An Open Courtroom: Cameras in New York Courts

by New York State Committee

Overview

On June 30, 1997, the experiment, initiated in 1987, that gave trial judges discretion to allow televised and still-camera coverage of civil and criminal trial court proceedings in New York State came to an end. After two years of investigation, a 12-member, state-appointed committee has issued its findings and recommendations on the question of cameras in New York courts. Their results are contained in An Open Courtroom. This book offers: an introduction, executive summary; overview of the committee's work; a summary of the current law; overview of camera laws in other states and in federal courts; summary of the committee's record; the committee's assessment and conclusions; recommendation; appendices which include the results of a jurist poll and the committee's judicial survey, interviews, and other pertinent data; and a minority report/ dissent arguing against the committee's recommendations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823218103
Publisher:	Fordham University Press
Publication date:	01/01/1997
Pages:	244
Product dimensions:	6.25(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	xi
	Executive Summary	xv
I.	Introduction	1
II.	Over View of the Committee's Work	5
III.	Summary of Current Law	9
A.	Section 218 of the Judiciary Law	9
1.	Judicial Discretion	9
2.	Safeguards for Defendants in Criminal Proceedings and Parties in Civil Proceedings	11
3.	Safeguards for Witnesses	11
4.	Safeguards for Children	13
5.	Safeguards for Jurors	13
6.	Other Safeguards	13
7.	Pretrial Conference	14
8.	Equipment and Personnel Restrictions	14
9.	Appeals	15
B.	Rules of the Chief Administrative Judge	15
IV.	Over View of Camera Coverage Laws in Other States and in Federal Courts	19
A.	State Courts	19
1.	50-State Overview	19
2.	California	20
B.	Federal Courts	22
V.	Summary of the Committee's Record	27
A.	Public Benefits	27
1.	Public Education about the Courts	28
2.	Judicial Accountability and Public Scrutiny of the Judicial System	31
3.	Cathartic and Deterrent Effects	33
4.	Other Benefits	34
5.	Opponents' Views	36
a.	Nature of Televised Coverage	37
b.	Effect on Witnesses	39
c.	Fair Trial Implications	41
d.	Privacy Concerns	43
B.	Compliance by Trial Judges and the Media	44
1.	Compliance by Trial Judges	44
a.	Testimony and Public Comment	44
b.	Results of the Committee's Judicial Survey	46
c.	Office of Court Administration Data	49
2.	Compliance by the Media	49
C.	Effect of Audio-Visual Coverage on the Conduct of Participants in Court Proceedings	52
1.	Effect on Jurors	53
2.	Effect on Witnesses	58
3.	Effect on Lawyers	62
4.	Effect on Judges	64
a.	Inside the Courtroom	64
b.	Outside the Courtroom	67
VI.	Committee's Assessment and Conclusions	69
A.	Public Benefits	69
B.	Compliance by Trial Judges and the News Media with the Safeguards of Section 218 of the Judiciary Law	71
1.	Judges	71
2.	News Media	74
C.	Effect of Audio-Visual Coverage on the Conduct of Participants in Court Proceedings	74
1.	Jurors	76
2.	Witnesses	77
3.	Lawyers	78
4.	Judges	79
D.	Defendant's Consent	80
VII.	Recommendations	83
1.	Cameras Should Be Permitted in New York State Courts on a Permanent Basis with All of the Safeguards of Current Law for Parties, Prospective Witnesses, Jurors, Crime Victims, and Other Trial Participants	83
2.	Defendant Consent Should Be a Prerequisite for Camera Coverage of Bail Hearings	84
3.	There Should Be No Separate Rule for Death Penalty Cases	85
4.	Judges Should Be Vigilant in Addressing the Safety and Privacy Concerns of Witnesses in Both Criminal and Civil Proceedings	85
5.	The Office of Court Administration Should Actively Monitor Camera-Covered Proceedings, Make Periodic Reports, and, If Necessary, Recommend Changes in Section 218 of the Judiciary Law and the Implementing Rules	86
6.	The Office of Court Administration Should Develop an Enhanced Judicial Training Program to Familiarize All Judges with the Applicable Statutory and Administrative Provisions and Safeguards	88
	Appendices
A.	Judicial Survey	93
B.	Marist Institute for Public Opinion Poll	113
C.	Judiciary Law, Section 218	125
D.	Rules of the Chief Administrative Judge	133
E.	California Rule of Court 980	149
F.	Overview of Camera Coverage Laws in the Fifty States	157
G.	Jury Consultant Interviews	171
H.	Office of Court Administration Data on News Media Applications for Audio-Visual Coverage of Court Proceedings	175
I.	Sample Monitoring Instrument for Camera-Experienced Lawyers	191
J.	Judicial Training Program Outline	199
K.	Selected Bibliography	201
	Minority Report	207

Editorial Reviews

These proceedings examine New York's experiment with section 218 of the Judiciary Law allowing video cameras in trial courtrooms. The committee considers such issues as California's experience with the O. J. Simpson trial; safeguards for defendants, witnesses, jurors, and children; relevant laws in other states and federal courts; and public benefits. The committee recommends that cameras should be permitted with significant judicial oversight. A dissenting minority opinion is included. Paperback edition (unseen) $20.00. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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