Jury convicts reporter who crossed crime-scene tape

A Michigan jury convicted a reporter of two felonies stemming from an incident that unfolded at the scene of a fatal accident involving state troopers, the Detroit Free Press reports.

Diane Bukowski of the weekly Michigan Citizen was convicted Friday of two felonies, each punishable by up to two years in prison. According to the Free Press,

Bukowski said she identified herself as a reporter and showed her credentials to three state troopers. She said she was taking a photo of two yellow tarps and a crushed motorcycle when police arrested her and deleted some of her photos.

According to a report in The Michigan Citizen, the court earlier granted in part the prosecutor’s request to “preclude argument, the asking of questions, and the introduction of any other evidence purporting to show that defendant was acting in her capacity as a reporter during the events in question,” and “rul[ed] essentially that only Bukowski could testify regarding her role as a reporter.”

The Citizen‘s publisher said Bukowski will appeal, calling the verdict “dangerous for all of us.”