![]() ![]() Right now, Orloff is prosecuting a case that has been heavily covered by the local television and print media - the capital murder case of Irving Ramirez, accused of killing a San Leandro police officer earlier this year. It appears that publicity alone is not to blame for the increase in gag orders. (Gag orders) benefit us more because we have more constraints on what we can say than the defense does,” Orloff said. “We’re not usually the ones who ask for it. However, Orloff said he will not oppose defense requests for gag orders either, because it is usually a strategic benefit to a prosecutor. Last year Horner issued a gag order without giving a reason in the second of the Oakland “Riders” police misconduct trials.ĭistrict Attorney Tom Orloff said he has noticed a minor increase in the use of gag orders but added his office will not request them in most cases. is charged with beating and raping four women.Īlso, Alameda County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Horner and attorneys agreed to gag the upcoming capital trial of Demarcus Ralls on multiple murder charges after a brief discussion in Horner’s chambers. ![]() Judge Winifred Smith gagged the trial without comment. The legal proceedings of the son of mayoral candidate and City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente were gagged after the defendant’s attorney requested it. While gagging sensationalized trials such as those of Michael Jackson or Scott Peterson may be necessary for the defendant to get a fair shake, Alameda County judges are granting gag orders in trials with only modest media interest.įor example, two cases under way in Alameda County that have received only minor local media coverage are gagged, while a third, much more publicized case, is not. “In general, they are a tool that was used by courts depending on the jurisdiction, but once they catch on, they spread like wildfire.” While reporters can attend and write about a trial despite a gag order, attorneys are barred from discussing legal tactics, and defendants cannot speak to reporters from jail. “If you step an inch back from thinking as an attorney and think of it as a citizen who wants to see justice work fairly well, public scrutiny is important.”Īnd scrutiny is what a gag order hinders. “It’s a trend you don’t want to see get out of hand,” said Jay Gaskill, a former Alameda County public defender. This trend is being seen throughout the state and nation, free speech advocates and attorneys say, and is dangerous because it feeds public perception of increased secrecy in the criminal justice system. In Alameda County and elsewhere, however, gag orders are being imposed more frequently on trials with little media coverage. The court’s rationale goes like this: Heavy publicity creates a jury pool permeated with people who have already formed opinions about a case, putting in peril a defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to a fair trial.Ī rarity, it was the first gag order issued in Contra Costa County in 40 years. Gag orders make the courtroom the only venue in which those involved in the case can discuss the evidence publicly. ![]() To curb the relentless publicity, the Contra Costa Superior Court imposed a “blanket gag order” that bars all trial participants from talking to reporters. When police arrested teenager Scott Dyleski in the killing last month of Pamela Vitale in Lafayette, a cavalcade of television satellite vans, photographers and reporters rushed to cover the case. ![]()
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