Cameras in the Courtroom, Part V: Louisiana Approach
V. The Pros: Historical and Constitutional Reference as well as the Practical
Considerations of Education and Accountability
Based on our colonial past, the value of open access to the functions of our judiciary has long been recognized in our nation’s history. In fact, to some degree, the value placed upon open trials and the public jury system by our Founding Fathers can be said to have shaped the core principles that would later make up those parts of the Bill of Rights dealing with our trial system, i.e. the Sixth Amendment, as well as the First Amendment rights to the accessability of public proceedings as well as to free and open speech and press. As has been discussed, while the ideal of expanded media presence in our courtrooms today has been refuted by some, the concept is supported by strong arguments both of a constitutional nature and of a common sense nature. The arguments in favor of such expansion, it is posited herein, far outweigh those to the contrary.
More than any other amendment, the issue of cameras in the courtroom invokes those rights and liberties made the basis of the First and Sixth Amendment. Detractors would argue that there exists a natural tension between the guarantees of the Sixth Amendment and those secured by the First. In other words, those detractors argue that the more “public” a proceeding becomes, the less “fair” it gets. This is a cynical view that does not account for the inherent, but often subtle genius exhibited by our Founders. Indeed, the proper and more logical view would be to consider the two amendments as “mutually reinforcing,” a concept promoted by countless sources, both legal and academic. In essence, the idea or concept of reading these two amendments together goes as follows: public access to and participation in our courts and court system provides an extra-judicial check on dubious judges and potentially biased participants, thereby reinforcing a defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to a fair and public trial. Further, a jury’s power to consistently uphold the individual’s right to free speech if challenged likewise promotes the goals of the First Amendment by use of the Sixth. Thus, through the concept of “mutually reinforcing amendment,” the arguments in favor of greater access to our courtrooms, through media, clearly “shine” through.
Thus, on the constitutional front, the view in favor of expanded access to courtrooms is strong. However, this right of access, as promoted by and inherent in the guarantees of the First and Sixth Amendments, will not be fully vested in the people until the public is allowed access to all proceedings, or at least to those not involving highly sensitive and/or exceptional issues. This, it is argued, cannot occur without the expanded involvement of broadcast. Thus, a return to the core of those ideals originally envisioned through the First and Sixth Amendments is necessary. In other words, the rights guaranteed through these amendments would be greatly enhanced by harnessing for the good the often rightly maligned medium of broadcast.
Beyond these loftier constitutional ideals there lie very common sense and practical reasons supporting the idea of cameras in the courtroom. The practical argument contains two very simple and digestible parts: first, that the lens of media, acting not on its own behalf but on behalf of and for the public at large, provides an accountability check on the judicial branch, both judge and participant, and second, that the greater accessibility and ability to view the inner-workings of a court through media serves as perhaps the best tool for educating the citizenry about its heretofore least visible branch of government.
As to the accountability argument, a cameras impact on the behaviors and actions of a judge are fairly easy to comprehend. However, the accountability argument applies to others as well. Indeed, it can be said that, in so far as the administration of justice is enhanced by greater courtroom access and visibility, the public benefits from its own inclusion. Scholars pointing to early social commentators, including the influential Alexis de Tocqueville, have made clear that “the core interest underlying the jury trial is that of the jurors rather than the parties. And the citizenry's interest in a jury trial transcends that of the twelve jurors. The public benefits from having ordinary citizens monitor judges, the police, and prosecutors.”
The educational component of the argument in favor of the proliferation of cameras in the judiciary is, in these modern times, perhaps even stronger. Of course today, much of what the populace learns of its government it learns through the medium of television. The benefits of greater visibility through broadcast can not be understated. As concluded by one observer: “students, educators, and lawyers would additionally benefit by being able to observe ‘firsthand,’ via the broadcast and videotape, the trial and its participants.” Needless to say, this type of benefit would greatly assist a populace already somewhat bewildered by and distrusting of the judicial process.
