Friday, October 5, 2007

Autopsy Story Blocked

So, apparently a Boston judge issued a decision earlier this week that stopped a TV station from airing a report about the autopsies done on two firefighters that were killed in a restaurant fire in August. The autopsies showed the firefighters had been drinking and using drugs when they died, so obviously this was going to be negative publicity for the city's fire department. Also, the judge who made this ruling is the former chief of staff and legal counsel for the mayor of Boston, which suggests a possible conflict of interest when deciding a case that will reflect poorly on city officials. This story here from the Media Nation blog mentions the 1931 US Supreme Court case of Near v. Minnesota, a case that we recently discussed in my Media Law class, which sets out three narrow categories of expression that can be constitutionally subject to prior restraint. It doesn't seem this report about the autopsy results would fit any of them. Granted, I don't know every intricacy of this case and decision, but this seems to be an unconstitutional prior restraint. It just seemed like a surprising ruling to me, and I wonder if it will be appealed and the case will continue moving up through the court system.

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