Main menu Post navigation To Be Or To Not Be In The Courts....That Is The Question By law, California's juvenile dependency hearings are "presumptively closed," meaning the courts are inaccessible to members of the press unless admitted by the presiding judge, commissioner or referee. Earlier this year, Presiding Judge Michael Nash of Los Angeles County issued a blanket order opening up that county's system , making it the first to do so in the state. Whether other jurisdictions judicial leadership will follow suit remains to be seen, but the views of one leading Contra Costa judge suggest opposition to the concept. "I do believe in a free press [but] have seen firsthand the effects of media coverage on court cases and I am frankly not impressed by it," she wrote. "Even when the reporter gets the facts right, I have found there is a spin and an impact on the case created by the media presence and the publicity that I can fairly describe as perverting." Janet Sherwood is the Deputy Director at Advokids , a San Francisco based non-profit organization that provides legal resources for foster children in California.  She agrees with Judge Nash's ruling and can see the positive impact open courts could have on ensuring the effectiveness of the child welfare system. "The public has the right to know when the system isn't working," Sherwood said. "The stories are more about the courts....and I think that it's interesting that a number of stories have talked about instances