Opinion ID: 2368807
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: closure

Text: A collateral but important issue is left for our consideration. In each of the appellant's pretrial detention hearings, defense counsel moved for and was successful in obtaining at least partial closure of the hearings to the press and public. Because the court in each case failed to make any findings at all to support its conclusion that closure was necessary to preserve appellant's fair trial right, we reverse the court's rulings as violative of the First Amendment right of the press and public to attend courtroom proceedings. Appellant contends that, despite an acknowledged, long-standing tradition of public trials and hearings, there is neither a common-law nor a constitutional right of the press or public to attend pretrial hearings. We cannot accept this contention. While certain aspects of pretrial hearings, including pretrial detention hearings, weigh heavily in favor of implementing protective procedures to safeguard a defendant's right to a fair trial, the necessity and scope of such procedures must be balanced against the interest of the press and public in open judicial proceedings. In United States v. Burka, D.C.App., 289 A.2d 376 (1972), we recognized a common law right of access to judicial proceedings in holding that a trial judge may not sequester transcripts of proceedings from inspection by one of the parties because the proceeding itself was required to be public. In so holding, we noted that [t]he general nature of our form of government requires the highest degree of public exposure to trial court proceedings, and that the underlying policy firmly rooted in our judicial system [is] that courtroom proceedings must be public and open. Id. at 378 (footnote omitted). See also ex parte Drawbaugh, 2 App. D.C. 404 (1894) (patent registration litigation cannot be held in secret despite Patent Office rules preventing public disclosure in registration). If the government and amicus relied solely on this common law right of access, the balance of interests might weigh heavily in favor of appellant's right to a fair trial unjeopardized by prejudicial publicity, as guaranteed by the Fifth and Sixth Amendments. See Sheppard v. Maxwell, 384 U.S. 333, 86 S.Ct. 1507, 16 L.Ed.2d 600 (1966); Estes v. Texas, 381 U.S. 532, 85 S.Ct. 1628, 14 L.Ed.2d 543 (1965). The right of access to judicial proceedings also has a constitutional basis, however, requiring consideration of the balance between the two constitutional rights. The Supreme Court recently made explicit that the constitutional guarantees of the First Amendment to freedom of speech and the press and the right to assemble encompass a cognate right to attend criminal trials. Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia, 448 U.S. 555, 100 S.Ct. 2814, 65 L.Ed.2d 973 (1980). In an earlier decision, a plurality of the Supreme Court had held that there is no independent Sixth Amendment right on the part of the public to attend pretrial hearings in which the defense, the government, and the court consent to closure. Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. 368, 99 S.Ct. 2898, 61 L.Ed.2d 608 (1979). The appellant and Judges Bowers and Norman relied on Gannett as sanctioning the closure of the pretrial detention hearings solely on appellant's motion. This reliance is misplaced. Gannett did not rule out the existence of a First Amendment public right of access to pretrial hearings, see id. at 392, 99 S.Ct. at 2911. Instead, the plurality opinion for the Court found that, assuming there was a First Amendment right of access, there was sufficient evidence in the record to support closure to protect the defendant's fair trial right. Id. at 392-93, 99 S.Ct. at 2911-12. A clear majority of the Court in Gannett would require, at a minimum, a showing by the defense that there exists a likelihood of pretrial publicity prejudicial to the accused's fair trial rights. See id. at 400, 99 S.Ct. at 2916 (Powell, J., concurring); id. at 441, 99 S.Ct. at 2937 (Blackmun, J., with Brennan, White & Marshall, JJ., concurring in part and dissenting in part) [hereinafter cited as (Blackmun, J., concurring and dissenting)]. Justice Powell based his decision on the First Amendment, while the Blackmun opinion relied on the Sixth Amendment without reaching the issue of a First Amendment right of access. Id. at 447, 99 S.Ct. at 2940. The concurring opinions in Richmond Newspapers of Justices White, 100 S.Ct. at 2830, and Brennan and Marshall, id. at 2832-39, accept the recognition of a First Amendment right of access to judicial proceedings while maintaining their position in Gannett that the more explicit public trial right of the Sixth Amendment also contains such a right of access. Because a majority of the Court in Gannett rejected the Sixth Amendment as a basis