first_published_at,last_published_at,title,slug,latest_revision_created_at,charges,legal_orders,updates,categories,links,equipment_seized,equipment_broken,targeted_journalists,authors,date,exact_date_unknown,city,state,latitude,longitude,body,introduction,teaser,teaser_image,primary_video,image_caption,arrest_status,arresting_authority,release_date,detention_date,unnecessary_use_of_force,case_number,case_statuses,case_type,status_of_seized_equipment,is_search_warrant_obtained,actor,border_point,target_us_citizenship_status,denial_of_entry,stopped_previously,did_authorities_ask_for_device_access,did_authorities_ask_about_work,assailant,was_journalist_targeted,charged_under_espionage_act,subpoena_type,subpoena_statuses,name_of_business,third_party_business,legal_order_target,legal_order_type,legal_order_venue,status_of_prior_restraint,mistakenly_released_materials,type_of_denial,targeted_institutions,tags,target_nationality,workers_whose_communications_were_obtained,politicians_or_public_figures_involved 2022-12-12 16:07:02.529626+00:00,2023-06-28 18:57:44.643304+00:00,Documentary filmmaker subpoenaed again in DOJ Capitol riots investigation,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/documentary-filmmaker-subpoenaed-again-in-doj-capitol-riots-investigation/,2023-06-28 18:57:44.500439+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (204), LegalOrder object (205)",,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Alex Holder (AJH Media Group),,2022-11-18,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"
The Department of Justice subpoenaed documentary filmmaker Alex Holder on Nov. 18, 2022, as part of an investigation related to the Jan. 6, attack on the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Holder was filming that day at the Capitol for his documentary film “Unprecedented,” of then-President Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign. In the subpoena, first obtained by Politico, federal prosecutors demanded that Holder testify before a grand jury or turn over all raw footage by the end of November. According to Politico, Holder received an extension and now has until Jan. 30, 2023, to comply with the order.
Holder’s spokesperson did not provide comment by publication, but told The Hill that the filmmaker would cooperate with the latest DOJ order.
“As we did with the other two subpoenas, we will 100 percent comply,” Holder’s spokesperson said.
Holder previously complied with a June 2022 subpoena from the House Committee investigating the Capitol attacks to produce footage from his documentary, including filmed interviews with Trump, his children and former Vice President Mike Pence. In July, Holder appeared before a special grand jury in Georgia after the Fulton District Attorney subpoenaed him for footage related to the documentary as part of an investigation into election fraud during the 2020 election.
A portion of the subpoena issued to filmmaker Alex Holder on Nov. 18, 2022, seeking testimony and raw footage gathered during the Capitol riots on Jan. 6, for his documentary “Unprecedented."
Scioto Valley Guardian Editor-in-Chief Derek Myers was charged with felony wiretapping on Oct. 31, 2022, after publishing a recording of witness testimony from an ongoing trial in Waverly, Ohio.
Myers told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker he has been covering the murder trial of George Wagner IV, which began in September. As part of that coverage, the newspaper was using a laptop to livestream witness testimony and exhibits. Judge Randy Deering issued an order before the trial began allowing anyone testifying in the case to “opt out” of being filmed by the media. The Fourth District Court of Appeals issued an emergency order overruling him partway through the testimony of Wagner’s brother, Jake, who was indicted alongside Wagner and their parents for the 2016 killings of eight members of the Rhoden family.
The court ordered that media be allowed to film unless Deering was able to show cause that it could jeopardize the fairness of the trial. Deering ruled that if Jake were to appear on camera he might be “nervous” and untruthful, again barring media from recording video or audio of him.
Myers told the Tracker that he was out of the country when Jake took the stand, but that someone in the courtroom surreptitiously recorded his testimony and provided it to the Guardian. After deliberation, Myers published a condensed version of the audio on Oct. 28.
According to files reviewed by the Tracker, Judge Anthony Moraleja approved a search warrant that day for a Guardian laptop being used to livestream the trial. The Tracker documented the laptop seizure and the illegal seizure of Myers’ cellphone here.
The Pike County Sheriff’s Office subsequently charged Myers with interception of wire, electronic or oral communications, a fourth degree felony. According to court records, he was charged under Ohio Revised Code Section 2933.52 (A)(3), which forbids the use of a recording that one knows or has reason to believe was illegally obtained.
Myers turned himself into custody on Nov. 1 and was released after paying a $20,000 bond. He told the Tracker that he pleaded not guilty at a hearing the following day. He also waived his right to a preliminary hearing, where evidence is presented before a judge who decides whether the case should advance to trial. Instead, his case will be heard by a grand jury, which will determine whether to indict him on the charges.
When reached for comment, the Pike County Prosecutor’s Office told the Tracker that the next grand jury session is scheduled to begin in February 2023, when the new prosecutor takes office.
One of Myers’ attorneys, John Greiner, highlighted the Supreme Court ruling in Bartnicki v. Vopper, which ruled that the media cannot be held liable for publishing information that was obtained illegally by a source.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, a founding partner of the Tracker, condemned the equipment seizure and the charges against Myers in a statement.
“The incompetency of local law enforcement to abide by basic legal proceedings would be comical if it were not so concerning,” said CPJ U.S. and Canada Program Coordinator Katherine Jacobsen. “Not only have Pike County authorities confiscated journalist Derek Myers’ cellphone and the Scioto Valley Guardian’s laptop without presenting a valid warrant, but they have also lobbed wiretapping charges against Myers for keeping the community informed about an ongoing murder trial. Retaliating against a news outlet, especially a small local publication, for doing their jobs in matters of public interest is completely unacceptable.”
Myers told the Tracker he hasn’t been able to cover the trial since his arrest.
“I tasked myself with covering this eight-week trial and I should be there covering it, but I can’t because I don’t have the equipment,” Myers said. “And, frankly, I don’t feel safe in that courthouse. If I take another cellphone down there they’ll probably seize that too.”
Scioto Valley Guardian Editor-in-Chief Derek Myers was charged with felony wiretapping on Oct. 31, 2022, after publishing an obtained recording of testimony from an ongoing murder trial in Waverly, Ohio.
",arrested and released,Pike County Sheriff's Office,None,2022-11-01,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,Journalist,warrant,State,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-11-08 20:51:03.315316+00:00,2023-11-03 18:02:12.856665+00:00,"Editor’s laptop, cellphone seized following publication of courtroom recording",https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/editors-laptop-cellphone-seized-following-publication-of-courtroom-recording/,2023-11-03 18:02:12.719391+00:00,,LegalOrder object (202),,"Equipment Search or Seizure, Subpoena/Legal Order",,"cellphone: count of 1, computer: count of 1",,Derek Myers (Scioto Valley Guardian),,2022-10-28,False,Waverly,Ohio (OH),39.12673,-82.98546,"An Ohio judge authorized the search and seizure of a laptop belonging to the Scioto Valley Guardian on Oct. 28, 2022. An officer with the Pike County Sheriff’s Office also seized the cellphone of the outlet’s top editor — without a warrant — a few days later.
Guardian Editor-in-Chief Derek Myers told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker he has been covering the ongoing murder trial of George Wagner IV, which began in September. As part of that coverage, the newspaper was using a laptop to livestream witness testimony and exhibits. Judge Randy Deering issued an order before the trial began allowing anyone testifying in the case to “opt out” of being filmed by the media. The Fourth District Court of Appeals issued an emergency order overruling him partway through the testimony of Wagner’s brother, Jake, who was indicted alongside Wagner and their parents for the 2016 killings of eight members of the Rhoden family.
The court ordered that media be allowed to film unless Deering was able to show cause that it could jeopardize the fairness of the trial. Deering ruled that if Jake were to appear on camera he might be “nervous” and untruthful, again barring media from recording video or audio of him.
Myers told the Tracker that he was out of the country when Jake took the stand, but that someone in the courtroom surreptitiously recorded his testimony and provided it to the Guardian. After deliberation, Myers said he elected to move forward with publishing a condensed version of the audio on Oct. 28.
According to files reviewed by the Tracker, county court Judge Anthony Moraleja approved a search warrant for the Guardian laptop that same day, authorizing the search of the MacBook Pro and any computer software or communications contained on its hard drive. Myers told the Tracker someone from the court then seized the laptop, causing the outlet’s livestream to go down.
One of Myers’ attorneys, Greg Barwell, sent a letter on Oct. 31 asking the sheriff, prosecutor and the court to return the equipment, as the Guardian had not been presented with a subpoena or search warrant.
Myers went to the Pike County Courthouse on Nov. 2 to ask for the return of the laptop in person, as he still believed it had been seized by someone from the court. Unbeknownst to the Guardian, the laptop had been taken into custody by the sheriff’s office the previous day.
Myers told the Tracker that when he passed through the metal detector, a captain from the sheriff’s department told him he would have to take his cellphone back outside. He responded that he wouldn’t be going into the courtroom — where cellphones and laptops are prohibited — but would be remaining on the first floor.
Myers said the officer then kept his cellphone, claiming, “On second thought, I think I have a search warrant for that.”
The officer also told Myers that they had a search warrant for the laptop. The item seizure report reviewed by the Tracker has “Black I-Phone” written below the MacBook, confirming that it was seized at 10:29 a.m. on Nov. 2.
One of Myers’ attorneys, John Greiner, told the Tracker that the seizure of the devices likely violated Ohio’s shield law and the federal Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits searching or seizing journalistic work products with few exceptions.
In connection with the publication of the testimony recording, Myers was charged with intercepting wire, oral or electronic communications — a fourth degree felony — on Oct. 31. The Tracker has documented those charges here.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, a founding partner of the Tracker, condemned the equipment seizure and the charges against Myers in a statement.
“The incompetency of local law enforcement to abide by basic legal proceedings would be comical if it were not so concerning,” said CPJ U.S. and Canada Program Coordinator Katherine Jacobsen. “Not only have Pike County authorities confiscated journalist Derek Myers’ cellphone and the Scioto Valley Guardian’s laptop without presenting a valid warrant, but they have also lobbed wiretapping charges against Myers for keeping the community informed about an ongoing murder trial. Retaliating against a news outlet, especially a small local publication, for doing their jobs in matters of public interest is completely unacceptable.”
