Attorney: JonBenet Ramsey detective should have been allowed to speak to press
By The Associated Press
09.25.02
Editor's note: On Oct. 31, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Linda Arndt's wish to dispute critical news reports was not a public concern and she could not recover damages for being denied that opportunity.
DENVER — The former Boulder police detective who was first on the scene when the body of JonBenet Ramsey was discovered should have been allowed to rebut allegations that she botched portions of the investigation, her lawyers told a federal appeals court yesterday.
A federal judge in June 2001 dismissed a lawsuit filed by Linda Arndt, who claimed that her supervisors in the Boulder Police Department used her as a scapegoat and then refused to allow her to hold a news conference to defend herself.
A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is considering whether to revive Arndt's lawsuit.
A lawyer representing the city of Boulder told the 10th Circuit panel that Arndt's desire to defend her reputation could have jeopardized the investigation into the unsolved slaying, and therefore she did not enjoy free-speech protections under the First Amendment.
In his June 12, 2001, ruling, U.S. District Judge William Downes said the comments Arndt wanted to make to defend her reputation did not touch on a matter of public concern. Downes said a Boulder Police Department policy limiting the dissemination of information on an investigation properly prohibited her from making the comments.
Arndt was the first detective who arrived at the Ramsey home on Dec. 26, 1996, and was the only police officer there for nearly three hours. She was criticized for allowing JonBenet's father John Ramsey to search the home without an accompanying police officer and for placing a blanket over the girl's body, possibly contaminating evidence. She also was criticized for failing to take statements immediately from JonBenet's parents.
She was removed from the case five months later and resigned from the department in 1999.
Arndt's attorney Bruce Jones said Arndt's proposed news conference was a matter of public concern because it could help the public determine how well the police were conducting the investigation. That would have ensured her free-speech protections, Jones said.
"This is a public accusation that has been made about her, about her competence, about her competence as an officer, that in turn reflects on the integrity of the Boulder Police Department, and that's a public concern," he said.
Attorney Leslie Schluter, representing the city, said that throughout her lawsuit, Arndt said she wanted to hold a news conference to defend her own reputation.
"We don't believe her proposed speech touched on a matter of public concern," Schluter said. "If you link an individual police officer's reputation with the integrity of an investigation, then we are forever going to be investigating First Amendment claims arising from high-profile, high-pressure investigations."
It could be several months before the court issues a ruling.