To evade responsibility for the death of inmates in the county jail, San Diego County asked the court, by way of discovery, to direct a reporter to submit all her notes, documents and interviews, even those unpublished. In attempting this end run, the county ignored the First Amendment and California’s shield laws. The county claimed they had a responsibility to find out the truth so had to gain access to the reporter’s work. The judge ruled that the reporter would not have to comply with the county’s demand. (techdirt, February 16, 2018, by Tim Cushing)
CityBeat’s Kelly Davis and co-investigator Dave Maass of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, revealed in a five part series that 60 people died in the county jail between 2007 and 2012 with at least 19 death preventable. In criticizing the County’s stance, Randy Dotinga, Voice of San Diego, February 8, 2018, points out that rather than using their own records verify the charges, the county targeted the reporter. The reporter suffered significant stress and intimidation faced with the prospect of turning over her work.