N.H. justices to consider allowing cameras in criminal trials
By The Associated Press
06.04.02
CONCORD, N.H. — In a decision arising from the case of a Vermont teen-ager who murdered two Dartmouth professors, the state Supreme Court says it will consider whether to allow television, radio and photo coverage of criminal trials and proceedings.
James Bassett, the lawyer for news organizations seeking broader courtroom access, said yesterday he is pleased the court will hear arguments even though the criminal case against Robert Tulloch is over.
"We welcome the opportunity to have the court offer guidance to trial judges and to the media, and to ensure that the public will be able to see and hear trials to the greatest extent possible consistent with ensuring that defendants have a fair trial," he said.
The Boston Globe, WMUR-TV and the New Hampshire Association of Broadcasters asked the court to get involved. The court agreed to in a brief ruling dated May 31.
The news organizations asked the court to spell out a process for judges to balance the competing constitutional claims of the right to a fair trial and the right to media access.
The attorney general's office had argued the issue was moot because Tulloch's case ended when he pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and murder conspiracy in the deaths of Half and Susanne Zantop. He was given the mandatory sentence of life in prison without possibility of parole.
The news organizations said access was certain to be contested again in other high-profile cases. They said the court should consider the constitutional questions comprehensively, instead of under emergency pressure in individual cases.
In March, several weeks before the scheduled start of Tulloch's trial in Grafton County Superior Court, Judge Peter Smith said he would ban television, radio and photographic coverage.
He cited a court rule giving judges near-total discretion to decide whether to allow cameras and tape-recorders in their courtrooms. When the news organizations appealed, prosecutors supported Smith. Seven news organizations joined the appeal.
When Tulloch indicated he would enter a plea, the news organizations asked the Supreme Court for an emergency ruling.
The court ordered Smith to allow television, radio and photo coverage of Tulloch's April 4 plea hearing and sentencing. The justices noted there was no jury.
A number of judges and lawyers were surprised the court overruled Smith. Some speculated that the news media won because Tulloch's hearing did not involve decisions by either a jury or the judge, and therefore would not affect his right to a fair trial.
The Globe, Channel 9 and the New Hampshire broadcasters' association decided to continue the appeal, noting that Smith's blanket ban on videotaping and photography in Grafton County Superior Court still stands.
The same day that Tulloch, 19, of Chelsea, Vt., entered his plea, his best friend, James Parker, also pleaded guilty to being an accomplice in the murder of Susanne Zantop. Parker, 17, also of Chelsea, will serve a minimum of 25 years in state prison.