By: A judge has ordered the San Antonio Express-News to hand over records about the guardianship case of a prominent south Texas rancher and not to publish articles related to them.
State District Judge Alex Gabert on Aug. 22 ordered the newspaper to hand over copies of court documents and destroy electronic ones related to the case of Robert C. East in the next five days. The newspaper acquired the sealed court documents outside the court system.
In early June, Gabert issued a temporary order sealing court documents and closing court proceedings in the case of East, who died June 18 and left an estate worth hundreds of millions of dollars from his Hebbronville ranch.
The Express-News published an article July 22 on the complicated legal issues surrounding East's final days and the nasty estate dispute that included such issues as the 87-year-old's mental competence.
The story was based in part on documents Gabert is now ordering surrendered to the court.
Gabert called the newspaper's actions "callous, conscious, willful and deliberate disregard" for his earlier orders sealing the records, which occurred while East was still alive.
The order extends to all parties in the proceedings, including the lawyers, their employees and all court officers and employees.
Express-News Editor Robert Rivard defended the newspaper's decision to publish the article.
"The Express-News published a story that we believe was of significant public interest, based on documents we obtained legally," he said.
The newspaper planned to appeal the ruling, Rivard said on Aug. 24.
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