American blogger in longest contempt case
Posted by Ellee on Mar 8, 2007 in updates | 9 comments
More new from America, where a blogger has spent more than six months behind bars in California for refusing to hand over video footage of a violent San Francisco demo a a G8 summit meeting. It is the longest contempt of court sentence served by someone in the media.
A “mediation session” will today try and break the impasse, else he will stay locked up until July.
It is not clear why Josh Wolf, 24, is withholding the video and refusing to testify as there are no confidential issues involved. He sold part of the tape to local television stations and posted another on his blog.
I wonder if he hopes that his tactics will elevate his blogging status as a martyr, or whether he hopes his determined stand will catch the eye of a newspaper editor to hire him as a journalist. Or does he really have a principle worth fighting for? I would not think so if confidential issues are not at risk. It seems to me that after sticking it out for so long, it’s hard to cave in and save face. Or is he a champion of the First Amendment?
Well, he mentions police brutality.
Perhaps if the police have the film to lay charges on criminal conduct, the film rights will be in their hands. I cant see the police brutality allegations being investigated if only the police have a copy of it… hmm
I admire his position and think he is completely in the right.
I can think of few cases where I would ever testify for the prosecution in a court of law. It would have to involve the harming of women or children for me to testify. There is something rather unpleasant about the idea of aiding in someone’s conviction if they are facing possible imprisonment and I would need to feel that the people in question were truly evil before I’d consider doing so.
I certainly wouldn’t testify to convict anyone in this instance.
It is hard to figure out his motives in not helping by handing it over. On the other hand, is it blog censorship?
Very difficult to judge what his motives are and I suspect your first commenter is right. It will be interesting to know what the outcome is.
Peter, I must add you to my blogroll as you are a neighbour, and I’m wondering which friend it was so I can thank him/her for pointing you in my direction.
I’m in Cambs – in fact a friend of yours emailed me a month or so ago and pointed me to your blog.
I’ll comment if I hear more about Wolf.
Peter’s post on this is very interesting, and here is a petititon you can sign to fight for his freedom, I’m still not convinced. If he had not released any of the footage, he might have had a stronger case. I can understand why police want to see footage that might help them solve a crime.
t
The reason is that the Feds want footage that could identify demonstrators who set fire to a police car and did other criminal damage. Wolf is a left-anarchist who sympathises with the demonstrators. But he still deserves support.
Ah — the grandstanding of the young. Not knowing the complete story it strikes me as a quest for youthful martyrdom. On the other hand, were I an editor, I would hesitate to hire him. Maybe I’m being naive in assuming that such a nation as the US, despite its flaws, still grants freedom of expression within certain boundaries.
Ian