Confidential sources

A California judge on Friday sealed the identity of a San Francisco State University photojournalism student who was taking pictures when his subject was slain in April, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

A judge in Illinois has rejected the Alton Telegraph's argument that the identities of anonymous commenters on a newspaper's Web site are protected by the state's shield law, The Associated Press reports.

The Privacy Act saga continues between Detroit Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter and former prosecutor Richard Convertino.

Ashenfelter filed court  papers on Tuesday in response to former U.S. prosecutor Richard Convertino’s arguments that the reporter waived his right to invoke the Fifth Amendment to protect the confidentiality of his sources.

Texas has become the 37th state to enact a reporter’s shield law.

Gov. Rick Perry signed House Bill 670 on Wednesday, bringing a reporter's privilege to the state just weeks after it was approved unanimously by both the Senate and the House. It is effective immediately.

Attorneys for Richard Convertino, the former prosecutor who until last week was locked in a subpoena battle with a Detroit Free Press reporter over confidential sources, indicated in a court motion Wednesday they will now pursue editors at the paper for the sources' names. 

The U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati (6th Circuit) has denied Detroit Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter’s petition to suspend a district court judge’s order that he be deposed.

Detroit Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter is appealing to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati (6th Circuit) in hopes of protecting his confidential sources, before U.S. District Judge Robert Cleland can hold him in contempt for refusing to out them.

Judge Robert Cleland in Detroit has denied Detroit Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter’s request for an immediate decision on his invocation of the Fifth Amendment to protect confidential sources, according to the court docket.

Detroit Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter wants a federal court in Michigan to immediately rule on the legitimacy of his invocation of the Fifth Amendment to protect confidential sources, the newspaper reports.

A federal shield bill that would give reporters a qualified privilege from revealing confidential sources was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday night.

H.R. 985, known as the Free Flow of Information Act of 2009, was passed by a voice vote under a suspension of the rules, a typical procedure used to pass non-controversial bills. The bill is identical to the bill that was passed in 2007 by a vote of 398 to 21.