Sunshine in the Courtroom Act of 2005

Bill: 109-s-829
Sponsor: Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
Introduced: 2005-04-18 in the Senate
Policy area: Law
Subjects: Administration of justice
Appellate courts
Arts, Culture, Religion
Civil procedure
Court reporting
Crime and Law Enforcement
Criminal procedure
District courts
Government Operations and Politics
Judges
Photography
Radio broadcasting
Science, Technology, Communications
Sound recording and reproducing
Supreme Court
Television broadcasting
Video tape recording
Witnesses

Summary:
action_date: 2005-04-18
text: Sunshine in the Courtroom Act of 2005 - Authorizes the presiding judge of a U.S. appellate court or U.S. district court to permit the photographing, electronic recording, broadcasting, or televising to the public of court proceedings over which that judge presides. 
Directs: (1) a district court, upon the request of any witness in a trial proceeding other than a party, to order the face and voice of the witness to be disguised or otherwise obscured to render the witness unrecognizable to the broadcast audience of the trial proceeding; and (2) the presiding judge in a trial proceeding to inform each witness who is not a party of his or her right to make such request. 
Authorizes the Judicial Conference of the United States to promulgate advisory guidelines to which a presiding judge may refer in making decisions regarding the management and administration of photographing, recording, broadcasting, or televising described in this Act.
action_date: 2006-03-30
text: 

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

 
Sunshine in the Courtroom Act of 2005 - Authorizes the presiding judge of a U.S. appellate court or U.S. district court to permit the photographing, electronic recording, broadcasting, or televising to the public of court proceedings over which that judge presides. 

Directs: (1) a district court, upon the request of any witness in a trial proceeding other than a party, to order the face and voice of the witness to be disguised or otherwise obscured to render the witness unrecognizable to the broadcast audience of the trial proceeding; and (2) the presiding judge in a trial proceeding to inform each witness who is not a party of his or her right to make such request. 

Authorizes the Judicial Conference of the United States to promulgate advisory guidelines to which a presiding judge may refer in making decisions regarding the management and administration of photographing, recording, broadcasting, or televising described in this Act. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2006-03-30
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 383.
action_date: 2006-03-30
text: Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Specter without amendment. Without written report.
action_date: 2006-03-30
text: Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Specter without amendment. Without written report.
action_date: 2006-03-30
text: Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
action_date: 2005-11-09
text: Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 109-331.
action_date: 2005-04-18
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR S3823)
action_date: 2005-04-18
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S3822-3823)
action_date: 2005-04-18
text: Introduced in Senate