Fulton County prosecutors on Thursday partially relented on the state’s request to prohibit news outlets from filming in court during next month’s highly publicized trial in the “Young Slime Life” gang case.
Citing concerns about witness safety, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed a motion last month asking Judge Ural Glanville to ban video cameras inside his courtroom.
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
In response, Tom Clyde, an attorney representing The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and several other media outlets, argued in court Thursday that news organizations should be allowed to film the public proceedings.
Following the state’s motion seeking to bar news cameras, Clyde and attorney Lesli Gaither said in a court motion that the case is important to the victims, the defendants on trial and members of the public who want to see that the interests of justice are properly served.
They also noted that the Georgia Supreme Court has made it clear that “open courtrooms are an indispensable element of an effective and respected judicial system” and that the state Constitution “point blankly states that criminal trials shall be public.”
“Rather than acknowledge the importance of keeping these proceedings open and accessible to the public to dispel criticism that this is a prosecution intended to punish rap artists for their lyrics and lifestyle, the state has instead filed two motions seeking to undermine the right of public access to this trial,” wrote Clyde and Gaither, who represent the AJC, WSB-TV, CNN and The Associated Press.
In her motion seeking to prohibit television cameras in the courtroom, Willis said the state had no objection to audio recordings “so the process will remain open to the public.”
Prosecutor Lizzie Rosenwasser backed off the state’s initial position at Thursday’s hearing, telling the judge the DA’s office is amenable to news outlets filming the testimony of investigators and experts. But she asked that Glanville prohibit the video recording of “lay witnesses,” including victims and those testifying against the defendants.
“We’re very concerned about YSL-related witnesses and crime victims,” Rosenwasser said, noting several of the state’s witnesses have been threatened since the DA’s office charged 28 people in the sweeping gang case last May.
Those charged in the case included popular musicians Young Thug and his close friend Gunna, who was released from jail this week after entering an Alford plea to the single count he faced.
The 29-year-old, whose real name is Sergio Kitchens, entered a negotiated plea to conspiring to violate the state’s RICO act on Wednesday in which he didn’t admit to committing a crime, but acknowledged it was in his best interest to take the state’s deal.
Prosecutors also asked that any photographers shooting the proceedings remain mindful of sensitive paperwork and not show any close-ups of the attorneys’ tables.
Glanville acknowledged there were “significant safety concerns” surrounding witnesses who have chosen to testify, and instructed the parties to work together in the coming weeks to come up with a proposed order governing which witnesses could be photographed and filmed when the trial gets underway.
Jury selection is set to begin Jan. 4 and several attorneys have said their clients are open to the idea of a pleas deal. But with more than two dozen defendants remaining and the state planning to call about 300 witnesses, Glanville estimates the trial could take nine months.
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