Myers told the Tracker that he was able to regain control over his cellphone number on Nov. 4, but having the devices returned remains his and his attorneys’ first priority. He said he was extremely concerned about the potential search of the devices as they contain sensitive work product and source communications
“I can’t effectively do my job because I’m so focused and scared and worried about all these other people and their livelihoods are now on the line,” Myers said. “And I can’t cover the trial because I don’t have the equipment.”
On Oct. 28, 2022, an Ohio judge authorized the search and seizure of a Scioto Valley Guardian laptop, shown here in a screenshot from the search warrant, that the outlet was using to livestream a Waverly murder trial.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,in custody,True,law enforcement,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,Journalist,warrant,State,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-12-07 20:07:49.626557+00:00,2023-06-29 16:10:50.977456+00:00,KC broadcast station subpoenaed for unaired interview footage,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/kc-broadcast-station-subpoenaed-for-unaired-interview-footage/,2023-06-29 16:10:50.883548+00:00,,LegalOrder object (201),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,,,2022-10-26,False,Topeka,Kansas (KS),39.04833,-95.67804,"Missouri-based broadcaster KMBC-TV was issued a subpoena on Oct. 26, 2022, seeking all recordings and notes from multiple interviews as part of a lawsuit accusing Kansas Highway Patrol of misconduct.
Five women who are current or former highway patrol employees filed a lawsuit against the agency’s superintendent and assistant superintendent, as well as the State of Kansas, in February 2021. The Kansas City Star reported that the women allege the agency had a hostile work environment, with a culture of sexual harassment and gender discrimination.
According to court records reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, the subpoena orders KMBC to produce any notes or audio or video recordings of interviews conducted with the plaintiffs, including outtakes and other unaired footage, by Nov. 14.
It is unclear if KMBC, which did not respond to multiple requests for comment, has or intends to comply with the order. No motion to quash the subpoena had been filed with the court as of Dec. 7.
Gaye Tibbets, an attorney representing the state and the highway patrol officers, told the Star in mid-November that they were negotiating with KMBC over the subpoena, but did not elaborate on the content of the disputes.
Tibbets did not respond to requests for further comment.
First Amendment attorney Max Kautsch, who is the president of the Kansas Coalition for Open Government, told the Star he was perplexed by the subpoena as it seeks documents that are explicitly protected by the state’s shield law.
“The Legislature passed this law almost 15 years ago for the express purpose of insulating journalists from misguided attempts to bring journalists into court,” Kautsch said.
A portion of the subpoena issued to Kansas City, Missouri, broadcaster KMBC-TV on Oct. 26, 2022, seeking all footage and notes from interviews with five plaintiffs suing the State of Kansas and two highway patrol officers.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['PENDING'],None,None,Institution,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,KMBC-TV,,,, 2022-12-12 22:07:28.870034+00:00,2024-02-29 15:13:19.592676+00:00,"Investigative reporter subpoenaed in lawsuit against Maui County, officer",https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/investigative-reporter-subpoenaed-in-lawsuit-against-maui-county-officer/,2024-02-29 15:13:19.484411+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (199), LegalOrder object (200)",(2023-01-20 14:27:00+00:00) Judge quashes subpoena of Hawaii investigative reporter,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Lynn Kawano (Hawaii News Now),,2022-10-13,False,Honolulu,Hawaii (HI),21.30694,-157.85833,"Lynn Kawano, the chief investigative reporter for Hawaii News Now, was issued a subpoena on Oct. 13, 2022, seeking communications and testimony in connection with an ongoing lawsuit before the District Court of Hawaii in Honolulu.
Three women filed a lawsuit against a Maui Police Department officer and Maui County alleging the officer abused his position of power to coerce them into having sex with him, according to Honolulu Civil Beat. Kawano first reported on the allegations in August 2019.
According to court records reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, the county sent a letter to Kawano’s attorneys that alleged that Kawano stepped outside of her role as a journalist and acted as an adviser to the women, suggesting they contact attorney Michael Green.
“It is clear that Ms. Kawano has not confined herself to news gathering, but has become an advisor to the plaintiffs,” the letter stated.
Neither Kawano nor Hawaii News Now responded to emailed requests for comment.
The county issued Kawano a subpoena for documents and testimony on Oct. 13, but did not serve her the court order until Oct. 25, according to court filings. The subpoena orders Kawano to produce her communications with Green and the three women, as well as any “attorney referral agreement or client referral agreement” between Kawano and Green or his law firm.
Bruce Voss, Kawano’s attorney, sent an objection letter to the county on Oct. 31 stating that in addition to not serving the subpoena with sufficient time before the deposition date of Nov. 1, that Kawano’s communications are protected by journalist’s privilege.
The county reissued the subpoena on Nov. 9, ordering Kawano to produce the same collection of documents and to appear for a deposition on Dec. 1. According to court documents, Voss filed a motion to quash the subpoena on Kawano’s behalf on Nov. 26.
“HNN can only surmise that the County of Maui is attempting to establish some nefarious plot (that does not exist) for the purposes of distracting from some very bad facts in this case,” the motion states. “Ms. Kawano, as a journalist, is not a discovery depot for the County of Maui.”
Voss declined to comment when reached by email, citing the pending motion to quash. A hearing on the motion has been scheduled for Jan. 5, 2023.
A portion of the subpoena issued to Hawaii News Now investigative reporter Lynn Kawano as part of an ongoing lawsuit three women brought against Maui County and a Maui police officer alleging coercion and sexual harassment.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['QUASHED'],None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,[],,,,, 2022-11-09 18:53:58.972581+00:00,2023-06-29 16:11:27.606259+00:00,Boston Globe editor subpoenaed for testimony in Harvard admissions bribery case,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/boston-globe-editor-subpoenaed-for-testimony-in-harvard-admissions-bribery-case/,2023-06-29 16:11:27.498080+00:00,,LegalOrder object (198),(2022-12-13 14:45:00+00:00) Boston Globe editor compelled to testify in Harvard admissions bribery case,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Joshua Miller (Boston Globe),,2022-10-11,False,Boston,Massachusetts (MA),42.35843,-71.05977,"Boston Globe journalist Joshua Miller was subpoenaed for testimony as part of a Harvard University admissions scandal criminal case in Boston, Massachusetts, on Oct. 11, 2022.
In April 2019, Miller, now the Globe’s politics editor, broke the story of bribes allegedly paid to Harvard’s fencing coach, Peter Brand, by Maryland businessman Jie Zhao. According to the Globe, Zhao purchased Brand’s house at nearly twice its value. In return, Brand allegedly helped facilitate Harvard admission for Zhao’s two sons by recruiting them to the university’s fencing team.
Two months after the Globe published the story, the Department of Justice launched a grand jury inquiry. Brand and Zhao were formally indicted on federal bribery charges in 2020.
Globe legal counsel Jonathan M. Albano challenged the 2022 subpoena for Miller’s testimony in a Nov. 3 motion to quash, arguing that it’s not vital to the government’s case.
Albano requested that the judge instead issue a protective order for an in-camera review of Miller's recorded interview with Zhao. In a written declaration submitted to the court, Miller stated that testifying would force him to disclose confidential sources he felt “duty-bound to protect” and could have a negative impact on future reporting.
“I believe this will inhibit sources from speaking to me in the future because they will not trust that our conversations will exclusively be used for news reporting,” Miller stated. “I believe they will speak less frankly to me, or not speak to me at all, since they may fear that what they tell me will become something I will later testify about in criminal or civil litigation.”
Neither Miller nor Albano responded to requests for comment from the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.
On Nov. 8, the DOJ filed an opposition to the motion to quash, claiming only Miller can provide first-hand knowledge of Zhao’s statements to him. The federal bribery trial is scheduled to begin Dec. 5.
A portion of the subpoena issued to Boston Globe editor Joshua Miller seeking testimony in a federal bribery case connected to a Harvard admissions scandal. — SCREENSHOT
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,other testimony,['CARRIED_OUT'],None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-09-27 17:41:09.041418+00:00,2024-02-29 19:10:27.753285+00:00,"Devices illegally seized in investigation of reporter’s murder, Review-Journal argues",https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/devices-illegally-seized-in-investigation-of-reporters-murder-review-journal-argues/,2024-02-29 19:10:27.606479+00:00,,LegalOrder object (197),"(2022-10-11 15:26:00+00:00) Judge grants injunction barring searching slain reporter’s devices until agreement reached, (2022-11-15 13:47:00+00:00) Judges side with Review-Journal in series of rulings on seizure of slain reporter’s devices, (2022-10-05 11:34:00+00:00) Judge grants Review-Journal emergency protective order against searching slain reporter’s devices, (2024-01-25 14:43:00+00:00) Review-Journal staff authorized to search slain reporter’s devices, (2022-10-19 12:05:00+00:00) Injunction to be heard by Nevada Supreme Court following police department appeal, (2023-10-05 15:04:00+00:00) Nevada top court says search protocol in Jeff German case violates privilege, (2022-12-16 14:30:00+00:00) Review-Journal files for sanctions after learning that police searched journalist’s phone, (2023-01-25 15:40:00+00:00) Judge denies sanctions against the Las Vegas police for search slain reporter’s phone","Equipment Search or Seizure, Subpoena/Legal Order",,"cellphone: count of 1, computer: count of 4, storage device: count of 1",,Jeff German (Las Vegas Review-Journal),,2022-09-03,True,Las Vegas,Nevada (NV),36.17497,-115.13722,"The Las Vegas Review-Journal filed a motion for a protective order on Sept. 26, 2022, arguing that authorities should be barred from searching the electronic devices seized as part of the investigation into the murder of reporter Jeff German.
German, who had covered crime and political corruption in Las Vegas for more than 40 years, was stabbed outside his home on Sept. 2. Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles was arrested on suspicion of murder less than a week later and is being held without bail awaiting trial.
According to court filings reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, both Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo and Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson contacted the Review-Journal, alerting the newspaper to the seizure of German’s devices and requesting a waiver to allow authorities to search them.
