Globe spinning to court date?

By: Jim Moscou da decision to indict turns on first amendment, politics

Just 30 miles southeast from Boulder, Colo., where the murder of JonBenet Ramsey remains unsolved, "JonBenet journalism" is on the brink of going to trial.
For three months, a Jefferson County, Colo., grand jury has investigated criminal allegations against the supermarket tabloid Globe and at least one of its news editors due to events stemming from the tabloid's coverage of the little girl's murder.
The case reached critical mass last week, leaving a local district attorney to ponder whether to tackle one of the most contentious issues in journalism today.
"The question is: What is acceptable news gathering and to what lengths can a reporter go to secure the news? That's really the issue," said Jefferson County District Attorney Dave Thomas, whose decision alone will determine whether the county will ask the grand jury to indict the Globe and/or its news editor, Craig Lewis.
If Thomas decides to bring his question to a jury, he will become one of the few prosecutors in the nation to attempt to legally rein in some of journalism's most notorious ethical violators. And that, the elected DA admitted, could be politically devastating should mainstream publications rally to the tabloid's side.
The case against the Globe and Lewis reportedly hinges on two charges ? extortion and commercial bribery.
The extortion allegation stems from an incident in mid-1998 when Lewis, then a general editor at the Globe, obtained personal photographs of the family of Boulder Police Detective Steve Thomas, an investigator in the JonBenet case. The pictures included shots of Thomas' deceased mother, and copies were mailed to Thomas by Lewis. The Globe allegedly schemed to inform Thomas it would run a story that his mother committed suicide ? an allegation that was not true ? unless he gave an interview (E&P, July 24, p. 18).
Colorado officials say the plan could amount to extortion under state law. But Tom Kelley, attorney for Lewis, said the evidence shows Lewis did not intend to extort the detective and that Colorado's extortion statute is constitutionally flawed.
The other potential charge being considered by Thomas is commercial bribery. That allegation grew out of an alleged effort by Lewis to purchase the JonBenet ransom note from a Ramsey family investigator for $30,000. Colorado law prohibits anyone from invading a relationship of fidelity.
In August, Thomas Miller, an attorney who introduced Lewis to the investigator, was indicted on commercial bribery by the same Jefferson County grand jury looking into the Globe and Lewis. And, while indicting Lewis with the same charge seems a short leap since he allegedly made the $30,000 offer, Thomas and Kelley agreed Lewis was a journalist gathering news and, unlike Miller, might have certain First Amendment protections.
Kelley said he informed the district attorney that indicting Lewis on commercial bribery would be "over-broad and unconstitutional."
"Basically, they're making the claim the way in which I'm prosecuting this case violates the First Amendment. Frankly, that's a lot of bs," said Assistant District Attorney Dennis Hall, Jefferson County's point man on the Globe case. "What's going on here is someone tried to pay for something that would cause someone to violate a loyalty.
"There is a line journalists cannot cross. ? Burglary statutes infringe on rights to gather on information. Does that mean you [journalists] can violate the law?"
District Attorney Thomas said should charges be levied, it could become one of the nation's few criminal prosecutions against a newspaper for its news gathering. That, in turn, could rile the local media, which concerns the district attorney. Thomas is an elected official, and if the Denver papers rally to the Globe's side ? believing the case could inhibit their own news gathering ? it could harm him politically.
"When I'm trying to get an endorsement from the editorial boards ... they're going to ask, 'You indicted someone from a news organization. Why?' And I want to make sure I know the answer to that," Thomas said. "A couple of really scathing editorials could be the end of my career."
Thomas added that he'll act according to the law. If that leads to an indictment, "I hope they [the media] would give me the benefit of the doubt," he said, adding he expects the case to be settled within weeks.
Vincent Carroll, editor of the Denver Rocky Mountain News' editorial page, said the paper's editorial board has not written an opinion on the issue, nor has The Denver Post, according to Sue O'Brian, editor of the Post's editorial page.

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