Everything online journalists need to protect their legal rights. This free resource culls from all Reporters Committee resources and includes exclusive content on digital media law issues.
The former leader of a prominent Mexican drug cartel was sentenced to 25 years in prison during a closed hearing on Wednesday, The Houston Chroniclereported.
Osiel Cardenas Guillen had pleaded guilty to killing two U.S. federal agents and a Cameron Country sheriff’s deputy. Much of his case has taken place in closed hearings and many of the documents have been sealed -- Wednesday’s hearing was no exception.
The U.S. Court of Appeals in New York (2nd Cir.) last week rejected a request to permanently seal the entire transcript of a criminal defendant’s sentencing.
The appeal remains shrouded in secrecy, with court documents, the charges, the defendant’s name, and even the defense attorney’s name sealed. Prosecutors declined to provide any information about the case, citing the court’s sealing order.
The Diocese of Bridgeport, Conn., released thousands of pages of documents related to sex abuse lawsuits Tuesday after losing a seven-year fight to keep them secret, The Hartford Courantreports.
Disciplinary records related to citizen complaints against Chicago police officers will not be released to the public in a lawsuit brought by a reporter and local government officials, a federal appeals court ruled Nov. 10.
The U.S. Supreme Court denied a Catholic diocese’s second request on Monday to stay a Connecticut Supreme Court's order to unseal court records related to dozens of clergy sex abuse suits.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Tuesday refused a Catholic diocese’s emergency request to stay an order unsealing court records related to more than 20 clergy sex abuse suits.
A federal judge in Pennsylvania directed Lexis and Westlaw to remove eight opinions from their database as part of a confidential settlement, The Legal Intelligencerreports. Related court documents were also sealed, though one of the defendants, Amtrak, is owned by the federal government.
Attorneys representing the federal government in a trial that was held in complete secrecy have apparently agreed to the release of some information in the case.
The New York Times lost its bid to unseal records related to the investigation of a prostitution ring that brought down New York Gov. Elliot Spitzer, after the U.S. Court of Appeals in New York City (2nd Cir.) on Friday overturned a lower court's order.
A coalition of news media organizations on Tuesday moved to intervene in a case where an entire trial was held in secret. The case, a civil lawsuit against the federal government, stems from the beating death of Jewish Defense League activist Earl Krugel at the hands of a white supremacist while in federal custody.
