“A bill to provide for media coverage of Federal court proceedings.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section authorizes presiding judges in federal appellate courts and district courts to permit, at their discretion, the photographing, electronic recording, broadcasting, or televising of court proceedings, subject to specified exceptions and requirements. For appellate courts, coverage is prohibited if it would violate any party's due process rights (as determined by the presiding judge or a majority of participating judges). For district courts, coverage is similarly prohibited if it would violate due process rights; must obscure non-party witnesses' faces and voices upon request (with judges required to inform such witnesses of this right); prohibits coverage of jurors or jury selection; allows obscuring of individuals' faces and voices for good cause related to safety, court security, law enforcement operations, or the interest of justice; and sunsets three years after enactment (until the Judicial Conference of the United States promulgates mandatory guidelines). The section further (1) bars interlocutory appeals of judges' media coverage decisions; (2) directs the Judicial Conference to promulgate advisory guidelines and, within six months of enactment, mandatory guidelines for obscuring vulnerable witnesses—including crime victims, minor victims, victims' families, cooperating witnesses, undercover law enforcement, witnesses in the federal Witness Security Program (18 U.S.C. § 3521), and minors under age 18—with procedures to identify such witnesses early; (3) authorizes judges to promulgate courtroom media rules and require acknowledgments; (4) prohibits audio pickup or broadcast of attorney-client or similar conferences not part of the official record; (5) permits courts to require accommodations without public expense; and (6) preserves courts' inherent authority.