RON W. LAUGHLIN, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE; WILLIAM K. MCGUIRE, APPELLANT, V. THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court affirmed convictions for marijuana possession, rejecting sufficiency-of-evidence claims and holding that a trial court cannot compel a newspaper reporter to reveal confidential sources without violating First Amendment protections.
A trial court cannot compel a newspaper reporter to reveal the source of information in an open proceeding without violating the reporter's First Amendment rights.
[1] A trial court cannot compel a newspaper reporter to reveal confidential sources in an open proceeding without violating the First Amendment.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceTwo defendants were convicted by jury of possession of more than 5 grams of marijuana. At trial, the court issued a posttrial order attempting to requ…
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BARKDULL, Chief Judge.
By these appeals, we are called upon to review the convictions and sentences of two defendants found guilty by a jury of possession of more than 5 grams of marijuana.
The appellants urge error, going to the sufficiency of the evidence, which we find not to be well taken. State v. Sebastian, Fla.1965, 171 So. 2d 893; Decca v. State, Fla.App.1966, 186 So. 2d 92; Stewart v. State, Fla.App.1969, 221 So. 2d 155; Zicca v. State, Fla.App.1970, 232 So. 2d 414. The appellants also urge error in a posttrial order refusing to require a newspaper reporter to reveal the source of an alleged rumor. Initially, we seriously doubt that a proper procedure was followed in the trial court and, secondly, even if such a procedure was correct [which we do not here pass upon] no error has been demonstrated, because it would have been a violation of the reporter’s First Amendment rights to require him to respond to the question in an open trial proceeding. Morgan v. State, Fla.App.1975, (opinion filed September 26, 1975) * ; Branzburg v. Hayes, 408 U.S. 665, 92 S.Ct. 2646, 33 L.Ed.2d 626.
Therefore, for the reasons above stated, the convictions and sentences thereon be and the same are hereby affirmed.
Affirmed.
*
Editor’s Note: The opinion in Morgan, as corrected, was refiled on December 3, 1975. See 325 So. 2d 40.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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State v. Petrantoni, 48 Fla. Supp. 49 (Pinellas Cty. Cir. Ct. 1978)…d production of documents. Branzburg v. Hayes, 408 U. S. 665, 707 (1972); Morgan v. State, 337 So. 2d 951, 955-956 (1976); Morgan v. State, 325 So. 2d 40, 43 (Fla. 2nd DCA 1976), rev’d on other grounds, 337 So. 2d 951 (Fla. 1976); Laughlin v. State, 323 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976); Bursey v. United States, 466 F. 2d 1059, 1083 (9th Cir. 1972); State v. St. Peter, 315 A. 2d 254, 256 (Vt. 1974). 6. The purpose of this constitutional privilege is not simply to protect confidential news sources, but rather it…
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United States v. Blanton, 534 F. Supp. 295 (S.D. Fla. 1982)…eter, 132 Vt. 266, 315 A.2d 254 (1974); Brown v. Virginia, 214 Va. 755, 204 S.E.2d 429, cert. denied, 419 U.S. 966. 95 S.Ct. 229, 42 L.Ed.2d 182 (1974); State v. Laughlin, 43 Fla.Supp. 166 (Fla. 16th Cir.Ct. 1974) , aff’d. 323 So.2d 691, 692 (Fla.3d DCA 1975) ; State v. Morel, 50 Fla.Supp. 1 (Fla. 17th Cir.Ct. 1979); State v. Beattie, 48 Fla.Supp. 139 (Fla. 11th Cir.Ct. 1979); State v. Petrantoni, 48 Fla.Supp. 49 (Fla. 6th Cir.Ct. 1978); State v. Carr, 46 Fl…
Authorities Cited
- Branzburg v. Hayes, 408 U.S. 665 (U.S. 1972)
- State v. Sebastian, 171 So. 2d 893 (Fla. 1965)
- Copeland v. State, 232 So. 2d 414 (Fla. 2d DCA 1970)
- Grover Cleveland Stewart v. State, 221 So. 2d 155 (Fla. 3d DCA 1969)
- Morgan v. State, 325 So. 2d 40 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975)
- City OF Hollywood & John Black v. Franzini, 186 So. 2d 92 (Fla. 4th DCA 1966)
- Decca v. State, 186 So. 2d 92 (Fla. 3d DCA 1966)