The world will be watching as the trial over George Floyd’s killing opens this month. Join us for a look at how the First Amendment’s promise of public trials is playing out in an American courtroom amid the pandemic.
The trial of a former police officer charged in George Floyd’s death is being broadcast live, allowing the public to determine for themselves if what is taking place is just and fair. Join us for a special discussion on the role open courts play in our understanding of the justice system.
Wednesday, March 24, 11 a.m. PT / 2 p.m. ET
Featuring Leita Walker, First Amendment attorney in Ballard Spahr’s Minneapolis office and lead counsel for a media coalition in the George Floyd case, who successfully challenged a gag order and won greater public access to judicial records and proceedings, including cameras in court; David L. Hudson Jr., First Amendment scholar and assistant professor of law at Belmont University College of the Law, who is the lead author of the forthcoming guide on court access; and David Snyder, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition, an open-government lawyer and former Washington Post reporter, who is a contributor to the forthcoming guide on court access. Moderated by Soraya Ferdman, staff writer, First Amendment Watch.
Recommended reading
- Minneapolis Opened its Courts. It’s Imperative Others Do Too (Adam Symson, president of E.W. Scripps Co.)
- Pandemic shapes trial of Minneapolis ex-cop in Floyd’s death (Associated Press)
- In a historic ruling by Minnesota judge, trial will be live-streamed (Editorial, Minneapolis Star Tribune)
- Judge Lifts Gag Order in Floyd Case (Washington Post)
- New Footage Shows Delayed Medical Response to George Floyd (Visual investigation, New York Times)
Court records
- Order Allowing Audio & Visual Coverage of Trial (November 2020)
- Media Coalition’s Opposition to State’s Motion for Reconsideration of Audio/Visual Coverage (December 2020)
- Order Affirming Cameras in Court (December 2020)
- Access all publicly available judicial records in the case (Minnesota Judicial Branch)
