| Chapter 1
The
Crime Beat
By
Dave Krajicek
Access
and Records
No issues have a greater impact on our abilities to report than
those of access and records.
Rap Sheets, Prison
Records, Mug Shots
Computer databases have made these sorts of records more readily
available without intercession from a PIO.
Many states offer online information about prison inmates' biographical
details as well as date and place of conviction. Under its Tapping
Official Secrets icon and the police records subsection, the Reporters
Committee for Freedom of the Press (http://www.rcfp.org)
offers a state-by-state reckoning of mug shot access and rap sheets.
Many mug shots can be downloaded and printed.
Expect anomalies to crop up. Recently, the Maryland State Division
of Correction denied a request for mug shots of men on that state's
death row because they were considered part of the men's private
prison record.
Access and Property Provisions
Journalists have a right to gather news, but limitations can be
placed on access to property. According to the RCFP, reporters should
be familiar with the three types of venues: public forum, non-public
forum public property, and private property.
Public forums include such places as streets, sidewalks
and parks. Under most circumstances, journalists have full access
to places where the public is welcome. An exception might be a rally
on which police have placed special restrictions or requirements.
For example, special credentials might be needed to cover the appearance
of a religious or political figure in a city park.
Note that all government property is not considered a public forum.
The RCFP says courts have allowed authorities to limit access to
such places as courthouses, jails, government offices, city halls
and schools. These are public property, but not public forums.
Journalists can be excluded from government property if authorities
show that media would interfere with the normal operations of the
facility. Examples:
- Since the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, the government has restricted
access to federal buildings. Access to military facilities
also is tightly controlled, and journalists often must be escorted
by a PIO.
- Most state laws do not expressly bar the media from school
grounds, but the interference or disruption argument has been
used to limit media access to school property.
- Under a 1992 Supreme Court ruling, airport property
is no longer considered a public forum with unlimited media access.
- Prison access has long been tightly controlled, but
more states now refuse access to certain high-profile prisoners.
(In general, convicts sentenced to up to a year serve their time
in a municipal or county jail; those sentenced to more than a
year serve in a state prison.) The Supreme Court "has consistently
ruled that the media have no right to insist on interviewing specific
inmates," according to RCFP. Issues of security and demands
on staffing are cited. So are "hostility and resentment"
between inmates over media notoriety. Prison restrictions vary
greatly by state. Pennsylvania considers reporters "social
visitors." They may not carry recorders or cameras. California
bans pens and paper.
- Even though they may be owned by a municipality, civic centers
and stadiums used or leased for a commercial purpose –
a concert or a sporting event – may limit access to the
media. A team leasing a stadium can certify which journalists
get access, for example.
RCFP says the issue of whether the media have the right to cover
breaking news on Private Property – residences, businesses,
shopping centers, nonpublic housing developments – awaits
a Supreme Court test.
Of course, reporters frequently cover fires and police activity
on private property, often at the invitation of a public safety
agency. With such consent, journalists "should have little
or no problem gaining access or defending coverage from any trespass
and privacy suits," the group says.
But reporters who enter private property to cover news without
invitation or consent can face lawsuits for trespassing or invasion
of privacy.
RCPF says, "Courts frequently focus on whether the media had
consent either from the owner or from law enforcement officials
to enter the property to gather news….In many cases, journalists
enter without asking permission and the owner is not present to
object, or is present but fails to voice objection. The court must
then determine whether the owner's silence amounted to 'implied
consent.'"
A few things to keep in mind regarding access to private property:
- Consider the potential consequences carefully before using
deception to gain access. ABC was drawn into a long and costly
lawsuit filed by a grocery store chain for fraud and trespass
after two producers took jobs there in 1992 to expose unsanitary
food handling.
- Journalists do not have access to residences, even when
accompanying law enforcers serving search warrants or responding
to an emergency call. The Supreme Court recently ruled that reporters
on police "ride-alongs," such as those familiar in the
Fox TV program "Cops," must stay on public property,
even when the officers they are with pass onto private property.
- About half of all states have laws related to access to shopping
malls. On a federal level, mall access by journalists is unresolved.
A 1968 Supreme Court ruling deemed malls the equivalent of main
street. But subsequent rulings held that property doesn't "lose
its private character merely because the public is generally invited
to use it for designated purposes." For a list of state laws
on mall access, see http://www.rcfp.org.
- Likewise, the issue of access to gated communities,
with entry controlled by security guards or electronics, is not
resolved. RCFP says a Supreme Court ruling from the 1940s in favor
of freedom of expression in "company towns" is applicable,
but journalists may find it difficult to convince a guard of that.
If You Face Arrest
Journalists sometimes are arrested while on the job.
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press says, "If
you ignore police orders regarding access you risk arrest and prosecution.
Case law makes clear that police can limit media access when they
believe such restrictions are needed for public safety or to prevent
interference with an investigation, and that the First Amendment
does not provide immunity from criminal sanctions for disobeying
police orders."
Here are a few tips:
- Always carry your credentials, and wear them prominently
at police scenes. Many media credentials include language asking
for special consideration of journalists seeking to cross police
lines. Politely remind the officer.
- Understand the difference between public and nonpublic property.
Some states, including California, have special regulations barring
the arrest of journalists at breaking-news events. Does your state?
- Maintain a provisional plan in case of serious conflict with
a police officer. (For example, notify your editor and a designated
ranking police officer.)
- Remind the officer of professional courtesy considerations
suggested under any police-media guidelines you might have. (But
avoid the "I-know-my-rights" tact, which is more likely
to irritate the cop.
- Don't abuse verbally or physically. This will compound your
problem.
- To the extent possible, make notes about the circumstances
and arresting officers.
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