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QUICKLINK Washington, D.C. · March 17, 2010 · Secret courts
Federal courts improve public access to documents
The Judicial Conference of the United States has approved measures to make federal court documents and courtroom audio recordings more accessible to the general public, the Blog of the Legal Times reported.
Conference members voted on Tuesday to increase the number of free documents available on PACER, the online access site for federal court documents, and expand a pilot program that provides digital audio recordings of court proceedings. Any person can now obtain $10 worth . . . [more]
— Mara Zimmerman, 5:34 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Michigan · March 17, 2010 · Reporter's privilege
Michigan prosecutor wants reporter and law students to testify
A Michigan prosecutor working on the retrial of a murder defendant filed a witness list earlier this month that included a reporter for The Orange County Register and seven law students, the Detroit Metro Times reported.
California journalist Peggy Lowe attended interviews between the defendant and his student attorneys at the University of Michigan law school's Innocence Clinic. Lowe was in Michigan last year participating in the university’s journalism fellowship program. The student attorneys . . . [more]
— Cristina Abello, 5:29 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Florida · March 17, 2010 · Freedom of information
Florida leaders halt state effort to ban release of 911 recordings
A measure to make all emergency dispatcher recordings private in Florida was sidelined on Monday when a state legislator revoked his support, The Miami Herald reported.
When the bill was approved by an initial House committee last week, it had the support of House Speaker Larry Cretul. Cretful then decided to "take a breather on the issue" after speaking with colleagues and media representatives. His decision came on the first day of national Sunshine . . . [more]
— Curry Andrews, 5:24 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Ohio · March 17, 2010 · Reporter's privilege
Ohio reporter avoids jail after confidential source steps foward
An Ohio county judge rescinded an arrest warrant for a local reporter after his confidential source revealed himself today, The Plain Dealer reported.
An arrest warrant was issued yesterday after Plain Dealer reporter Gabriel Baird failed to appear in court to reveal the source that provided him with a 2005 psychiatric report of a man accused of murdering 11 women. The report claimed . . . [more]
— Christine Beckett, 5:20 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK 4th Cir. · March 17, 2010 · Newsgathering
Appeals court rejects ban on airport news racks
A federal appeals court ruled Monday that a North Carolina airport violated the First Amendment rights of newspapers when it banned newspaper racks in its terminals, Editor & Publisher reported.
In a 2-1 vote, a panel of justices at a U.S. Court of Appeals in Richmond (4th Cir.), rejected arguments by the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority that the racks were a security threat, obstructed traffic and caused terminal stores to lose money in newspaper . . . [more]
— Nadia Tamez-Robledo, 5:19 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK U.S. · March 17, 2010 · Freedom of information
Obama's first year transparency record receives mixed reviews
High-ranking officials within the Obama administration marked Sunshine Week by touting strides the administration has taken to increase government transparency, but open-government advocates used the weeklong event to point out areas where transparency efforts still fall short.
Attorney General Eric Holder spoke to Freedom of Information Act officials at the Justice Department about the shift towards a presumption of openness. Norm Eisen, special counsel to the president on . . . [more]
— Christine Beckett, 5:16 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK New Mexico · March 16, 2010 · Secret courts
New Mexico Supreme Court adopts new rules for sealing records
The New Mexico Supreme Court has adopted a uniform set of rules that will dictate when court records can be sealed, including a presumption that the records are public, the El Defensor Chieftain reported.
Beginning on July 1, records that are not automatically sealed by statute can only be sealed by court order. Specific identifying information, like Social Security numbers, will be . . . [more]
— Christine Beckett, 4:06 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Washington, D.C. · March 15, 2010 · Freedom of information
Senators commemorate Sunshine Week with FOIA bill
Senators Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, introduced legislation today that would streamline the request and fee processes of the Freedom of Information Act. The bill was introduced on the first day of Sunshine Week, a six-year-old national movement to promote the importance of open government.
The Faster FOIA Act would establish an advisory panel to examine agency backlogs in processing FOIA requests and making recommendations to improve the process.
— Posted at 6:39 pm · Comments: 0
NEWS MEDIA UPDATE U.S. · March 12, 2010 · Freedom of information
States push to exempt 911 calls from records laws
A decade ago, reporters could expect to have access to 911 calls to file accurate stories, gain insight into crimes and monitor emergency response time -- but more and more states are pushing for that to change.
Alabama, Ohio, Wisconsin and Florida are among the states that have proposed legislation to limit the media's access to emergency-call recordings. The specifics of the bills are different but the intentions are the same. Open-government advocates say the trend is a worrying shift away from transparency.
"By examining 911 calls we can see how the public agencies are doing," said David Hudson from the First Amendment Foundation. "If you close those records, the public certainly loses the ability to monitor government agencies."
Alabama's bill calls for all 911 recordings to be private and exempt from freedom-of-information laws unless a court order is issued. Transcripts could still be obtained. The bill's proponents say it would protect the privacy of individuals who may otherwise be deterred from calling 911.
"Nationally there is a growing concern about the release of audiotapes that don't involve newsworthy . . . [more]
— Curry Andrews, 3:45 pm · View reader comments (2)
QUICKLINK Georgia · March 11, 2010 · Freedom of information
Georgia rushes to pass crime photo exemption to records law
Hustler magazine's request for photos of a slain hiker has prompted a push by Georgia lawmakers to quickly pass a bill that would block the release of certain crime scene photos without the permission of the deceased individual's family or a court order, The Chattanooga Times Free Press reported.