for a right of public access, and consistent with the concurring and dissenting opinions in that case and with the Court's explicit holding in Richmond Newspapers that there is a First Amendment right of access to criminal trials, we conclude that the First Amendment provides a right of access to pretrial proceedings as well. The principles that support a right of access to trials apply with equal force to pretrial proceedings. While the possibility of prejudicial pretrial publicity is greater and the alternatives to closure more limited in the pretrial setting, these concerns are addressed by balancing the need for closure against the right of access, not by refusing to recognize such a right. Public access to judicial proceedings serves an amalgam of functions, functions which are as applicable to critical pretrial hearings as to trials. See Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. at 433-39, 99 S.Ct. at 2933-36 (Blackmun, J., concurring and dissenting) (pretrial suppression hearing is a critical proceeding implicating right of trial access). An open courtroom has an ameliorative effect on judicial proceedings themselves, by deterring perjury and thus protecting the integrity of the judicial process, see id. at 383, 99 S.Ct. at 2907, by inducing the unknown witnesses to come forward with relevant testimony and thus promoting the search for truth, see id., by serving as a restraint on possible abuse of judicial power, In re Oliver, 333 U.S. 257, 270, 68 S.Ct. 499, 506, 92 L.Ed. 682 (1948); see United States v. Burka, supra ; by guarding against misconduct by the police and prosecution, Sheppard v. Maxwell, supra ; and generally by caus[ing] all trial participants to perform their duties more conscientiously, Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. at 383, 99 S.Ct. at 2907. In addition to the ameliorative effect on the judicial process, openness and publicity perform an informative, educative function by enabling the public to observe the operation of the criminal justice system. See Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia, 100 S.Ct. at 2824-25; Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. at 383, 99 S.Ct. at 2907; id. at 428-29, 99 S.Ct. at 2930-31 (Blackmun, J., concurring and dissenting). Related to the educative function is another purpose of open proceedings, promoting the appearance of justice, see Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia, 100 S.Ct. at 2824-25; Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. at 429, 99 S.Ct. at 2931 (Blackmun, J., concurring and dissenting), which promotes confidence in the fair administration of justice. Although the simplified procedures of the pretrial detention hearing distinguish it from a trial and arguably lessen the need for and impact on the evidentiary process that public scrutiny brings, [48] the educative and sunshine aspects of openness fully apply to pretrial detention. Secret hearingsโ though they be scrupulously fair in realityโare suspect by nature. Public confidence cannot long be maintained where important judicial decisions are made behind closed doors and then announced in conclusive terms to the public, with the record supporting the court's decision sealed from the public view. Id. (quoting United States v. Cianfrani, 573 F.2d 835, 851 (3d Cir. 1978)). In the context of a constitutional challenge to a controversial pretrial detention process, the appropriateness of public scrutiny of such pretrial proceedings cannot be gainsaid. Appellant argues, with some force, that special considerations apply with respect to the possibility of prejudicial publicity arising from pretrial detention hearings. Like other pretrial hearings, pretrial detention hearings may involve the disclosure of allegedly inadmissible evidence, such as statements of the accused or physical evidence seized by the police, which ultimately may be suppressed. In addition, the nature of the inquiry in a pretrial detention hearing, in examining whether the past and present conduct of the accused supports a finding that he is dangerous to the community, necessarily introduces evidence which will be inadmissible at trial. Past arrests and convictions, highly relevant to the pretrial detention proceeding, are inadmissible at trial to show predisposition to commit the crime charged. Drew v. United States, 118 U.S.App.D.C. 11, 331 F.2d 85 (1964). Likewise, the accused's juvenile convictions may be introduced at the pretrial detention hearing but by law are confidential. See D.C.Code 1973, งง 16-2331, -2333. Not only does a pretrial detention hearing present an increased possibility of prejudicial publicity, appellant further argues, but some of the alternatives to closure are less desirable. For instance, as with other hearings held in advance of trial, sequestration of the jury is not an available