European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 27, 1981, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes january 1981 to in courts supreme court says safes of criminal trials even if Washington a states Are free to allow television and  Phy coverage of criminal trials even when defendants the supreme court ruled such coverage docs not automatically violate a criminal defendants constitutional right to a fair the High court mondays unanimous decision upheld Florida policy of allowing courtroom Cam Era thus upholding the burglary convictions of two Miami Beach policemen who claimed they had been denied a fair More than half the states have adopted some either permanently or on an experimental for allowing broadcast Media coverage of not All those have allowed coverage of criminal trials Over the objections of defendants or others advocates of expanded broadcast trial coverage hailed mondays the Illinois Freedom of information Council said in a statement that the ruling will be far reaching in providing a better understanding of the judiciary by the Gener Al and Herbert executive director of the Iowa Freedom of information coun cil and Dean of the Drake University school of its a most Welcome Iowa supreme court Justice Jerry Lar son said in i think electronic Media coverage is Good it gives people a window into the in other the High court allowed lbs to withhold information gathered for its 60 minutes television program from two men facing Federal prosecution for alleged fraud in the fast food franchising the without left intact a ruling that journalists have a right to keep confidential information away from Crimi Nal defendants at least until a criminal trial agreed to decide whether a Federal Law aimed at keeping racketeers from invading legitimate businesses can also be used against wholly criminal gang Active at Issue is the Power of the rack bid to free con from Federal jail daring chopper caper fails new York up a couple who hijacked a helicopter in a daring bid to Pluck a narcotics Kingpin and prison Escapee from atop a Federal jail failed because they had the wrong police said Mon they brought the wrong size Bol Cut said Deputy chief Frank during the escapade the couple pulled a gun and ordered the helicopter Pilot to hover while they tried to Cut through a wire Fence covering the roof of the metro Politan correctional Center in lower Man chopper Hijack scene police helicopters Circle Over the Federal metropolitan correctional Center in lower Manhattan after a copter was hijacked and forced to land on the build Ings roof in an apparent inmate Rescue a photo when this they ordered the Pilot to ram the but he then they tossed a gun onto the but it bounced off and landed on a parapet beyond the convicts they told the Pilot to Fly but a Metal escape ladder dangling from the copter became tangled in the jagged links of the Fence and the Craft almost flipped investigators said the target of the escape plan was Robert a major drug dealer who two years ago was sentenced to 20 years in jail on Federal heroin and cocaine investigators said Wyler escaped last but was the drama was played out in the heart of downtown new the metropolitan correctional Center is sandwiched Between the Federal and state supreme court build Ings and police the caper recalled the the hot in which Gem thieves landed a Heli copter on top of a Manhattan police station in an attempt to recover a Diamond a Pris Oner had hidden in a detention helicopter Pilot Thomas Nietsche was flying a woman known As Sanchez and a Man in his 40s to Manhattan from a new Jersey helipad when the drama began sunday Nietsche told police that when the Heli copter was airborne the couple offered him to take part in some the Money is the Pilot was no drugs Are but Nietsche the pair pulled a sawed off Rifle on him and ordered him to Fly to the corrections at while the chopper was in route to the Pris a group of 20 including arrived on the 13th floor roof of the jail for a scheduled on hour recreational guard Luis German was with the which has basketball and hand Ball is covered by a Quarter Inch Cyclone Fence above 15fpot High at the helicopter arrived and Wyler apparently overpowered the guard and locked him in a As the helicopter hovered three or four feet from the the pair dropped Down a Metal intending to lift Wyler out once they had Cut a Hole in the first the and then the tried to Cut the Fence with Bol cutters but failed because the tool was too then they ordered Nietsche to break the Fence by ramming it with the helicopters but he the pair dropped a pistol onto the but it bounced off and landed on a parapet one floor below the As the copter was the ladder got tangled in the jagged links of the Fence and the chopper almost flipped but the ladder snapped on the pilots third try to leave and the copter flew they landed at a new York helipad and made their getaway in a Gray May allow filming defendants steer influenced and corrupt organizations which makes it a Federal crime for racketeers to get involved in any Enterprise which is engaged in or the activities of which interstate or foreign com agreed to decide whether private health care including insurers such As Blue can be exempt from Federal antitrust the courts eventual decision could significantly affect the nations billion year health the justices must consider if ant competitive acts by such private companies Are Legal in supposedly furthering the governments efforts to curb the growth of unneeded in the trial coverage chief Justice Warren writing for the said a 1965 decision striking Down the swindling conviction of Texas financier Billie sol Estes did not establish that televising criminal trials is inherently Union Stith it does not stand As an absolute ban on state experimentation with an evolving tech which in terms of modes of mass was in its relative infancy in and even in a state of continuing Burger he added that the supreme court is not willing to set Down any such kind of Auto Matic justices Byron what and Potter in separate said they thought the Estes decision 16 years ago had set Down an absolute ban but that they were willing to overturn that burgers opinion said defendants remain free to Challenge their convictions on grounds that news Media coverage prejudiced their he defendants cannot bar the courthouse door to the broadcast news me Dia if state policy says if it could be demonstrated that the Mere presence of photographic and record ing equipment and the knowledge that the event would be broadcast invariably and uniformly affected the conduct of the participants so As to impair fundamental our task would be simple prohibition of broadcast coverage of trials would be Burger the decision did not give the broadcast Media any constitutional right to cover Tri als with cameras and but appeared to Lay the groundwork for such a first amendment the supreme court last july ruled that the Public and news Media have such a constitutional right to attend criminal trials even when defendants armed with that broadcasters be expected to test their rights in those states not allowing broadcast coverage of or allowing such coverage Only when All participants the american bar associations ethical standards imposing an absolute ban on elec tronic Media and photographic coverage of courts still serves As a Model for Many states and the Federal Florida policy was challenged by two Miami Beach policemen convicted in the 1977 burglary of a Noel Chandler and Robert Granger each were sentenced to seven years in the Florida supreme court previously had rejected their arguments that a televised trial violated their fair trial a will Monitor Calls to benefits Counselor Chicago a supervisors at the veterans administration office in Chicago will Monitor Telephone Calls to benefits Counselor to assure that callers get Cour accurate says Donald a regional Ramsey said the set to begin in is part of the Vas nationwide program to evaluate the Quality of service and determine training