The Clark County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
In total, officers seized an iPhone, three iMacs, a Macbook and an external hard drive from German’s home, according to the motion. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told the newspaper in writing on Sept. 16 that the devices had not been searched and would not be until the court issued an order authorizing the review.
Ashley Kissinger, an attorney representing the newspaper, sent a letter to the Metro Police Department, the Clark County public defender representing Telles and the District Attorney’s Office on Sept. 21 listing their concerns and requesting a call to further discuss the issue. Kissinger sent a follow up letter two days later proposing a resolution before resorting to filing a motion for a protective order.
When reached for comment, Review-Journal Executive Editor Glenn Cook provided a copy of the motion and declined to comment further.
The letters and the motion filed on the Review-Journal’s behalf on Sept. 26 argue that German’s contacts, communications and work product are protected from seizure and review under Nevada’s shield law and the federal Privacy Protection Act.
“The Review-Journal appreciates the efforts of law enforcement to investigate the murder of Mr. German, and of all those seeking to ensure that justice is done for this horrific crime,” the motion states. “However, the newspaper has serious and urgent concerns about the protection of confidential sources and other unpublished journalistic work product contained in the Seized Devices.”
The motion further requests that the court allow the Review-Journal to review the devices, identify the newsgathering materials contained on them and determine whether it wishes to waive its privilege concerning any of the files.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, a founding partner of the Tracker, expressed its support for the newspaper.
“A murder investigation should not be used as a pretext to access unreported source material that should be protected by both the First Amendment and Nevada’s shield law,” CPJ U.S. and Canada Program Coordinator Katherine Jacobsen said in a statement. “If law enforcement were to gain access to decades of Jeff German’s unpublished work, including sensitive source material, it would make an already difficult situation even worse.”
According to the court filing, a hearing on the motion is scheduled for Sept. 28.
A portion of the motion filed on behalf of the Las Vegas Review-Journal seeking to protect the newsgathering materials contained on multiple devices seized from slain reporter Jeff German’s home in September 2022.
",None,None,None,None,False,A-22-859361-C,['ONGOING'],Civil,in custody,True,law enforcement,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,Journalist,warrant,State,None,False,[],,,,, 2022-11-30 21:20:30.396420+00:00,2023-06-29 16:12:03.730019+00:00,Judge quashes subpoena of opinion editor as part of Flint water suit,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/judge-quashes-subpoena-of-opinion-editor-as-part-of-flint-water-suit/,2023-06-29 16:12:03.600171+00:00,,LegalOrder object (194),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Brendan Clarey (Detroit News),,2022-09-01,False,Ann Arbor,Michigan (MI),42.27756,-83.74088,"Two Detroit News editors were issued subpoenas on Sept. 1, 2022, as part of ongoing litigation around the contamination of the water system in Flint, Michigan. The subpoenas, which ordered Opinion Editor Brendan Clarey and Editor and Publisher Gary Miles to turn over documents and sit for depositions, were subsequently quashed.
The Detroit News had published an opinion piece on Aug. 31 that criticized a lawsuit brought against two engineering firms for their alleged role in the water crisis. Earlier that month, a federal judge had declared a mistrial in the case.
The subpoenas, issued by the plaintiff’s after the mistrial, sought all communications and newsgathering material related to the op-ed, which was written by the president of The American Tort Reform Association. The subpoenas also specifically sought information about the editorial process for the op-ed and whether one of the engineering firms was involved in placing the piece.
Miles, who responded to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker’s request for comment, said that at first they didn’t know that Clarey had also been issued a subpoena because he was on family leave. The Tracker has documented Miles’ subpoena here.
Miles said that before the op-ed was published, a reporter at the newspaper had contacted the plaintiffs’ attorney for comment on a separate news story, which concerned a possible public relations campaign being waged by the defendants.
Miles said that, while he doesn’t know the rationale of the plaintiffs’ lawyers, it’s possible they feared or suspected the news organization was being co-opted by defendants, because the op-ed ran before the news story was published.
Plaintiffs’ attorney Corey Stern issued the subpoenas and sent a letter to The Detroit News’ attorneys on Sept. 1, accusing the newspaper of publishing defamatory claims about him and of conspiring with the defendants in the suit.
Attorneys for Clarey and Miles filed a motion to quash on Oct. 17.
“The burden on Mr. Miles and Mr. Clarey to attend depositions and produce documents is great, as it potentially requires them to produce confidential, unpublished material and communications,” the motion stated. “Allowing access to these materials and communications from a journalist will severely inhibit the flow of accurate information to the interested public.”
District Judge Judith Levy ruled in favor of the journalists on Nov. 17.
“While there are certainly some circumstances where it would be appropriate for a party to take third-party discovery from a media outlet,” Levy wrote in her ruling, “this is not one of them.”
A portion of the motion filed on behalf of Detroit News editors Gary Miles and Brendan Clarey seeking to quash the subpoenas issued them by plaintiffs in an ongoing Flint water crisis lawsuit on Sept. 1, 2022.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['QUASHED'],None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-11-30 21:22:33.975137+00:00,2023-06-29 16:12:20.772099+00:00,Two Detroit News editors subpoenaed as part of Flint water suit,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/two-detroit-news-editors-subpoenaed-as-part-of-flint-water-suit/,2023-06-29 16:12:20.659204+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (195), LegalOrder object (196)",,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Gary Miles (Detroit News),,2022-09-01,False,Ann Arbor,Michigan (MI),42.27756,-83.74088,"Two Detroit News editors were issued subpoenas on Sept. 1, 2022, as part of ongoing litigation around the contamination of the water system in Flint, Michigan. The subpoenas, which ordered Editor and Publisher Gary Miles and Opinion Editor Brendan Clarey to turn over documents and sit for depositions, were subsequently quashed.
The Detroit News had published an opinion piece on Aug. 31 that criticized a lawsuit brought against two engineering firms for their alleged role in the water crisis. Earlier that month, a federal judge had declared a mistrial in the case.
The subpoenas, issued by the plaintiffs after the mistrial, sought all communications and newsgathering material related to the op-ed, which was written by the president of The American Tort Reform Association. The subpoenas also specifically sought information about the editorial process for the op-ed and whether one of the engineering firms was involved in placing the piece.
Editor and Publisher Miles told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that before the op-ed was published, a reporter at the newspaper had contacted the plaintiffs’ attorney for comment on a separate news story, which concerned a possible public relations campaign being waged by the defendants.
Miles said that, while he doesn’t know the rationale of the plaintiffs’ lawyers, it’s possible they feared or suspected the news organization was being co-opted by defendants, because the op-ed ran before the news story was published.
“They also might have simply seen the timing of the op-ed as another glaring example of the defendants trying to influence a prospective jury before it was seated for retrial,” he said.
Plaintiffs’ attorney Corey Stern issued the subpoenas and sent a letter to The Detroit News’ attorneys on Sept. 1, accusing the newspaper of publishing defamatory claims about him and of conspiring with the defendants in the suit.
An attorney representing Miles sent a letter to Stern on Sept. 27, stating that Miles would not comply with the subpoena and that they’d file a motion to quash the request if the plaintiffs refused to withdraw it.
“You are attempting to use the discovery process in an ongoing litigation to investigate your own meritless defamation claims,” the letter said. “This is an improper use of the discovery process, and we are confident the Court will not endorse this type of fishing expedition in the context of the ongoing Flint Water Litigation.”
Miles told the Tracker that at first they didn’t know that Opinion Editor Clarey had also been issued a subpoena, as he was on family leave. The Tracker has documented Clarey’s subpoena here.
The plaintiffs refused to withdraw their subpoenas, and attorneys for Clarey and Miles filed a motion to quash on Oct. 17.
“The burden on Mr. Miles and Mr. Clarey to attend depositions and produce documents is great, as it potentially requires them to produce confidential, unpublished material and communications,” the motion stated. “Allowing access to these materials and communications from a journalist will severely inhibit the flow of accurate information to the interested public.”
District Judge Judith Levy ruled in favor of the journalists on Nov. 17.
“While there are certainly some circumstances where it would be appropriate for a party to take third-party discovery from a media outlet,” Levy wrote in her ruling, “this is not one of them.”
Miles told the Tracker he was pleased with the judge’s ruling, and he hopes that it will set a precedent for protecting journalists from being targeted with similar fishing expeditions.
“Even though there’s an expense to fighting off a subpoena like this, I think that’s ultimately the reward,” Miles said. “You can’t use the media to do your discovery, because the media has to have some manner of independence from the discovery in civil lawsuits so we’re not seen as an arm of one side or another.”
A portion of the subpoena issued to Detroit News Editor and Published Gary Miles on Sept. 1, 2022. The subpoena sought communications, work product and testimony in connection with an ongoing Flint water crisis lawsuit.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['QUASHED'],None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,,,, 2023-06-20 15:55:20.989989+00:00,2023-06-20 18:39:29.339369+00:00,"Radio correspondent subpoenaed, testifies in Oath Keepers criminal trial",https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/radio-correspondent-subpoenaed-testifies-in-oath-keepers-criminal-trial/,2023-06-20 18:39:29.216745+00:00,,LegalOrder object (215),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Micah Loewinger (On the Media),,2022-08-15,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"On the Media correspondent Micah Loewinger was subpoenaed on Aug. 15, 2022, to testify in a criminal trial against multiple individuals involved in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. He took the stand in the case two months later.
In a May 2023 report for OTM, Loewinger said that on Jan. 6 he was monitoring a conversation about the Stop the Steal rally on a push-to-talk walkie-talkie cellphone app called Zello and recorded real-time chatter with members of the Oath Keepers. The Southern Poverty Law Center identifies the militia movement as “one of the largest far-right antigovernment groups in the U.S. today.”
Loewinger also published some details from the recording in an article for The Guardian and spoke on 60 Minutes about how the app was used to mobilize the attack on the Capitol.
A few months after the riot, Loewinger said he was contacted about the recording by a Department of Justice attorney helping to lead the criminal prosecution against the Oath Keepers.
“I thought maybe if I got this guy on the phone, I might be able to glean some useful information about the investigation that would help my own reporting, maybe even a juicy scoop,” Loewinger reported on OTM.
