Shield Law

A lawyer investigating a grand jury leak turned to Pennsylvania state legislative staffers to get the cell phone numbers of at least eight reporters already subpoenaed in the case, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Senate Minority Leader Robert J. Mellow said it was a routine constituent service for his staff to help attorney Sal Cognetti find cell numbers of reporters subpoenaned in an investigation involving his client.

Gov. Linda Lingle signed Hawaii’s shield bill into law last week, providing new legal protection to journalists asked to disclose their sources and newsgathering materials in state courts.    

Both houses of the state Legislature unanimously passed the law in late April, just before heading into summer recess. Hawaii became the 36th state to offer a shield for journalists.

A county judge in Pennsylvania has rebuffed efforts to pry reporters' notes and phone records from six news groups in a grand jury leak probe.

But the court has yet to decide whether to compel the 15 subpoenaed journalists to testify.

Hawaii lawmakers edged closer to passing a shield law this week.

HB 2557 passed out of a conference committee unanimously on Wednesday with judiciary committee members and journalists agreeing to a long-anticipated compromise on the state’s law protecting journalistic privilege.

Maine became the 35th state to pass a shield law on Friday when Gov. John Baldacci signed the measure into law.

Sponsored by Rep. John Hinck (D-Portland), LD 2047 shields journalists’ confidential sources unless disclosure is of public interest or crucial to a case.

Kevin Burnham of the Maine Press Association praised the bill.

Pending Gov. John Baldacci’s signature, Maine is poised to become the 35th state to pass a shield law, which seeks to protect reporters from revealing confidential sources.

Sponsored by Rep. John Hinck (D-Portland), LD 2047 would shield journalists’ confidential sources unless disclosure is of public interest or crucial to a case.

Talking to more than 100 reporters, editors and other newspaper professionals in Washington, D.C., today, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said he supports the federal shield law pending in Congress.

“Despite my concerns,” McCain said, “I’ve narrowly decided to support this bill.”

A new survey shows that more and more reporters are facing subpoenas seeking information obtained following a promise of confidentiality.

The soon-to-be-released survey of major television stations and daily newspapers finds a more than tenfold increase from an earlier report conducted by The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in 2001.

Nearly 40 percent of the more than 2,000 surveyed reported receiving a total of more than 3,000 federal and state subpoenas in 2006.

Hawaii moved closer to enacting a shield law when the Senate Judiciary Committee passed HB 2557 on April 3.

A conference committee will meet sometime in the next two weeks in an attempt to reconcile disagreements among lawmakers, prosecutors and media representatives regarding the level of protection journalists receive in certain circumstances.

Four prominent Bush administration officials sent letters this week to Senate leadership speaking out against the proposed Free Flow of Information Act, a bill that would provide journalists protection from federal subpoenas.