The state's House Committee on Government Affairs passed the Meredith Emerson Memorial Privacy Act unanimously on Wednesday, just one day after it was introduced and just . . . [more]
— Nadia Tamez-Robledo, 6:52 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Illinois · March 11, 2010 · Reporter's privilege
Students' key evidence excluded from defendant's new trial
An Illinois man who has spent more than 30 years in prison on a murder charge will receive a new trial — but his attorneys won't use some of the strongest evidence that supports his innocence because of a controversy that pitted prosecutors against the student journalists who uncovered it.
Northwestern students working with the Medill Innocence Project cast doubt on the conviction of Anthony McKinney, who was convicted of killing a security guard, by obtaining evidence that included statements from two witnesses who suggested others were responsible for the . . . [more]
— Cristina Abello, 6:10 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK U.S. · March 11, 2010 · Freedom of information
Federal agencies to award prizes for open government compliance
The Office of Management and Budget released a memorandum on Monday that outlines ways federal agencies can use prizes and competitions to increase compliance with its December Open Government Directive that set deadlines for agencies to make data available online.
Both the directive and the March 8 memorandum were responses to a memorandum . . . [more]
— Christine Beckett, 5:28 pm · Comments: 0
PRESS RELEASE · March 11, 2010 ·
Reporters Committee names new Freedom of Information director
Mark R. Caramanica has been named Freedom of Information Director for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Executive Director Lucy A. Dalglish announced today.
Caramanica is a former New York trial lawyer who is finishing his doctorate in Mass Communications at the University of Florida.
"We're delighted that Mark will be joining us in late April," said Executive Director Lucy A. Dalglish. "His experience as a lawyer, journalist and non-profit manager will prove invaluable to the hundreds of reporters who call for help each year with questions about access to government meetings and records."
Caramanica has a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Florida. He later earned a law degree and a master's degree in . . . [more]
— Posted at 12:42 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Washington · March 10, 2010 · Secret courts
Washington paper asks high court to unseal murder trial expenses
Attorneys for a Washington newspaper argued before the state Supreme Court on Tuesday that a county improperly withheld expenses incurred defending a double-homicide case from a public-records request because the records were sealed by a judge,The Yakima Herald-Times reported.
The Herald-Times contended that it is in the public’s interest to review how more than $2 million in public funds was spent representing the two murder defendants and asked . . . [more]
— Nadia Tamez-Robledo, 5:55 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK California · March 10, 2010 · Freedom of information
California governor stops destruction of sex-crime parolee records
California's governor ordered state corrections officials on Tuesday to stop destroying parole files for sex offenders, The Sacramento Bee reported.
Prior to the order, the state corrections department routinely destroyed sex offenders' files one year after being discharged from parole.
"The current practice of not keeping information on sex offenders in California is unacceptable," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said in a statement issued Tuesday. "It is in the . . . [more]
— Curry Andrews, 5:54 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK Mississippi · March 9, 2010 · State open government
Missississippi House alters, passes revision to open meetings law
The director of Mississippi's ethics commission told The Associated Press that a revision to the state's open meetings law passed by the House on Thursday had been watered down from its original version.
The legislation was approved 97-22 after a provision that established a formal process for nullifying any decision made in violation of open meetings laws was removed. An amendment that mirrors one passed by the state Senate, which would require individual violators to pay fines and not . . . [more]
— Curry Andrews, 5:57 pm · Comments: 0
NEWS MEDIA UPDATE Kansas · March 9, 2010 · Reporter's privilege
Subpoenaed Kansas reporter loses job
A Kansas reporter who previously fought to keep a confidential source from local prosecutors has now lost her job.
Reporter Claire O’Brien was terminated last week from her position at the Dodge City Daily Globe after a subpoena battle last month that ended when a criminal defendant accepted a plea deal. County prosecutors had been seeking testimony about O’Brien’s interview with the defendant and the identity of a source she quoted in her story about the case.
The company that owns the Globe, GateHouse Media, and O’Brien appealed the subpoena up to the Kansas Supreme Court and lost. After O’Brien was held in contempt for failing to appear in court, which she said today was “a stupid mistake,” the confidential source revealed his identity to the prosecutors, which allowed her to not testify about him in a private court proceeding known as an inquisition.
O'Brien testified with an independent attorney about her interview with the defendant and said she basically . . . [more]
— Cristina Abello, 5:55 pm · View reader comments (3)
QUICKLINK California · March 9, 2010 · Broadcasting
Closing arguments in same-sex marriage case will not be broadcast
A federal court in San Francisco announced on Friday that it is not planning to broadcast closing arguments in the trial over California's gay marriage ban, despite media reports to the contrary.
As of now, Judge Vaughn Walker has not asked that Perry v. Schwarzenegger be included in a pilot program that allows the broadcast of certain non-jury civil trials.
"Broadcasting closing arguments would require Chief . . . [more]
— Curry Andrews, 5:52 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK U.S. Supreme Court · March 8, 2010 · Privacy
Supreme Court to hear military funeral protest case
The Supreme Court will decide whether a federal appeals court erred when it threw out a $5 million verdict for a father who sued religious protesters for picketing his son's funeral after he died in Iraq, the Associated Press reported.
The court said today it would review a decision made by the U.S. Court of Appeals in Richmond (4th Cir.) to reverse a ruling that the protesters engaged in intrusion upon seclusion and intentional infliction of emotional distress when . . . [more]
— Cristina Abello, 5:48 pm · Comments: 0
QUICKLINK U.S. · March 8, 2010 · Secret courts
Debate intensifies over terrorism trials in federal courtrooms
The White House is denying that its decision on where prosecute Sept. 11 architect Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is imminent, according to a report in The New York Times.
The administration told the Times on Friday that a decision would not be made "for weeks" after a story in The Washington Post said President Obama's advisers . . . [more]
— Amanda Becker, 5:24 pm · View reader comments (1)
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