But when the prosecutor told him that the lead FBI agent was also interested in speaking with him, Loewinger said he became concerned they would use the Zello tape as a pretense to seize his phone and computer to gain access to his interviews and notes concerning the insurrection.
After consulting with colleagues at WNYC, which produces OTM, Loewinger posted the full, nearly 2 1⁄2-hour-long recording online so he wouldn’t have to act as a middleman. The prosecutor told Loewinger, however, that to use the recording as evidence in the trial someone would have to testify vouching for its authenticity.
“As the person who made the recording, I was the only one who could do it,” Loewinger said. “When the DOJ asked if I would testify voluntarily, my lawyer declined on my behalf, pointing to the importance of journalistic independence. Hence, the subpoena.”
After weighing the possibility of fighting the subpoena and the risk of imprisonment were he to refuse to comply, Loewinger said he “begrudgingly” testified.
Loewinger took the stand on Oct. 17, according to Courthouse News. Daily Kos reporter Brandi Buchman tweeted live from the courtroom that afternoon, writing on Twitter that the correspondent testified for approximately half an hour, describing how Zello works and how he captured the recording.
Separately, Loewinger noted In his report for OTM that when meeting with the lead prosecutor and an FBI agent, they asked him about records they had obtained from Zello, including details of when he used the app and whom he had messaged in the lead up to Jan. 6, 2021.
“Maybe I should know better, but I was shocked to see just how easy it was for the government to access some of the personal data related to my reporting,” Loewinger said.
Loewinger declined to comment when reached by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. The Tracker was unable to confirm whether a subpoena was issued to Zello for Loewinger’s records.
Journalist Jim DeRogatis was issued a subpoena for testimony in the federal trial of R&B singer Robert “R.” Kelly in Chicago, Illinois, on Aug. 3, 2022. The judge quashed the subpoena on Sept. 7.
DeRogatis — a reporter, music critic, author and an associate professor at Columbia College Chicago — has reported extensively on Kelly for The Chicago Sun-Times and The New Yorker, and in 2019 he authored the book “Soulless: The Case Against R. Kelly.”
DeRogatis told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that an individual delivered an unmarked videocassette with footage of Kelly and a 14-year-old girl to his home in February 2002. DeRogatis said that within four hours of receiving the footage, he and the editorial staff at the Sun-Times turned it over to police and it was subsequently used as evidence in Kelly’s state criminal trial in 2008.
The judge in the case compelled DeRogatis to testify during that first trial, but upon advice from counsel DeRogatis refused to answer any questions, reading instead a statement citing his Fifth and First Amendment rights.
DeRogatis told the Tracker that following the first trial, he was aware that he might again be called to testify in the federal case. In 2022, attorneys for Derrel McDavid — Kelly’s former business manager and co-defendant in the case — issued DeRogatis the subpoena, ordering him to appear to provide trial testimony on Sept. 6.
In court filings reviewed by the Tracker, McDavid’s attorney’s cited interest in April 2019 emails between DeRogatis and Assistant U.S. Attorney Angel Krull, the former lead prosecutor on the case.
DeRogatis told the Tracker he was on assignment for The New Yorker when he contacted Krull about the two federal investigations and in the course of the conversation had offered to send her a copy of his then-forthcoming book. Krull then emailed him from a non-governmental email address and he sent along a PDF of his book. DeRogatis said he never heard back from her and has not communicated with Krull since.
DeRogatis and The New Yorker jointly filed an emergency motion to quash the subpoena or issue a protective order on Sept. 6. The motion argued that all of the information or knowledge that DeRogatis may have that would be pertinent to the case had been published in his reporting.
During a hearing on Sept. 7, attorneys for McDavid told District Court Judge Harry Leinenweber that they wanted to show DeRogatis the cassette and ask him to confirm whether it was the same one he had received in 2002, according to DeRogatis. The prosecutors, who had not previously expressed an interest in questioning DeRogatis, told the judge they also hoped to ask the journalist to confirm the timeline of his reporting while at the Sun-Times.
Seth Stern, the attorney representing DeRogatis at the hearing, confirmed to the Tracker that Leinenweber granted the motion to quash the subpoena that day. Stern said that the judge agreed that the testimony they were seeking was “cumulative, redundant, unnecessary.”
A good day for the First Amendment. And anything I could possibly have been asked I’ve already reported. pic.twitter.com/lwQeOcFL0w
— Jim DeRogatis (@JimDeRogatis) September 7, 2022
“I would have sat on the stand and read my whole book if they had 10 or 15 hours,” DeRogatis said. “In 22 years of reporting on this case, I have not had a single correction, clarification, retraction or lawsuit. My reporting stands. I’m proud of that work.”
Stern said that while he was gratified with the outcome in this case, the subpoena itself can set a precedent that may chill future reporting.
“Absent a federal shield law, there’s really no certainty that a reporter getting a subpoena like this can have regarding whether they’ll need to testify or not,” Stern said. “Fortunately, in this case the judge made the right call, but you never know what’s going to happen in the next one.”
Kelly was convicted on three counts of child pornography and three counts of enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual acts on Sept. 14, CNN reported. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison in June on racketeering charges in a second federal trial in New York. McDavid and Kelly’s second co-defendant, Milton Brown, were acquitted of all charges.
A portion of the subpoena issued to music journalist James (Jim) DeRogatis seeking trial testimony in the federal case against singer R. Kelly. The subpoena was quashed on Sept. 7, 2022.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,other testimony,['QUASHED'],None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-08-16 18:45:23.885706+00:00,2023-06-28 18:59:29.448184+00:00,Subpoena for CNN footage quashed in criminal case against Capitol rioter,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/subpoena-for-cnn-footage-quashed-in-criminal-case-against-capitol-rioter/,2023-06-28 18:59:29.320095+00:00,,LegalOrder object (192),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,,,2022-07-25,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"CNN was served a criminal trial subpoena on July 25, 2022, by a defendant facing charges stemming from his alleged participation in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The subpoena, which sought approximately two hours of raw footage from an interview with a Capitol Police officer, was subsequently quashed.
According to court filings reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, defendant Kyle Fitzsimons is facing an 11-count indictment and is accused of having attacked multiple law enforcement officers near the Capitol’s Lower West Terrace.
CNN broadcasted an interview with two Capitol Police officers on June 4, one of whom is believed to have been assaulted by Fitzsimons. The subpoena — which was issued on July 20, 2022, and served five days later — requests “any and all raw footage” from the officer’s interview.
According to CNN’s motion to quash the subpoena, the officer does not mention Fitzsimons by name and Fitzsimons does not appear in any of the footage.
CNN attempted to narrow the request for only the telecast footage but Fitzsimons’ counsel declined. The outlet did not respond to requests for comment as of press time.
The outlet’s Aug. 10 motion to quash argued that the subpoena was a “fishing expedition,” and that Fitzsimons has no reason to believe that the outtakes from the interview will help his defense when the alleged acts were captured by Capitol surveillance cameras and the officers’ body cams.
“Allowing speculative discovery of the press here, on the basis that an unsworn statement in unpublished newsgathering information might theoretically become useful to the defense for purposes of impeachment, would expose a host of media organizations to similar speculative subpoenas in similar January 6 prosecutions,” the motion stated. “That would undeniably chill news reporting about this topic of clear national importance — the ‘violent breach of the Capitol’ that ‘was a grave danger to our democracy.’”
District Judge Rudolph Contreras ruled in favor of CNN on Aug. 14, finding that while Fitzsimons was able to specifically name the material sought, he failed to justify the request with more than hopes of what might be found in the outtakes.
Fitzsimons’ trial is scheduled to begin on Aug. 16.
A portion of the subpoena issued to CNN seeking approximately two hours of raw footage from an interview with a Capitol Police officer in connection with the criminal trial of a Capitol rioter.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['QUASHED'],None,None,Institution,None,Federal,None,False,None,CNN,"election, Election 2020",,, 2022-07-13 18:55:08.251135+00:00,2024-03-27 13:52:33.655416+00:00,Podcast host subpoenaed a second time for testimony in murder case,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/podcast-host-subpoenaed-a-second-time-for-testimony-in-murder-case/,2024-03-27 13:52:33.489781+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (190), LegalOrder object (191)","(2022-07-15 19:24:00+00:00) Second subpoena for podcast host testimony, documents quashed",Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Chris Lambert (Freelance),,2022-07-10,False,Salinas,California (CA),36.67774,-121.6555,"Freelance reporter and podcast host Chris Lambert was issued a second subpoena ordering him to testify during hearings around the 1996 disappearance and murder of a California Polytechnic State University student.
Lambert’s 2019 podcast, “Your Own Backyard,” chronicled his independent investigation of the murder of Cal Poly student Kristin Smart. In the span of 10 episodes, he interviewed new witnesses whom law enforcement officers had cited as “valuable” in their decision to arrest Paul Flores and his father, Ruben Flores, two longtime suspects in the case.
Attorneys for Paul Flores issued a subpoena to Lambert seeking testimony and reporting materials in August 2021, which San Luis Obispo County Superior Judge Craig van Rooyen dismissed, citing California’s journalist shield law. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker documented that case here.
The San Luis Obispo Tribune reported that the case was moved to Monterey County Superior Court after van Rooyen ruled that pretrial publicity had made it unlikely that the defendants would receive a fair trial in the county.
On July 10, 2022, Lambert tweeted a photo of a section of the subpoena, which shows that he was ordered both to appear to testify at a hearing as well as provide “items” listed in an attachment. While he did not specify what the items were, the first subpoena demanded confidential interview recordings, emails and notes gathered in the course of producing the podcast.
— Your Own Backyard Podcast (@YOBPodcast) July 10, 2022
Lambert, who could not immediately be reached for comment, told The Tribune his attorney’s advised him against speaking further about the subpoena or providing additional details because of the gag order placed on the case.
According to The Tribune, opening arguments in the case are scheduled for July 18.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution was subpoenaed in July 2022 by a Fulton County special grand jury investigating former President Donald Trump’s possible interference in Georgia’s 2020 presidential election results.
