Forney had a “long-standing investigation” into the Burning Man festival, which according to its website gathers roughly 80,000 people annually and takes place on BLM-managed land in the Black Rock Desert. In addition to the lengthy investigation posted by the EWU Crew page on Facebook, Aug. 30, other EWU videos appear to investigate Burning Man’s environmental impact and how claims of sexual misconduct are handled.

Contact Casey Harrison at charrison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Casey_Harrison1 on X or @casey-harrison.bsky.social on Bluesky. Review-Journal staff writer Noble Brigham contributed to this report.