Abstract
On September 11, 1978, the fourth trial of John Paul Stevenson began in a Virginia courthouse. Initially, Stevenson was convicted of second-degree murder, but the Virginia Supreme Court reversed the conviction, holding that a bloody shirt, belonging to Stevenson, had improperly been admitted into evidence. After two more mistrials, the case recommenced in front of the same judge that had presided over two of the first three trials In an apparent attempt to prevent jury contamination, the trial judge granted the defendant's motion to close the trial to the press and public. This closure ultimately prompted what one Justice called a "watershed case."' For the first time, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the First Amendment grants a right of public access to criminal trials. The Court stated that such access "is implicit in the guarantees of the First Amendment; without the freedom to attend such trials, which people have exercised for centuries, important aspects of freedom of speech and 'of the press could be eviscerated."
Recommended Citation
Watts, Brian
(2003)
"The Creppy Directive: Security Necessity or Just Plain Creepy? Reexamining the Richmond Newspapers Test in Light of the Inconsistent Results Reached in Its Application to Deportation Hearings,"
Utah Law Review: Vol. 2003:
No.
3, Article 10.
Available at:
https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol2003/iss3/10