The grand jury conducting the criminal investigation into Trump’s potential involvement is seeking audio recordings of a Jan. 11, 2021, phone call involving the former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, Bobby Christine.
According to the AJC, Christine was appointed to the role by Trump on Jan. 4, after his predecessor could not find legitimate claims of election fraud. On Jan. 12, 2021, AJC reported on the leaked conference call between Christine and staffers. During the call, Christine said he had dismissed two election fraud cases filed by Trump’s supporters on his first day as a U.S. Attorney.
Prosecutors also issued subpoenas to Trump associates including U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani.
When reached for comment, an AJC editor said the outlet would be publishing a statement on the subpoena. Fulton County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to requests for comment.
The Fulton County Elections and Administrative Divisions Office in Atlanta in 2021. County prosecutors investigating the 2020 presidential election subpoenaed the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['CARRIED_OUT'],None,None,Institution,None,State,None,False,None,Atlanta Journal-Constitution,"election, Election 2020",,, 2022-08-11 21:42:46.054717+00:00,2023-09-15 17:26:55.962586+00:00,Journalist subpoenaed to testify in grand jury hearing on Georgia election interference,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-subpoenaed-to-testify-in-grand-jury-hearing-on-georgia-election-interference/,2023-09-15 17:26:55.772605+00:00,,LegalOrder object (188),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,George Chidi (Freelance),,2022-07-01,True,Atlanta,Georgia (GA),33.749,-84.38798,"Independent journalist George Chidi was subpoenaed in July 2022 to testify before a grand jury in Atlanta, Georgia, investigating possible 2020 election interference by former President Donald Trump and his allies.
Chidi, a former reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution whose work has appeared in The Intercept and the Atlanta hyperlocal news site Decaturish, publishes an award-winning newsletter called The Atlanta Objective.
In his June 29 newsletter, Chidi wrote that he was covering the Dec. 14, 2020, meeting of electors at the Georgia Capitol to cast their official votes for Joe Biden when he observed a Republican elector entering a side room.
“I looked around for [a] minute, asking other reporters what’s going on in there, then I launched a Facebook live and walked in,” Chidi wrote. “I asked the people there what they were doing. One of them, a woman, said they were having a meeting. What’s it about, I asked? ‘Education,’ she replied.”
When someone noted that he was filming, someone else quickly ushered him out of the room, Chidi wrote. After that, someone stood guarding the door.
Chidi wrote that he was immediately suspicious and believed 16 Republican electors were working to submit fabricated election results certifying the state’s electoral college votes for Trump despite Biden’s victory in Georgia, posting his suspicions on Facebook.
A special grand jury began meeting in Fulton County in June 2022 to investigate the alleged election interference, according to The Washington Post, and it has identified more than 100 people of interest to date.
According to Chidi’s newsletter, an investigator for the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office contacted him on June 27 to ask whether he’d be willing to testify before the grand jury. Chidi did not indicate his response.
Chidi was ultimately issued a subpoena which he unsuccessfully fought in court, according to the Saporta Report. However, the journalist was able to limit the scope of the questions to exclude any unrelated reporting.
“Journalists cannot act as agents of the government. Georgia has a longstanding tradition and legal precedent providing for ‘reporter’s privilege’ to prevent journalists from being used as a witness in a case,” Chidi wrote in his newsletter. “The thing is, the reporter’s privilege bends under extraordinary circumstances. And, honestly, how much more extraordinary does it get than a case that might send Donald Trump to prison.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that prosecutors notified the newspaper to expect a subpoena for the testimony of reporter Greg Bluestein, who was also present at the December 2020 meeting and who reported extensively about the election and its fallout. The outlet said it will file a motion to quash any subpoena issued to one of its journalists. As of publication, it is unclear if a subpoena has been issued to Bluestein.
A judge ordered the editor of the Everett Leader Herald to release names of confidential sources and unpublished reporting materials on June 30, 2022, as part of a defamation case filed by the mayor of Everett, Massachusetts.
According to UniversalHub, a news and information site for the Boston area, Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria sued Joshua Resnek on Oct. 7, 2021, claiming Resnek published “defamatory falsehoods” in three separate articles in the weeks leading up to the mayoral primary.
The official complaint states that Resnek published an article on Sept. 8, claiming that DeMaria had “extorted the City Clerk into paying him $96,000” as part of a real estate transaction. DeMaria, who did not respond to a request for comment by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, is also suing the city clerk, who was a source for the article, and the publishers of the Leader.
In his ruling, Superior Court Associate Justice James Budreau wrote that the First Amendment did not allow the defendant in a libel case to refuse to identify sources on the grounds of reporter’s privilege, but that some protection was provided. The court would “weigh the relevant public interests for each source to determine whether their identities need to be revealed.”
Budreau granted a partial motion to compel Resnek to reveal the identities of 10 out of 12 sources.
After the ruling, Resnek, who did not respond to a request for comment, agreed to reveal the names and contact information of confidential sources, unpublished notes and emails and will not object to any depositions of sources.
Alex Holder, a documentary filmmaker, complied with a subpoena issued on June 28, 2022, by the District Attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, as part of an investigation into election fraud during the 2020 presidential election.
CNN reported that the subpoena was issued as part of a special grand jury investigation into Trump’s alleged interference in attempts to overturn the state’s election results.
According to a copy of the subpoena obtained by Politico, investigators demanded testimony and all video footage and other materials related to Holder’s documentary, “Unprecedented,” which followed the-President Donald Trump during his 2020 reelection campaign. Holder, who was filming in Georgia for the film, confirmed he complied with the order during an interview with MSNBC.
Holder previously complied with a June 2022 subpoena from the House committee investigating the Capitol riots. In December, a spokesperson for Holder told The Hill he would cooperate with another subpoena issued by the Department of Justice for materials and testimony related to the Jan. 6 attack.
A portion of the subpoena issued to filmmaker Alex Holder on June 28, 2022, by Georgia prosecutors seeking testimony and footage gathered for his documentary “Unprecedented." (SCREENSHOT)
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,other testimony,['CARRIED_OUT'],None,None,Journalist,None,State,None,False,None,,"Donald Trump, election, Election 2020",,, 2023-07-06 21:50:38.627179+00:00,2024-03-05 19:16:36.218474+00:00,Former Fox News journalist subpoenaed to reveal confidential source,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/former-fox-news-journalist-subpoenaed-to-reveal-confidential-source/,2024-03-05 19:16:36.090833+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (226), LegalOrder object (227)","(2023-08-01 16:58:00+00:00) Judge orders journalist to reveal confidential source, (2024-02-29 13:10:00+00:00) Former Fox News reporter held in contempt for refusing to comply with subpoena",Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Catherine Herridge (Fox News),,2022-06-16,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"Journalist Catherine Herridge was subpoenaed on June 16, 2022, about coverage of a federal investigation into a Chinese American scientist that later led to a privacy lawsuit.
Fox published the investigative online articles and broadcast reports from February to June 2017. Multiple agencies were investigating the possible foreign military ties of Yanping Chen and the university she founded in the Washington, D.C., metro area.
The articles cited, and included excerpts of, materials from the investigation, such as FBI interviews, Chen’s immigration forms and photos of her in a Chinese military uniform. The six-year investigation was concluded in 2016. No charges were brought against Chen.
In December 2018, Chen sued the FBI and the departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security, arguing that investigators violated her rights under the Privacy Act when her personal information was shared with then-Fox News correspondent Herridge.
Chen subpoenaed Herridge on June 16, seeking documents and communications from December 2012 through July 2018 concerning the published excerpts from the federal investigation, as well as sufficient information to identify her source. According to court records reviewed by the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, Herridge was also ordered to appear to testify about her reporting and her source or sources.
Fox News and producers Pamela K. Browne and Cyd Upson — who were also bylined on the articles — received similar subpoenas for documents and testimony. The Tracker has documented each of the subpoenas here.
Upson and Browne ultimately agreed to provide sworn statements in place of documents or testimony, according to court filings. In exchange, Chen agreed to withdraw her subpoenas to Browne and Upson, but continued to pursue the subpoenas to Fox and Herridge, a subsequent court filing confirmed.
Attorney Patrick Philbin filed motions to quash the subpoenas against Herridge and Fox News on Aug. 1, 2022.
As part of the motion, Herridge submitted a declaration confirming that she did not disclose her sources to anyone at Fox and stating that a forced disclosure by the court would have a ripple effect for all national security journalists and whistleblowers.
“Confidential sources, and the information they provide, are essential for informing the public on matters relating to national security, including information relating to the military, espionage, government surveillance, and homeland security,” Herridge wrote. “Fear of exposure will make sources less likely to serve as whistleblowers or otherwise act as confidential sources for such matters.”
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper heard arguments concerning the motions on May 30, 2023. Courthouse News reported that he seemed reluctant to accept Philbin’s argument that the subpoenas posed a threat to First Amendment protections. Philbin did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Cooper did not indicate when he would rule on the motions to quash, according to Courthouse News.
A portion of a subpoena issued to former Fox News correspondent Catherine Herridge seeking documents, communications and testimony concerning her reporting on an FBI investigation into a Chinese American scientist's possible foreign military ties.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,None,None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,[],,,,, 2022-06-23 15:35:30.003895+00:00,2023-10-24 15:23:03.576367+00:00,Documentarian subpoenaed by House Committee investigating Jan. 6 riot,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/documentarian-subpoenaed-by-house-committee-investigating-jan-6-riot/,2023-10-24 15:23:03.464041+00:00,,LegalOrder object (184),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Alex Holder (AJH Media Group),,2022-06-15,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"The U.S. House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol subpoenaed British documentary filmmaker Alex Holder for footage and testimony on June 15, 2022.
Holder, the founder of AJH Media Group, began working on a documentary about then-President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign in September 2020, Politico reported. According to a statement Holder published on Twitter, he had “unparalleled access and exclusive interviews” with the Trump family and then-Vice President Mike Pence at the White House and Mar-A-Lago and behind-the-scenes access on the campaign trail and both before and after the insurrection.
My statement in response to being subpoenaed by Congress: pic.twitter.com/LOY53rEynI
— Alex Holder (@alexjholder) June 21, 2022
Rolling Stone reported that several former officials in Trump’s reelection campaign told the magazine they had no idea that a documentary was being filmed during that period.
