Pretrial Publicity

• Pretrial publicity

• Pretrial Publicity

The right of a criminal defendant to receive a fair trial is guaranteed by the SIXTH...

• West's Encyclopedia of American Law
• Po–San

• New Venue Sought for Vassalboro Arson Trial ; the Man Accused of Burning Down a Topless Coffee Shop Says Pretrial Publicity Could Influence Potential Jurors.

The man charged with burning down a topless coffee shop in Vassalboro wants his trial moved out of Kennebec County, saying pretrial publicity will make it too difficult to seat an unbiased jury. Raymond Bellavance Jr., 49, of Winthrop is charged with two counts of arson in the fire that leveled the Grand View Topless Coffee Shop on June 3, 2009.

• Portland Press Herald
• November 23, 2010

• Television news, prejudicial pretrial publicity, and the depiction of race.

Fundamental to the philosophy of justice in American society is the idea that defendants are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty. However comm...

• Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media
• Vol. 46 Nbr. 1, March 2002

• Lester St. Case Gets Jury From Nashville -- Outside Panel to Be Brought in Because of Pretrial Publicity

In a first for Shelby County, a jury from another county will be selected to hear the mass-murder trial of a Memphis man charged with killing six people on Lester Street in 2008, a judge ruled Tuesday. Noting that there have been thousands of print and electronic news reports on the case against Jessie Dotson, Criminal Court Judge James Beasley Jr. partially granted the defense request for a change of venue and agreed the jury should be chosen in Davidson County.

• The Commercial Appeal (2007-Current)
• April 28, 2010

• State v. Ridley, (Ohio 2011)

EVIDENCE – APPELLATE REVIEW/CRIM. – CRIM. MISCELLANEOUS – PROCEDURE/RULES: In a case involving a bribery conspiracy, wiretapped cellular phone conversations were admissible when they contained statements of a coconspirator made during the course of and in furtherance of the conspiracy, and when they were offered against a defendant to rebut the defendant’s express charge that the declarant had recently fabricated his testimony to obtain leniency. The trial court’s erroneous admission of the defendant’s discussions with a prosecutor concerning a plea to the offense of theft in office was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt in light of the other evidence in the case and the jury’s acquittal on the theft-in-office charge. Where the defendant was charged with theft in office, bribery, and a...

...1. . Pretrial Publicity  {¶75}  Ridley attached to his mot...

• Ohio Supreme Court

• Poll Will Measure Pretrial Publicity ; Judge Approves Lagrone Request

CLINTON -- A poll will be conducted to determine if pretrial publicity has interfered with a murder defendant's chances for a fair trial in the drowning deaths of three children last fall in Clinton Lake. Maurice Lagrone Jr.'s defense attorney, Jeff Justice, can hire a Carbondale firm to poll potential jurors, Dewitt County Circuit Judge Stephen Peters ruled last week.

• The Pantagraph Bloomington, IL
• April 15, 2004

• Lawyer Seeking Change of Venue; Schwendinger's Attorney Cites Pretrial Publicity in Dubuque County

Christopher P. Schwendinger is not receiving a "fair shake" in the case in which he is accused of fatally injuring two motorists, his attorney told a judge during a hearing in Dubuque County District Court Friday morning. And if the trial remains in Dubuque County, where potential jurors' opinions have been tainted by pretrial publicity, the 23- year-old Epworth, Iowa, man will be denied his right to a fair trial, attorney Jeffrey Walters added.

• Telegraph - Herald (Dubuque)
• October 23, 2004

• Lavigne Juror: Conviction Felt Right: ; Harrison Woman Says Service On Jury Was 'Gut-Wrenching'

A Lost Creek woman recalls her "gut-wrenching" service on the jury that convicted Joseph Lavigne Jr., in 1996, and says there was more than enough evidence to convict him, despite a judge's recent ruling setting him free. Carolyn McDonald, 47, a bookkeeper, served on the jury that found Lavigne guilty of sexual assault and incest in the brutal rape of his then 5-year-old daughter. The trial was moved from Putnam County to Harrison County because of pretrial publicity.

• Charleston Gazette
• May 24, 2011

• Weisheit Seeks New Trial Venue Defense Says Pretrial Publicity has Tainted the Jury Pool

The trial of Jeffrey Weisheit, who is facing the death penalty for charges of murder and arson, likely will not be held in Vanderburgh County. Weisheit's defense attorney, Tim Dodd, filed a motion late Wednesday seeking a change of venue for Weisheit's trial. Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Stan Levco said he would not contest it.

• Evansville Courier & Press (2007-Current)
• September 10, 2010

• Files Show Mom, 'Princess' Clashed Slain Teen's Threats Described at Stepdad's Trial

BOONVILLE, Ind. - Ryan Shelby is the one on trial for murder, but questioning Friday in Warrick Circuit Court focused on Jessica Oesterle, Shelby's ex-wife and the mother of the victim. Shelby, 35, is charged with murder, false informing and obstruction of justice in the Nov. 1, 2009, death of Alexis Oesterle, his 15-year- old stepdaughter. Her body was found in the backyard of their house near Rockport, Ind. The trial was moved to Warrick County because of pretrial publicity about the case in Spencer County. At the start of the trial, Shelby's attorney Anthony Long told jurors he would attempt to prove Jessica Oesterle had a volatile relationship with her daughter and that she was the real killer.

• Evansville Courier & Press (2007-Current)
• May 24, 2012