Supreme Court Cases
The Press-Enterprise company won two separate United States Supreme Court cases that established the public's right to witness specific aspects of criminal court proceedings.
The first case, won in 1984, was Press-Enterprise Co. v. Superior Court of California. In a case involving the rape and murder of a teenage girl, the Press Enterprise requested that the voir dire, the process of questioning the jury, be open to the public and press. The request was denied, as well as the request for the subsequent transcripts, and upheld by the California Court of Appeal. The California Supreme Court denied the Press-Enterprise's request for a hearing. The United States Supreme Court decided in favor of the Press-Enterprise, establishing that the public has the right to attend jury selection during criminal trials.
The second case, won in 1986, was Press-Enterprise Co. v. Superior Court of Riverside County, California. The case involved Robert Diaz who was accused of 12 patient murders while acting as a nurse at the Community Hospital of the Valleys in Perris, California. The defendant requested that the public be excluded from the proceedings. The Magistrate granted the unopposed request because of the national attention that the case had garnered. At the end of the hearing the Press-Enterprise requested that the transcripts be released, but the request was denied and the records were sealed. The United States Supreme Court decided that the public has the right to attend pretrial hearings in criminal cases, including preliminary hearings.
Read more about this topic: The Press-Enterprise (California)
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