The subpoena orders Holder to produce raw footage from Jan. 6, 2021; interviews with Trump, Pence, Trump’s children and his son-in-law; and any footage of discussions of election fraud or election integrity around the 2020 presidential election.
According to Holder’s statement, he turned over footage in compliance with the subpoena on June 21, 2022, and will sit for a deposition on June 23.
“When we began this project in September 2020, we could have never predicted that our work would one day be subpoenaed by Congress,” Holder said. “We have dutifully handed over all the materials the Committee has asked for and we are fully cooperating.”
When reached for comment, the law firm representing Holder directed the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker to Politico’s coverage.
The House Select Committee, chaired by Democrat Rep. Bennie Thompson, has now issued at least three subpoenas targeting journalists or their records. The committee subpoenaed freelance photojournalist Amy Harris’ phone records in November 2021 and ordered another British documentarian, Nick Quested, to provide footage and testify in early 2022.
Holder’s documentary, “Unprecedented,” is set to be released in three parts this summer, according to his statement.
A portion of the subpoena issued to documentary filmmaker Alex Holder ordering him to produce footage from his coverage of then-President Trump’s reelection campaign and the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['CARRIED_OUT'],None,None,Journalist,None,Federal,None,False,None,,"Donald Trump, election, Election 2020",,, 2023-07-06 21:43:52.831150+00:00,2023-07-06 21:43:52.831150+00:00,Subpoena to uncover confidential source dropped following sworn statement,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/subpoena-to-uncover-confidential-source-dropped-following-sworn-statement/,2023-07-06 21:43:52.725518+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (222), LegalOrder object (223)",,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Pamela K. Browne (Fox News),,2022-06-14,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"Broadcast journalist Pamela K. Browne was subpoenaed on June 14, 2022, about coverage of a federal investigation into a Chinese American scientist that later led to a privacy lawsuit. The subpoena was ultimately withdrawn.
Fox published the investigative online articles and broadcast reports from February to June 2017. Multiple agencies were investigating the possible foreign military ties of Yanping Chen and the university she founded in the Washington, D.C., metro area.
The articles cited, and included excerpts of, materials from the investigation, such as FBI interviews, Chen’s immigration forms and photos of her in a Chinese military uniform. The six-year investigation was concluded in 2016. No charges were brought against Chen.
In December 2018, Chen sued the FBI and the departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security, arguing that investigators violated her rights under the Privacy Act when her personal information was shared with then-Fox News correspondent Catherine Herridge.
In 2022, Chen subpoenaed Browne, Herridge, Fox Executive Producer Cyd Upson and Fox News for documents and testimony, in an attempt to uncover the confidential source behind the leak. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker has documented each of the subpoenas here.
According to court filings reviewed by the Tracker, Browne and Upson ultimately agreed to provide sworn statements in place of documents or testimony. In exchange, Chen agreed to withdraw her subpoenas to Browne and Upson, but continued to pursue the subpoenas to Fox and Herridge, a subsequent court filing confirmed.
In a June 30 statement, Browne declared that she was never made aware of the identity of Herridge’s confidential source or sources, and has no information that could be used to help identify them. She also confirmed that she left her position at Fox in late 2018, and has no access to the electronic devices, phone or email address that she used to communicate about the reports.
A portion of a sworn statement filed by former Fox News producer Pamela K. Browne in June 2022, about her coverage of an FBI investigation into a Chinese American scientist's possible foreign military ties.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,None,None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-07-07 21:50:19.558072+00:00,2022-07-07 21:50:19.558072+00:00,St. Joseph journalist deposed after reporting on hospital,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/st-joseph-journalist-deposed-after-reporting-on-hospital/,2022-07-07 21:50:19.502955+00:00,,LegalOrder object (182),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Clayton Anderson (St. Joseph News-Press),,2022-06-02,False,St. Joseph,Missouri (MO),None,None,"A regional medical center in St. Joseph, Missouri, subpoenaed St. Joseph News-Press reporter Clayton Anderson and a news director on June 2, 2022, after Anderson reported on an ongoing worker’s compensation lawsuit against the hospital.
On May 18, the News-Press published Anderson’s article on a discrimination and worker’s compensation lawsuit filed against Heartland Regional Medical Center, operating as Mosaic Life Care, by a former employee who sustained an injury while working as a medical technician and was later terminated from the hospital.
According to Kansas City NPR-affiliate KCUR, Anderson’s reporting referenced a spreadsheet showing the number of employees injured while working at the hospital and were later terminated or let go. A judge sanctioned Mosaic during the trial for discrepancies found in the spreadsheet.
In an email, Anderson told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that about two weeks after publishing the article he received a phone call from Mosaic Life Care asking for reporting materials and recorded interviews with sources. He said he declined to provide any information.
The hospital issued Anderson a subpoena for reporting materials and to sit for a deposition, arguing that Anderson and Steven Booher, the News-Press’ director of news content, received confidential information from the plaintiff’s lawyers. The law firm representing Mosaic Life Center did not respond to a request for comment.
In his deposition on June 14, Anderson answered questions about his motivation for reporting on the lawsuit. According to the transcript, reviewed by the Tracker, he denied having seen a confidential spreadsheet containing the names of former hospital employees.
The plaintiff’s lawyer E.E. Keenan, who was not representing Anderson but was present during the deposition, said he objected to the subpoena. “The news media should be free, under the First Amendment, to do their job without having to go through something like this,” Keenan said.
Anderson told the Tracker that he continues reporting on the lawsuit, and the subpoena has not impacted his objectivity.
“I think, if anything, this has just made me more aware of how business tend to work, but I am not spooked, and it has not impacted my news judgment,” he said.
A portion of the subpoena issued to St. Joseph News-Press reporter Clayton Anderson.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,other testimony,['CARRIED_OUT'],None,None,Journalist,None,State,None,False,None,,,,, 2022-07-11 19:40:22.102158+00:00,2022-07-11 19:40:22.102158+00:00,St. Joseph News-Press news director deposed after reporting on hospital lawsuit,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/st-joseph-news-press-news-director-deposed-after-reporting-on-hospital-lawsuit/,2022-07-11 19:40:22.056412+00:00,,LegalOrder object (183),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Steven Booher (St. Joseph News-Press),,2022-06-02,False,St. Joseph,Missouri (MO),None,None,"A regional medical center in St. Joseph, Missouri, subpoenaed St. Joseph News-Press News Director Steven Booher and a reporter on June 2, 2022, after the newspaper reported on an ongoing worker’s compensation lawsuit against the hospital.
On May 18, the News-Press published an article on a discrimination and worker’s compensation lawsuit filed against Heartland Regional Medical Center, operating as Mosaic Life Care, by a former employee who sustained an injury while working as a medical technician and was later terminated from the hospital.
According to Kansas City NPR-affiliate KCUR, the New-Press’ reporting referenced a spreadsheet showing the number of employees injured while working at the hospital and were later terminated or let go. A judge sanctioned Mosaic during the trial for discrepancies found in the spreadsheet.
The hospital issued Booher a subpoena for reporting materials and to sit for a deposition, arguing that Booher and Clayton Anderson, the News-Press reporter who wrote the article, received confidential information from the plaintiff’s lawyers. In his deposition on June 14, Booher refused to produce unpublished and unaired materials gathered while reporting on the lawsuit. According to the transcript, reviewed by the Tracker, he said the News-Press would consider producing the materials if ordered to by a judge. Neither Booher nor the lawyers representing Mosaic Life Center responded to requests for comment.
The plaintiff’s lawyer E.E. Keenan, who was not representing Booher but was present during the deposition, asked Booher if subpoenas issued to reporters had the potential to have a chilling effect on journalism.
“It would. It would definitely have that effect, and most likely it would affect our news judgment about stories that we do cover, and eventually it would have a detrimental effect on our business,” Booher said in the deposition.
Keenan objected to the subpoenas during the depositions. “The news media should be free, under the First Amendment, to do their job without having to go through something like this,” he said.
A Minnesota District judge quashed a subpoena on June 20, 2022, that sought testimony from KARE 11 News reporter Lou Raguse in an upcoming murder trial in Minneapolis.
According to the Star Tribune, Dan Allard, Assistant Hennepin County Attorney, filed a motion to compel Raguse to testify during the trial of Jamal Smith. Smith is accused of fatally shooting a man after an altercation on a Minneapolis highway.
Raguse did not respond to a request for comment, but his attorney, Leita Walker, confirmed to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker by email that the subpoena was initially served on or around May 30, 2022. Walker said that prosecutors filed a motion to compel after being notified that the law required them to first apply to the court before subpoenaing a journalist.
According to the Star Tribune, Raguse recorded a video interview with Smith while he was in jail in April 2022, where Smith denied having fired the fatal shot. Allard argued that Raguse’s testimony could place Smith in the vehicle during the shooting.
During a hearing on the motion, Walker argued that the prosecutor misstated or ignored law protecting journalists, and that reporters could not be compelled to reveal confidential sources or information under Minnesota state law.
Hennepin County Judge Nicole Engisch sided with Raguse in denying the motion to compel, quashing the subpoena. According to the Star Tribune, Engisch’s six-page order stated, “The court does not find that the state’s argument here outweighs Mr. Raguse’s First Amendment interest and legal privilege to avoid being compelled to testify on unpublished information gathered as part of his work as a journalist.”
An executive producer for Fox News, Cyd Upson, was subpoenaed on May 23, 2022, about coverage of a federal investigation into a Chinese American scientist that later led to a privacy lawsuit. The subpoena was ultimately withdrawn.
Fox published the investigative online articles and broadcast reports from February to June 2017. Multiple agencies were investigating the possible foreign military ties of Yanping Chen and the university she founded in the Washington, D.C., metro area.
The articles cited, and included excerpts of, materials from the investigation, such as FBI interviews, Chen’s immigration forms and photos of her in a Chinese military uniform. The six-year investigation was concluded in 2016. No charges were brought against Chen.
