South Coast Newspapers, Inc. v. Superior Court

Petitioners are news media that disseminate news locally, regionally and nationally. On August 25, 2000, respondent superior court entered an order (the order) prohibiting Media or anyone from publishing any nontilized images of the defendants in a pending criminal proceeding, regardless of the source from which Media obtained the images. Media’s petition for a writ of mandate seeks to reverse the order. Media argue the order is a prior restraint on free speech invalid under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and article I, section 2 of the California Constitution. Real Party in interest Michael Rose argues a court may prohibit publication of a criminal defendant’s likeness without offending the federal or state Constitution if that prohibition is necessary to protect that defendant’s right to a fair and impartial trial.

I

Background

Several juveniles, including Rose, were charged as adults with numerous crimes arising out of an attack on migrant workers in San Diego County. The attack and resulting criminal charges have been the focus of substantial public interest and extensive coverage by the print and broadcast media. The names, ages and other…