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76 B.U. L. Rev. 537 (1996)
Punishing the Press: Using Contempt of Court to Secure the Right of a Fair Trial

handle is hein.journals/bulr76 and id is 547 raw text is: PUNISHING THE PRESS: USING CONTEMPT OF COURT TO SECURE THE RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL STEPHEN J. KRAUSE Many sensational cases, such as the trials of Oliver North,' Marion Barry,2 Leona Helmsley,' and Pamela Smart,4 just to name a few, have forced trial courts to confront the impact of saturation coverage on a defendant's ability to obtain a fair trial. The upcoming Unabomber trial of Theodore Kaczynski promises similar coverage. The O.J. Simp- son case5 presented this same issue on an even larger scale. From the moment police discovered Simpson's ex-wife murdered, media coverage of the arrest and trial of the former football star saturated the nation. Not only did popular magazines constantly reveal new details question- ing Simpson's innocence, but television shows such as Hard Copy rarely allowed a week to pass without interviewing distraught family members or uncovering new and seamy facts about the case.7 The New York Times printed potentially highly prejudicial allegations that Simpson had 1 United States v. North, 920 F.2d 940 (examining the charge that Lt. Col. North sold arms to Nicaraguan rebels during the Iran-Contra affair), cert. denied, 500 U.S. 941 (1991). 2 United States v. Barry, 938 F.2d 1327 (D.C. Cir. 1991) (convicting Barry of co- caine possession), aff'd, 961 F.2d 260 (D.C. Cir. 1992). a United States v. Helmsley, 941 F.2d 71 (2d Cir. 1991) (charging hotel mogul Helmsley with income tax evasion), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 1091 (1992). 1 State v. Smart, 663 A.2d 1197 (N.H.) (affirming the conviction of Smart, a high school teacher, who reportedly had an affair with one of her students and then per- suaded the student to murder her husband), cert. denied, Smart v. New Hampshire, 114 S. Ct. 309 (1993). r State v. Simpson, No. BA-097211 (Cal. Super. Ct. filed July 22, 1994). 6 See generally, e.g., Richard Hoffer, Fatal Attraction?, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, June 27, 1994, at 16 (describing both the crime scene and the Simpsons' reportedly abusive marriage); Susan Schindehette, The Man with Two Faces, PEOPLE, July 4, 1994, at 32 (claiming that although O.J. possessed infinite charm in public, he was given to frightening rages in private). 7 Hard Copy (syndicated television broadcast, Feb. 28, 1995) (reporting that Britta- ny McKrenna, former girlfriend of Kato Kaelin, said that Nicole Simpson bathed top- less in front of Kaelin); Hard Copy (syndicated television broadcast, Feb. 23, 1995) (reporting that Faye Resnick, a friend of Nicole, said that O.J. suspected Kaelin of having an affair with Nicole); Hard Copy (syndicated television broadcast, Feb. 15, 1995) (reporting that musician Michael Jackson had offered privacy to O.J.'s chil- dren); Hard Copy (syndicated television broadcast, Feb. 8, 1995) (reporting Resnick's 537

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