The case of Vanessa Leggett, an independent, courageous and principled
writer who refused to turn over her unpublished notes to prosecutors
deserves notice. So far, to the shame of the government and the judiciary,
she has been in jail 37 days. Texas prosecutors are attempting a second try
at a murder conviction (a jury acquited the defendant in 1998) and insist
they require Vanessa's unpublished research.
The excellent folks at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press,
who deserve our praise for the support they have lent Vanessa and who have
helped me on occasion, have collected legal documents here:
http://www.rcfp.org/leggett.html
They've set up a legal defense fund, and I urge Politechnicals who can
afford a few dollars (or other currencies) to contribute. You can mail
checks to:
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
1815 N. Fort Myer Dr., Suite 900, Arlington, VA 22209
Or to Vanessa's lawyer:
Mike DeGeurin
Foreman DeGeurin Nugent & Gerger
909 Fannin, Suite 590, Houston, Texas 77010
A Washington Post op-ed today raises Politech-related themes (technology
reducing the economic barriers to publishing and reaching a worldwide
audience):
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60302-2001Aug25.html
So let's return to the question: Just who is a writer? The obvious
first answer to the question is: Anyone who writes. That is the old
formula -- if it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck . . . . But
such an all-embracing definition may be too broad for situations where
there are strong countervailing societal interests. A murder
investigation would be viewed as such a situation. Someone with
crucial information shouldn't be able to declare himself a "writer"
and thus frustrate a legitimate state inquiry.
The Post has, with the help of the RCFP, compiled a list of 13 other
reporters who have been jailed for refusing to turn over information in the
last two decades:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60300-2001Aug25.html
Newsweek ran a relevant interview with First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/618598.asp
-Declan
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Received on Aug 26 2001
Intro
