Posted on Saturday, December 08, 2007 - 8:35 am:

quote:

Druzinski's decision was in response to a request from WDIV-TV (Channel 4) and WXYZ (Channel 7) to allow live television feeds from the courtroom. WDIV news director Bob Ellis and attorney John Ronayne declined comment Thursday; a WXYZ manager could not be reached.

Posted on Saturday, December 08, 2007 - 9:58 am:

quote:

Clearly you don't know the first thing about court room procedures. Cameras are only allowed in the courtroom at the Judge's discretion.

quote:

Michigan Supreme Court Administrative Order 1989-1
Film or Electronic Media
Coverage of Court Proceedings
On order of the Court, the report of the Cameras in the Courtroom Committee having been received
and considered, the following exception to the Michigan Code of Judicial Conduct, Canon 3A(7) is adopted
to permit film or electronic media coverage in all Michigan Courts effective March 1, 1989:
The following guidelines shall apply to film or electronic media coverage of proceedings in Michigan
Courts:
1. Definitions.
(a) “Film or electronic media coverage” means any recording or broadcasting of court proceedings
by the media using television, radio, photographic, or recording equipment.
(b) “media” or “media agency” means any person or organization engaging in news gathering or
reporting and includes any newspaper, radio or television station or network, news service, magazine, trade
paper, professional journal, or other news reporting or news gathering agency.
(c) “Judge” means the judge presiding over a proceeding in the trail court, the presiding judge of
a panel in the Court of Appeals, or the Chief Justices of the Supreme Court.
2. Limitations.
(a) Film or electronic media coverage shall be allowed upon request in all court proceedings.
Requests by representatives of media agencies for such coverage must be made in writing to the clerk of
the particular court not less than three business days before the proceeding is scheduled to begin. A judge
has the discretion to honor a request that does not comply with the requirements of this subsection. The
court shall provide that the parties be notified of a request for film or electronic media coverage.
(b) A judge may terminate, suspend, limit, or exclude film or electronic media coverage at any time
upon a finding, made and articulated on the record in the exercise of discretion, that the fair administration
of justice requires such action, or that rules established under this order or additional rules imposed by the
judge have been violated. The judge has sole discretion to exclude coverage of certain witnesses, including
but not limited to the victims of sex crimes and their families, police informants, undercover agents, and
relocated witnesses.
(c) Film or electronic media coverage of the jurors or the jury selection process shall not be
permitted.
(d) A trial judges decision to terminate, suspend, limit, or exclude film or electronic media coverage
is not appealable, by right or by leave.
3. Judicial Authority.
Nothing in these guidelines shall be construed as altering the authority of the Chief Justice, the Chief
Judge of the Court of Appeals, trial court chief judges, or trial judges to control proceedings in their
courtrooms, and to ensure decorum and prevent distractions and to ensure the fair administration of justice
in the pending cause.
4. Equipment and Personnel.
Unless the judge orders otherwise, the following rules apply:
(a) Not more that two videotape or television cameras, operated by not more than one person each,
shall be permitted in any courtroom.
(b) Not more than two still photographers, utilizing not more than two still cameras each with not
more than two lenses for each camera, and related necessary equipment, shall be permitted in any
courtroom.
(c) Not more than one audio system for radio and/or television recording purposes shall be
permitted in any courtroom. If such an audio system is permanently in place in the courtroom, pickup shall
be made from that system; if it is not, microphones and wires shall be placed as unobtrusively as possible.
(d) Media agency representatives shall made their own pooling arrangements without calling upon
the court to mediate any dispute relating to those arrangements. In the absence of media agency
agreement on procedures, personnel, and equipment, the judge shall not permit the use of film or electronic
media coverage.
5. Sound and Light Criteria.
(a) Only television, photographic, and audio equipment which does not produce distracting sound
or light shall be utilized to cover judicial proceedings. Courtroom lighting shall be supplemented only if the
judge grants permission.
(b) Only still camera equipment which does not product distracting sound or light shall be employed
to cover judicial proceedings. No artificial lighting device of any kind shall be employed with a still camera.
(c) Media agency personnel must demonstrate in advance, to the satisfaction of the judge, that the
equipment proposed for utilization will not detract from the proceedings.
6. Location of Equipment and Personnel.
(a) Television camera equipment and attendant personnel shall be positioned in such locations in
the courtroom as shall be designated by the judge. Audio and video tape recording and amplification
equipment which is not a component of a camera or microphone shall be located in a designated area
remote from the courtroom.
(b) Still camera photographers shall be positioned in such locations in the courtroom as shall be
designated by the judge. Still camera photographers shall assume fixed positions within the designated
areas and shall not move about in any way that would detract from the proceedings.
(c) Photographic or audio equipment may be placed in, moved about in, or removed from, the
courtroom only during a recess. Camera film and lenses may be changed in the courtroom only during a
recess.
(d) Representatives of the media agencies are invited to submit suggested equipment positions to
the judge for consideration.
7. Conferences.
There shall be no audio pickup, broadcast or video close up of conferences between an attorney
and client, between co-counsel, between counsel and the judge held at the bench at trial, or between judges
in an appellate proceeding.
8. Conduct of Media Agency Personnel.
Persons assigned by media agencies to operate within the courtroom shall dress and deport
themselves, in ways that will not detract from the proceedings.
9. Nonexclusivity.
These guidelines shall not preclude coverage of any judicial proceeding by news reporters or other
persons who are employing more traditional means, such as taking notes or drawing pictures.