alternative. See Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. at 378-79, 99 S.Ct. at 2904-05. But compare Commonwealth v. Hayes, 489 Pa. 419, 414 A.2d 318, 324, cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 101 S.Ct. 528, 66 L.Ed.2d 289 (1980) (sequestration an available alternative to closure when suppression hearing scheduled to immediately precede trial). Change of venue is not available in the District of Columbia, compare Nebraska Press Association v. Stuart, 427 U.S. 539, 563-64, 96 S.Ct. 2791, 2804-05, 49 L.Ed.2d 683 (1976), and a continuance is a costly alternative where the defendant would waive the statutory requirement that a person ordered detained be tried within 60 days. D.C.Code 1973, ง 23-1322(d)(2)(A). The increased possibility of prejudicial publicity and the limitation on alternatives are important considerations for a court confronted with a motion to close a pretrial proceeding. Nevertheless, the right of access of the press and the public to judicial proceedings mandates that the defendant make a showing and the court find, at a minimum, a likelihood that pretrial publicity will jeopardize the defendant's fair trial and that there are no alternative means reasonably available by which the fairness of the trial might be preserved without interfering substantially with the public's interest in open proceedings. Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. at 400, 99 S.Ct. at 2916 (Powell, J., concurring); see id. at 440-42, 99 S.Ct. at 2936-38 (Blackmun, J., concurring and dissenting); Nebraska Press Association v. Stuart, 427 U.S. at 562-65, 96 S.Ct. at 2804-06. Compare Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia, 100 S.Ct. at 2829-30 (in absence of any findings supporting closure or any inquiry regarding alternative solutions, closure order reversed). [49] Less burdensome alternatives, such as presenting the accused's juvenile file for in camera review by the court, must be considered before taking the ultimate step of barring the courtroom door to the press and the public. The record here reflects that Judge Bowers conducted no inquiry concerning: (1) the likelihood of and nature of pretrial publicity; (2) its potential to jeopardize a fair trial for all parties; and (3) the available means by which a fair trial can be assured without resorting to closure. Judge Norman, after originally ordering complete closure, modified this order after hearing from counsel for The Washington Post. Significantly, the record in these cases shows that the minimal publicity accompanying these proceedings was primarily generated by the unusual fact of the closure itself. And that is hardly surprising. The District of Columbia, the capital of the nation, is a major metropolitan center with a surfeit of events commanding media attention. Events occur, are reported, and pass with amazing rapidity. Trials relating to events of national and international news attention have been conducted without undue difficulty in obtaining a jury free from taint caused by such news attention. See, e. g., Khaalis v. United States, D.C.App., 408 A.2d 313 (1979), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 1092, 100 S.Ct. 1059, 62 L.Ed.2d 781 (1980); United States v. Haldeman, 181 U.S.App. D.C. 254, 559 F.2d 31 (1976), cert. denied, 431 U.S. 933, 97 S.Ct. 2641, 53 L.Ed.2d 250 (1977). The strong presumption must be that in any case, jurors can be found in the District of Columbia whose exposure to the case will have been sufficiently minimal to enable them to render a fair and impartial verdict. Absent findings of fact based upon a showing clearly demonstrating that pretrial publicity will jeopardize the parties' right to a fair trial and that no alternative means are available to accord a fair trial without threatening the substantial public interest in open proceedings, it is error to order closure. So ordered. NEBEKER, Associate Judge, with whom Associate Judge HARRIS joins, concurring in part and dissenting in part: While I join the Chief Judge's thorough analysis upholding the constitutionality of pretrial detention, I must dissent from the unoccasioned announcement by the court that the press has a First Amendment right to attend pretrial detention hearings. No court in the land, to my knowledge, has ever so ruled. This singularity, however, troubles me less than the knowledge that this proposal will find its way into history and the law books at the apparent behest of an amicus curiae, perhaps even to its surprise. In addition, we have not adequately considered the major premise of the majority. The opinion of the court relies significantly on Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia, 448 U.S. 555, 100 S.Ct. 2814, 65 L.Ed.2d 973 (1980), a case which was reported by the Supreme Court almost five weeks after argument in this case and our post-argument conference.