In December 2018, Chen sued the FBI and the departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security, arguing that investigators violated her rights under the Privacy Act when her personal information was shared with Fox News correspondent Catherine Herridge.
In 2022, Chen subpoenaed Upson, Herridge, then-Senior Executive Producer Pamela K. Browne and Fox News for documents and testimony, in an attempt to uncover the confidential source behind the leak. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker has documented each of the subpoenas here.
According to court filings reviewed by the Tracker, Upson and Browne agreed to provide sworn statements in place of documents or testimony. In exchange, Chen agreed to withdraw her subpoenas to Browne and Upson, but continued to pursue those sent to Fox and Herridge, a subsequent court filing confirmed.
In a June 30 statement, Upson declared that she was never made aware of the identity of Herridge’s confidential source or sources, and has no information that could be used to help identify them.
A portion of a sworn statement filed by Fox News Senior Producer Cyd Upson in June 2022, about her coverage of an FBI investigation into a Chinese American scientist's possible foreign military ties.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,None,None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,,,, 2023-07-06 21:55:34.787090+00:00,2023-08-02 21:26:38.220091+00:00,"Fox News subpoenaed to reveal confidential source, editorial process",https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/fox-news-subpoenaed-to-reveal-confidential-source-editorial-process/,2023-08-02 21:26:37.900445+00:00,,"LegalOrder object (228), LegalOrder object (229)",(2023-08-01 17:13:00+00:00) Subpoenas to Fox News quashed while reporter must testify on confidential source,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,,,2022-05-19,False,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"Fox News was subpoenaed in May 2022, about coverage of a federal investigation into a Chinese American scientist that later led to a privacy lawsuit.
The network published the investigative online articles and broadcast reports from February to June 2017. Multiple agencies were investigating the possible foreign military ties of Yanping Chen and the university she founded in the Washington, D.C., metro area.
The articles cited, and included excerpts of, materials from the investigation, such as FBI interviews, Chen’s immigration forms and photos of her in a Chinese military uniform. The six-year investigation was concluded in 2016. No charges were brought against Chen.
In December 2018, Chen sued the FBI and the departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security, arguing that investigators violated her rights under the Privacy Act when her personal information was shared with Fox News correspondent Catherine Herridge.
Chen subpoenaed Fox News on May 19, 2022, seeking documents and communications from December 2012 through July 2018 concerning the published excerpts from the federal investigation, as well as information sufficient to identify Herridge’s source. A representative from Fox was also ordered to appear to testify via Zoom about the reporting and the network’s editorial review processes.
Over the next month, Chen also subpoenaed Herridge and producers Pamela K. Browne and Cyd Upson, who shared bylines on the articles. The Tracker has documented each of the subpoenas here.
Upson and Browne ultimately agreed to provide sworn statements in place of documents or testimony, according to court filings. In exchange, Chen agreed to withdraw her subpoenas to Browne and Upson, but continued to pursue the subpoenas to Fox and Herridge, a subsequent court filing confirmed.
Attorney Patrick Philbin — who is representing all of the Fox News defendants — filed motions to quash the latter two subpoenas on Aug. 1, 2022.
“The public interest in First Amendment protections that promote the functioning of a free press is at its height in a case like this involving reporting on issues of national security,” Philbin wrote. “Without confidential sources, the press could not uncover information vital for informing the public — especially about the inner workings of government.”
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper heard arguments concerning the motions on May 30, 2023. Courthouse News reported that he seemed reluctant to accept Philbin’s argument that the subpoenas posed a threat to First Amendment protections. Philbin did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Cooper did not indicate when he would rule on the motions to quash, according to Courthouse News.
A portion of the subpoena issued to Fox News on May 19, 2022, seeking documents, communications and testimony concerning the network’s coverage of an FBI investigation into a Chinese American scientist's possible foreign military ties.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,None,None,None,Institution,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,Fox News,,,, 2022-05-11 18:21:25.235862+00:00,2022-05-11 18:21:25.235862+00:00,Subpoena seeking testimony from Oregon independent journalist dropped,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/subpoena-seeking-testimony-from-oregon-independent-journalist-dropped/,2022-05-11 18:21:25.187376+00:00,,LegalOrder object (179),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Hannah Merzbach (Independent),,2022-05-05,False,Bend,Oregon (OR),44.05817,-121.31531,"The Deschutes County District Attorney in Bend, Oregon, issued a subpoena to independent journalist Hanna Merzbach on May 5, 2022, seeking testimony for an ongoing criminal case against a local rock climber. The subpoena was dropped the next day.
In an email to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, Merzbach said the subpoena demanded she testify as a witness during a three-day criminal trial for local climber Shawn Ian Snyder. Merzbach interviewed Snyder for a September 2020 article about rock climbing regulations at Smith Rock State Park in Terrebonne, Oregon.
When the DA’s office delivers you a subpoena at the local coffee shop to testify about a source… pic.twitter.com/jpdUh66Hu9
— Hanna Merzbach (@HannaMerzbach) May 5, 2022
Before this trial, Snyder had been accused of removing climbing bolts in Yosemite State Park and was arrested and banned for removing climbing ropes and gear from Smith Rock, which he said “puts a stain on a beautiful, natural place.”
According to Merzbach, the DA’s office wanted her to testify on a specific quote attributed to Snyder in her article. In the quote, he admitted that while unacceptable, he had “determined that physical threats and actions are the only methods that work” when communicating with other climbers about installing climbing equipment in the park.
Merzbach told the Tracker that the subpoena was dropped on May 6 after lawyers from the Oregon chapter of the Reporters Committee for Freedom Press intervened. RCFP is a member of the Tracker’s advisory board.
In a tweet referring to the incident, Ellen Osoinach of RCFP wrote, “Fact. Journalists should never have to testify against sources they worked to develop relationships of trust with.”
The U.S. House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol subpoenaed British documentary filmmaker Nick Quested for footage and testimony in mid-2022, according to The New York Times.
CNN reported that Quested, executive director and owner of Goldcrest Films, was embedded with the Proud Boys, which the Southern Poverty Law Center designates as a hate group, for months leading up to the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Leaders of the Proud Boys were involved in the early clashes at the Capitol and five of them have been charged with seditious conspiracy.
In an interview with CNN, Quested said, “I spoke to the authorities in an interview beforehand, but when they were using my work in the way that they did, I felt it was only appropriate for them to subpoena me.”
Quested told CNN that recognizing that he had likely filmed numerous crimes being committed, he decided to turn the footage over to the FBI.
“I didn’t feel there was any journalistic jeopardy giving that to authorities,” Quested said.
Quested told Politico that he sat for an hours-long deposition on April 5, 2022. The documentarian also mentioned a possible second subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Quested, who gave live testimony at a hearing on June 9, did not respond to requests for additional information on when the subpoena was issued or what materials were requested.
The House Select Committee, established on June 30 chaired by democrat Rep. Bennie Thompson, has now issued at least three subpoenas targeting journalists or their records. The committee subpoenaed freelance photojournalist Amy Harris’ phone records in November 2021 and ordered another British documentarian, Alex Holder, to provide footage and testify before the committee on June 15, 2022.
Nick Quested, a documentary filmmaker, testifies on June 9, 2022, before the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol. Quested said he was speaking in compliance with a subpoena.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['CARRIED_OUT'],None,None,Journalist,None,Federal,None,False,None,,"Donald Trump, election, Election 2020, white nationalism",,, 2022-05-26 19:16:22.127875+00:00,2023-06-28 19:02:58.264030+00:00,Subpoena withdrawn for former NYT reporter in trial of Clinton campaign lawyer,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/dc_sussmann-trial_lichtblau_subpoena_04-2022/,2023-06-28 19:02:58.087994+00:00,,LegalOrder object (176),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Eric Lichtblau (The New York Times),,2022-04-01,True,Washington,District of Columbia (DC),38.89511,-77.03637,"As part of a trial involving a former Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer, a subpoena demanding testimony from a former New York Times reporter was submitted in April 2022 then withdrawn on May 24, legal counsel for the Times confirmed to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker in an email.
According to the Times, the subpoena called for Eric Lichtblau to testify in the trial of Michael Sussmann, who was charged with making false statements to the FBI in 2016 in his role as a Clinton campaign attorney.
Prosecutors say that Sussmann met with former FBI General Counsel James Baker and shared information about data that allegedly linked the Trump Organization to Alfa Bank, a Russian bank affiliated with the Kremlin.
Prosecutors say Sussmann wanted to prompt an FBI investigation into the connection so that journalists could report on it. Sussmann’s defense team says he approached the FBI to notify them that an article was already underway.
Lichtblau, then a reporter for the Times, co-authored an article in October 2013, six weeks after Sussmann met with the FBI, noting that officials had not been able to confirm a clear link between the Trump Organization and Alfa Bank.
Fox News reported that before the defense lawyers withdrew the subpoena, Lichtblau had initially agreed to testify during the trial but then filed a protective order to limit testimony to only interactions between him and Sussmann and bar any questions about other sources.
According to the Times, Lichtblau’s testimony could have “shed light on what he told Mr. Sussmann regarding how soon an article might be published before he sought the F.B.I. meeting.”
The City of Minneapolis issued Minnesota Reformer Deputy Editor Max Nesterak a subpoena on March 18, 2022, in connection with a pending lawsuit against the city and multiple law enforcement officials.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Nesterak was one of three journalists ordered to produce a broad range of materials and communications relating to their coverage of protests following the police killing of George Floyd in May 2020. The subpoenas were filed in connection with an excessive use of force lawsuit filed by freelance photojournalist Linda Tirado, who was permanently blinded in one eye after police shot her with a crowd-control munition on May 29.
Nesterak, who declined to comment on advice from counsel, confirmed on Twitter that he was one of the journalists served with a subpoena.
In a subsequent post, Nesterak included a photo of the subpoena, which orders him to bring “all videos, photographs, recordings, communications, documents, or other items in your possession (including social media posts) that are related to you being hit in the chest as stated in your tweet from 11:32 p.m. on May 27, 2020.” The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker has documented that incident here.
