Nearly 50 years ago, the city of San Diego put an end to the nation’s first municipally recognized “clothing-optional” beach, banning nudity on a 900-foot strip of shoreline at Black’s Beach.

But today, beachgoers continue to stroll, sunbathe and frolic buck naked on that stretch of sand, in defiance of the law.

I can attest to this illegal behavior, having witnessed it myself. Let me explain.

During a recent visit to San Diego with my girlfriend, we came upon Black’s Beach at the base of 300-foot cliffs below the Torrey Pines Glider Port. No sign at the parking lot alerted us to the beach’s history. As we set down our beach chairs, we spotted two fellow beachgoers strolling by, sans bathing suits. And then a couple more lounging in their birthday suits. And then a few more.

“Didn’t you research this beach before we came?” my chagrined girlfriend asked.

Cue me, looking befuddled. Had I done my due diligence, this is what I would have learned.

The counterculture days

It was the 1970s in San Diego. Antiwar protesters marched in the streets. The Earth movement and the hippy-themed musical “Hair” were all the rage. “Nature freaks” roamed the city, said Carol Olten, a historian for the La Jolla Historical Society.

Amid the counterculture vibe, the San Diego City Council voted in 1974 to create what is believed to be the nation’s first “clothing-optional” beach. Secluded at the base of 300-foot cliffs and hard to access, Black’s Beach was the prime spot for it.

But a first-anniversary party at the beach — attracting more than 15,000 nude and semi-nude folks, playing volleyball, tug-of-war and wandering beyond the designated 900-foot boundaries — sparked opposition, primarily from wealthy homeowners on the bluffs above, who complained of drug use, sexual deviates and smoking. (No such problems existed, according to newspaper coverage and lifeguards at the time.)

Following a citywide advisory vote that favored banning nudity, the San Diego City Council ended the “clothing-optional” zone. Fines began at $15.

Who was Black’s Beach named for

William H. Black, a “rich guy” who made his money from oil in Texas, bought about 250 acres on the bluffs above the beach, according to Olten. “His two main interests were thoroughbreds and fancy cars,” she added.

Enforcement of the nudity ban

California is home to 32 nude beaches, according to Californiabeaches.com. The website notes that public nudity is banned across the state, but enforcement is mostly limited to state beaches. Black’s Beach, which is on city land, borders Torrey Pines State Beach. Neither San Diego police nor state park rangers would disclose how often they patrol or cite nudists at Black Beach, but locals say it is very rare. Even the city’s tourism agency mocks the enforcement of the nudity ban, saying on its website that “the only real deterrent” to going nude at Black’s Beach is “the hike to get there.”

Running from the law

Enforcement of the nudity ban has never been a high priority, but in March 1994 police rushed onto the beach in force, with a helicopter buzzing overhead. A suspected car thief had scaled down the cliffs, with police in hot pursuit, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. To lose his pursuers, the thief shed his clothes to blend in among the nude sunbathers. When that didn’t work, he tried to swim away but was caught shivering in the surf.

“We arrested him naked,” a police spokesman said.

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A high-ranking California Catholic bishop who allegedly took more than a dozen trips to a Mexican brothel known for human trafficking and misused parish funds was arrested at San Diego International Airport while trying to flee the country.

Bishop Emanuel Shaleta, 60, a senior figure in the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of St. Peter the Apostle, was arrested Thursday by San Diego Sheriff’s deputies following a months-long investigation.

“On Thursday, March 5, 2026, Bishop Emmanuel Shaleta was contacted and detained at the San Diego International Airport attempting to leave the country,” the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

Shaleta faces eight counts of embezzlement, eight counts of money laundering, and one count of aggravated white-collar crime, officials said.

The arrest comes after Catholic news outlet The Pillar reported last month that the bishop allegedly diverted rental payments from church property for personal use and later covered his tracks with charity funds.

Over $427,000 is unaccounted for — but the true number could be as high as $1 million, the outlet reported.

The Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that it was contacted by someone from St. Peter Chaldean Church in August 2025.

“The church representative provided a statement and documents showing potential embezzlement from the church,” it said, without elaborating.

The Pillar also obtained documents from a Vatican-ordered investigation into Shaleta that alleged the bishop regularly crossed the border from San Diego to Tijuana, Mexico, to visit a strip club.

A private investigator documented Shaleta using a shuttle “exclusive to the club’s patrons” to visit the Hong Kong Gentlemen’s Club in Tijuana, the outlet reported.

The Hong Kong Gentlemen’s Club operates in Tijuana’s Zona Norte red-light district, an area that has long been scrutinized by law enforcement and anti-trafficking organizations.

Prior reporting has identified the club by name in broader examinations of sex-industry operations in Tijuana.

There is no allegation that Shaleta was involved in trafficking activity.

Shaleta submitted his resignation to the Vatican in January as a result of the Vatican-ordered investigation.

Meanwhile, the priests of the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of St. Peter the Apostle issued a statement expressing support for Shaleta.

“After hearing all of the critics and attacks against our eparchy and bishop, we ask the Lord to protect our eparchy and bishop from all of the negative attacks. We are in solidarity with our eparchy and bishop,” the statement reads.

“We are awaiting the decision on this matter. Please continue to keep this eparchy in your prayers and remain faithful to the salvific mission of Christ.”

The 60-year-old was booked into San Diego Central Jail and is being held on $125,000 bail.

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