Opinion
Case No. 02-80813.
July 1, 2003.
ORDER GOVERNING MEDIA AND PUBLIC CONDUCT, COURTROOM PROCEDURES, AND DECORUM
The Court hereby orders as follows:
(1) Contact with Jurors: Contact with jurors and prospective jurors is strictly prohibited. The media and the public are reminded that any attempt by any one not authorized by the Court to contact or communicate with jurors or prospective jurors or any attempt to photograph jurors while in transit is strictly prohibited and may be punished as a criminal contempt of court.
(2) Electronic Devices: No cell phones, laptop computers, or pagers will be permitted in the courtroom. In addition, as provided in Eastern District of Michigan Local Rule 83.31, cellular phones, tape recorders, and cameras are not permitted in the courthouse.
(3) Leaving the Courtroom: The courtroom, Room 226, will be open one half-hour before each court session. To minimize disruptions in the courtroom, all media personnel and other spectators should be seated ten minutes before each session, and absent emergencies, should remain seated throughout the proceedings until court recesses.
(4) Credentials and Courtroom Seating: Four rows on the left side of the courtroom will be reserved for the press, two rows on the right side of the courtroom will be reserved for court personnel, and the row on the right side of the courtroom immediately behind the defense table will be reserved for Defendants' family. In addition, the front row on the left side of the courtroom will be reserved for up to three sketch artists. The remaining rows will be available for public seating, on a first come basis.
To expedite media access to the courtroom, reporters registered with the Court Administrator (Room 814) will receive court-issued media credentials and will have priority seating in the benches reserved for the press. A registration form will be available on the Eastern District of Michigan's internet site,www.mied.uscourts.gov.
If the reserved seating is insufficient for all the media personnel who wish to attend the trial, preference will be given to news organizations with reporters assigned to the courthouse on a full-time basis. Only one individual from any news organization will be permitted in the courtroom at any one time. With the exception of reporters assigned to the courthouse on a full-time basis, media access to the courtroom is on a first come basis. Fifteen minutes before a court session is scheduled to begin, if there is extra space in the media reserved section, additional members of media organizations may be seated. If there is extra space in the rows reserved to the public or court staff, additional members of media organizations may be seated there as well. Likewise, if fifteen minutes before a court session is scheduled to begin there is extra space in the media section, and no other members of the media wish to fill the space, then members of the public or court staff may sit in those empty spaces.
No member of the media or public will be admitted in the well within the bar of the courtroom at any time.
No member of the media shall either attempt to secure an interview or conduct an interview in the courtroom or in any area which prevents ingress to and egress from the courthouse. Parking of the media's equipment trucks is the responsibility of media personnel. For security reasons, trucks or other vehicles will not be permitted on the perimeter of the courthouse.
A daytime press work area is available in room 261 for use by the media. One public telephone is available on the second floor, and more are available on the first floor of the courthouse. In addition, media organizations that have been granted courtroom credentials can, at their own cost, request that a temporary line be installed in room 261. The Eastern District of Michigan's internet site will provide a form that organizations can complete and fax to (313) 234-5388.
(5) Case Documents and Court Orders: All unsealed pleadings and Court orders entered in the public record of this case are available in the Clerk's Office on the fifth floor for $.50 per page.
(6) Daily Updates: Beginning on the first day of trial, the court's internet site will contain a daily update listing the major procedural events of that day and when the next court session is scheduled.
(7) Transcripts: Persons interested in obtaining transcripts of the trial should contact Suzanne Jacques at (313) 964-5121 orsuzanne_jacques@mied.uscourts.gov. Requests for daily transcripts, to be available the following day, should be made by 5:00 on the day of the trial for which a transcript is requested.
(8) Compliance With These Guidelines is Mandatory: Any failure by any person to comply with this Order may result in exclusion from the courthouse and other sanctions as determined by the Court to be appropriate.
(9) Trial Schedule: The trial is scheduled to begin with jury selection on July 15, 2003 at 9:00 a.m. Due to the larger amount of seating required during jury selection, the Court will conduct jury selection in courtroom 716. Generally, the trial schedule will be Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in courtroom 226.
(10) Media Contact: Questions about these guidelines should be directed to the Court Administrator, David Weaver, at (313) 234-5051.