Mogul Seeks $30 Million From California to Give Beach Access

[Spider Jerusalem]

25. ....

"No individual, partnership, or corporation, claiming or possessing the frontage or tidal lands of a harbor, bay, inlet, estuary, or other navigable water in this State, shall be permitted to exclude the right of way to such water whenever it is required for any public purpose, not to destroy or obstruct the free navigation of such water; and the Legislature shall enact such laws as will give the most liberal construction to this provision so that access to the navigable waters of this State shall always be attainable for the people thereof."
--Article X, Sec. 4, Constitution of the State of California

In carrying out the requirement of Section 4 of Article X of the California Constitution, maximum
access, which shall be conspicuously posted, and recreational opportunities shall be provided for all the
people consistent with public safety needs and the need to protect public rights, rights of private property
owners, and natural resource areas from overuse.
(Amended by Ch. 1075, Stats. 1978.)
Section 30211 Development not to interfere with access
Development shall not interfere with the public's right of access to the sea where acquired through
use or legislative authorization, including, but not limited to, the use of dry sand and rocky coastal beaches
to the first line of terrestrial vegetation.
Section 30212 New development projects
(a) Public access from the nearest public roadway to the shoreline and along the coast shall be
provided in new development projects except where: (1) it is inconsistent with public safety, military
security needs, or the protection of fragile coastal resources, (2) adequate access exists nearby, or, (3)
agriculture would be adversely affected. Dedicated accessway shall not be required to be opened to public
use until a public agency or private association agrees to accept responsibility for maintenance and liability
of the accessway.

--Coastal Act, 1975.

So yes, there is in fact a prescriptive easement, and blocking public access is in violation of established California laws.