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Keywords

defendanthearingtrialcriminal procedure
defendanthearingtrialcriminal procedurerespondent

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El Vocero de Puerto Rico (Caribbean Intern. News Corp.) v. Puerto Rico, 508 U.S. 147, 113 S.Ct. 2004, 124 L.Ed.2d 60, 61 USLW 3759, 61 USLW 3769, 21 Media L. Rep. 1440

Facts

Petitioner Jose Purcell, a reporter for El Vocero de Puerto Rico, sought access to preliminary hearings and recordings after his requests were denied. He claimed that the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) violated the First Amendment, which was applicable to Puerto Rico through the Fourteenth Amendment. The Puerto Rico Supreme Court found that the privacy provision was constitutional, citing differences between Puerto Rico's Rule 23 hearings and those in California addressed in Press–Enterprise Co. v. Superior Court.

Petitioner Jose Purcell is a reporter for petitioner El Vocero de Puerto Rico, the largest newspaper in the Commonwealth. By written request to respondent District Judges, he sought to attend preliminary hearings over which they were to preside. In the alternative, he sought access to recordings of the hearings. After these requests were denied, petitioners brought this action in Puerto Rico Superior Court seeking a declaration that the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) violates the First Amendment.

Issue

Does the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) of the Puerto Rico Rules of Criminal Procedure, which mandates private preliminary hearings unless the defendant requests otherwise, violate the First Amendment?

Does the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) of the Puerto Rico Rules of Criminal Procedure, which mandates private preliminary hearings unless the defendant requests otherwise, violate the First Amendment?

Rule

The First Amendment guarantees the right to public access to preliminary hearings, and any closure must be justified by specific findings demonstrating a substantial probability of prejudice to the defendant's right to a fair trial.

The First Amendment guarantees the right to public access to preliminary hearings, and any closure must be justified by specific findings demonstrating a substantial probability of prejudice to the defendant's right to a fair trial.

Analysis

The U.S. Supreme Court applied the principles established in Press–Enterprise, emphasizing that preliminary hearings have traditionally been public and that the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) is unconstitutional. The Court found that the distinctions drawn by the Puerto Rico Supreme Court were insubstantial and that the privacy provision did not meet the necessary standards for closure.

The decision below is irreconcilable with Press–Enterprise: for precisely the reasons stated in that decision, the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) is unconstitutional. The distinctions drawn by the court below are insubstantial.

Conclusion

The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, holding that the privacy requirement of Rule 23(c) violates the First Amendment.

The petition for certiorari is granted and the judgment of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico is Reversed.

Who won?

The petitioners, Jose Purcell and El Vocero de Puerto Rico, prevailed because the U.S. Supreme Court found that the privacy provision of Rule 23(c) was unconstitutional under the First Amendment.

The U.S. Supreme Court held that this requirement violates the First Amendment.

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