Sequestration and control of news coverage are appropriate to control "gross abuses of the news media in the guise of `freedom of the press.'" Margoles v. United States, 407 F.2d 727, 733 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 396 U.S. 833, 90 S.Ct. 89, 24 L.Ed.2d 84 (1969). The trial judge was fully aware of the publicity surrounding the trial, but he was also aware of the substantial hardship that sequestering a jury for an estimated four to six weeks of trial could impose.
The Seventh Circuit had also rejected the proposition that individual questioning on voir dire is necessary whenever there has been significant pretrial publicity. Margoles v. United States, 407 F.2d 727 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 396 U.S. 833, 90 S.Ct. 89, 24 L.Ed.2d 84 (1969). Indeed, the court expressed doubt that individual questioning afforded greater protection than mass examination.
See United States v. Burr, 25 Fed.Cas. 49, 51 (Cas. No. 14,692) (1807) (Marshall, C. J.).See e.g. Haldeman, supra, 559 F.2d at 64-71; Calley v. Callaway, 519 F.2d 184, 203-212 (5th Cir. 1975) (en banc), cert. denied, 425 U.S. 911, 96 S.Ct. 1505, 47 L.Ed.2d 760 (1976); Margoles v. United States, 407 F.2d 727, 730 (7th Cir.) cert. denied, 396 U.S. 833, 90 S.Ct. 89, 24 L.Ed.2d 84 (1969). In the event voir dire reveals insurmountable prejudice, of course, additional measures exist, such as the granting of a continuance or a change of venue, to protect the rights of the defendants.
United States v. Hankish, 502 F.2d 71, at 77. (Quoting from Margoles v. United States, 407 F.2d 727, 735 (7 Cir.), cert. denied, 396 U.S. 833, 90 S.Ct. 89, 24 L.Ed.2d 84 (1969)). If, on the other hand, some members have been exposed to the prejudicial material, the district court must then determine the extent and effect of the infection and act to ensure a fair trial.