Judges make openness calls in two police officer trials

An Illinois judge has decided that a hearing during which prosecutors describe their case against a police officer charged with drowning his third wife will be open to the public, Chicago’s BreakingNewsCenter reported.

Attorneys representing the officer argued that the hearing could taint the potential jury pool if testimony about what individuals have heard others say — not what they’ve witnessed themselves — is heard by the public, but the judge disagreed.

A judge in Los Angeles, however, has decided that cameras will not be allowed in the courtroom during the trial of a Northern California police officer accused of killing an unarmed man, the Contra Costa Times reported.

Judge Robert Perry said during a pretrial hearing Friday that he thought "the presence of cameras in the courtroom are detrimental to the search for truth and justice."