Dixon

1. Introduction

A jury found defendant James Howard Dixon to be a sexually violent predator and the trial court recommitted defendant to a secured facility under the Sexually Violent Predators Act (SVPA) (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 6600 et seq.). Defendant appeals the judgment and raises two claims of error. Defendant claims the court erred in granting the media’s request to televise or videotape the proceedings. Defendant also claims the court erred in failing to order the prosecutor to disclose the victims’ contact information.

In addressing defendant’s first claim, we explain that while the public and the press may have a First Amendment right to attend the proceedings, the press does not have a constitutional right to have a camera in the courtroom. The trial court erred in failing to apply the proper standard in evaluating the media’s request to televise the proceedings and, specifically, in failing to give adequate consideration to the factors listed in California Rules of Court, rule 1.150 (formerly rule 980). The error, however, is harmless because defendant cannot show that the media’s intrusion affected the jury’s determination that he satisfied the criteria for…