And I got hit in the chest by a rubber bullet from police. Covered me in dust that’s been making me cough for a half hour. I’m home now. pic.twitter.com/sYShFOjvQO
— Max Nesterak (@maxnesterak) May 28, 2020
The subpoena also orders Nesterak to produce any images or documents pertaining to his coverage of the protests from May 26-31, 2020, and any communications he may have had with Tirado or her legal counsel, excepting anything that he has “a good faith basis to assert is protected by a legally recognized journalistic privilege.”
According to MPR News, the city issued similar subpoenas to Andy Mannix of the Star Tribune and Jared Goyette, who was a freelance journalist during the protests and now works for Fox 9.
The City Attorney’s Office shared a statement with the Tracker that said the individuals subpoenaed were identified by Tirado as having relevant information.
“It is incumbent upon the City Attorney’s Office, as it would be any attorney, to obtain information relevant to their client’s case, whether or not the individuals possessing that information happen to be journalists.”
In a statement shared with the Tracker, Reformer Editor-in-Chief J. Patrick Coolican said the outlet intends to fight the subpoena.
“This ham-handed effort to intimidate journalists with a burdensome legal action will not achieve its intended effect,” Coolican said. “Quite the contrary. We will continue to aggressively pursue our reporting, and protect our newsgathering rights from interference by government officials.”
The City of Minneapolis issued Minneapolis Star Tribune reporter Andy Mannix a subpoena on March 18, 2022, in connection with a pending lawsuit against the city and multiple law enforcement officials.
The Star Tribune reported that Mannix was one of three journalists ordered to produce a broad range of materials and communications relating to their coverage of protests following the police killing of George Floyd in May 2020. The subpoenas were filed in connection with an excessive use of force lawsuit filed by freelance photojournalist Linda Tirado, who was permanently blinded in one eye after police shot her with a crowd-control munition on May 29.
Mannix declined to comment on advice from counsel.
According to the Star Tribune, the subpoenas order the journalists to produce any images or documents pertaining to their coverage of the protests from May 26-31, 2020, and any communications they may have had with Tirado or her legal counsel, excepting anything that he has “a good faith basis to assert is protected by a legally recognized journalistic privilege.” The journalists were also ordered to appear for depositions via Zoom videoconferencing in late March.
Mannix was also asked for materials related to his thigh injury from a projectile that struck him while he was covering protests on May 26, 2020, the day after Floyd’s death. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker documented that incident here.
I Was just shot with this in the thigh. pic.twitter.com/igcJ3e7iQ4
— Andy Mannix (@AndrewMannix) May 27, 2020
According to MPR News, the city issued similar subpoenas to Max Nesterak of the Minnesota Reformer and Jared Goyette, who was a freelance journalist during the protests and now works for Fox 9.
In a statement shared with the Tracker, the City Attorney’s Office said: “The individuals subpoenaed were identified by Plaintiff Linda Tirado as having information relevant to her claims.
“It is incumbent upon the City Attorney’s Office, as it would be any attorney, to obtain information relevant to their client’s case, whether or not the individuals possessing that information happen to be journalists.”
Suki Dardarian, senior managing editor and vice president of the Star Tribune, said in a statement to the outlet, “We are reviewing the issue, but we expect to challenge the subpoena.”
A portion of the subpoena issued to Minneapolis Star Tribune reporter Andy Mannix, who was struck with a crowd-control munition while covering protests in Minnesota in May 2020.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['DROPPED'],None,None,Journalist,subpoena,Federal,None,False,None,,"Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter 1 year, Black Lives Matter 2020, protest",,, 2022-03-23 14:53:02.849522+00:00,2023-06-29 16:18:20.854484+00:00,Journalist subpoenaed in connection with blinded photojournalist’s lawsuit,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/journalist-subpoenaed-in-connection-with-blinded-photojournalists-lawsuit/,2023-06-29 16:18:20.740171+00:00,,LegalOrder object (174),(2022-06-02 10:33:00+00:00) Subpoenas dropped following settlement in blinded photojournalist’s lawsuit,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Jared Goyette (Freelance),,2022-03-18,False,Minneapolis,Minnesota (MN),44.97997,-93.26384,"The City of Minneapolis issued journalist Jared Goyette a subpoena on March 18, 2022, in connection with a pending lawsuit against the city and multiple law enforcement officials.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that three journalists were ordered to produce a broad range of materials and communications relating to their coverage of protests following the police killing of George Floyd in May 2020. The subpoenas were filed in connection with an excessive use of force lawsuit filed by freelance photojournalist Linda Tirado, who was permanently blinded in one eye after police shot her with a crowd-control munition on May 29.
Goyette, who was a freelance journalist at the time and now works for Fox 9, declined to comment further than confirming to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he was one of the three journalists subpoenaed. He is also a plaintiff in a separate class-action suit against the city and law enforcement, which recently reached a partial settlement with Minnesota State Patrol.
According to the Star Tribune, the subpoenas order the journalists to produce any images or documents pertaining to their coverage of the protests from May 26-31, 2020, and any communications they may have had with Tirado or her legal counsel, excepting anything that he has “a good faith basis to assert is protected by a legally recognized journalistic privilege.” The journalists were also ordered to appear for depositions via Zoom videoconferencing in late March.
The journalists were each also asked for materials related to their own injuries from projectiles that struck them while covering the protests sparked by Floyd’s death. Goyette was struck in the eye with a crowd-control munition while covering protests on May 27. The Tracker has documented that incident here.
I got hit in the eye and then tear gassed. pic.twitter.com/wXm1P5yPKb
— Jared Goyette (@JaredGoyette) May 27, 2020
According to MPR News, the city issued similar subpoenas to Andy Mannix of the Star Tribune and Max Nesterak of the Minnesota Reformer.
In a statement shared with the Tracker, the City Attorney’s Office said: “The individuals subpoenaed were identified by Plaintiff Linda Tirado as having information relevant to her claims.
“It is incumbent upon the City Attorney’s Office, as it would be any attorney, to obtain information relevant to their client’s case, whether or not the individuals possessing that information happen to be journalists.”
A Massachusetts Superior Court judge said during a Sept. 22, 2022, hearing that she would reexamine her previous decision forcing a Berkshire Eagle editor to turnover his confidential reporting notes as part of a clergy abuse lawsuit.
According to the Eagle, Larry Parnass, managing editor for innovation at the Berkshire Eagle, published more than a dozen news stories since 2019 on sexual abuse allegation cover-ups involving the Springfield Diocese. As part of a lawsuit, the diocese subpoenaed Parnass this March, seeking his testimony and a broad array of reporting materials it said were needed to verify the consistency of claims made to investigators and a review board. Attorneys for the Eagle objected to the order, arguing that turning over the materials would compromise a confidential source.
Parnass and the Eagles’ attorney, Jeffrey Pyle, did not respond to requests for comment from the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.
In a ruling this summer, Judge Karin L. Goodwin upheld the subpoena but narrowed the scope to materials she believed did not include identifying information of confidential sources.
During the September 2022 hearing, Pyle argued the diocese’s requests for information did not overcome the First Amendment and was not significant enough to violate a reporter’s confidential relationship with a source, the Eagle reported.
“This story would never have been published by The Berkshire Eagle had not Mr. Parnass been able to ensure confidential sources of his promise not to reveal their identities, and in that respect, this case is much like many other cases that have involved award-winning, societally important journalism,” Pyle said during the hearing. “The stakes are very high here.”
Goodwin said she would reexamine her previous ruling allowing the subpoena to move forward in part. She did not say when she would release that decision.
On May 5, 2022, a United States District Court judge quashed a subpoena issued to ABC News seeking footage, documents and journalist communications as part of a criminal lawsuit involving a cast member from the television show "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City."
According to court documents, ABC News aired a documentary featuring cast member Jennifer Shah and her alleged involvement in a telemarketing fraud scheme. Shah issued a subpoena to ABC News on Feb. 11, 2022, requesting seven categories of documents, including all video footage, documents, interviewer notes and identification of all government agents and members of the prosecution who provided the news outlet with information.
According to court documents, Eileen Murphy, the senior editorial producer of the documentary, said thousands of documents and materials were collected as part of the reporting process. ABC News staffers also interviewed non-confidential and confidential sources but did not interview any prosecutors involved in the case.
Lawyers for ABC News filed a motion to quash the subpoena on Feb. 25, 2022, stating the information requested was protected under journalists' privilege and was "unreasonable or oppressive" under the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure, Rule 17.
U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein heard oral arguments on April 25. In granting the motion to quash on May 5, Stein wrote that the request did not overcome journalistic privilege and did not meet the requirements set out in United States v. Nixon, that materials must be “relevant, specifically identified, admissible, and not otherwise procurable by due diligence."
A North Dakota police investigator seized a cellphone belonging to Tom Simon, a Williston-based reporter for Coyote Radio 98.5 and Williston Trending Topics News Radio Live, during a school board meeting on Jan. 10, 2022. The phone was ultimately returned.
Simon told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker he had been covering the departure of the school district’s former superintendent since October 2021. Multiple individuals contacted Simon with details from a closed executive session of the school board. In the wake of his reporting, Williston police initiated an investigation at the behest of the school board president and enlisted the help of the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation to identify Simon’s sources.
The BCI obtained a search warrant for Simon’s cellphone on Jan. 4 but waited six days — until the next school board meeting — to execute it. Simon told the Tracker that BCI police investigator Charissa Remus approached him during the Jan. 10 meeting and asked him to come with her to answer some questions.
While Remus asked him to identify his sources, Simon said a second agent seized his cellphone from the table where he had left it. Remus then presented Simon a copy of the signed search warrant and asked him to tell her the device’s passcode. Simon refused to identify his sources but provided the passcode, not knowing whether he had the right to refuse.
Under the state’s shield law, police cannot seize a journalist’s work product without a court hearing to determine if the “failure of disclosure of such evidence will cause a miscarriage of justice.” No such hearing was held in Simon’s case.
The Associated Press reported that North Dakota Newspaper Association Attorney Jack McDonald contacted state Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem about the seizure the following day, and Stenehjem immediately ordered that the phone be returned to Simon.
According to documents reviewed by the Tracker, Simon’s phone was returned to him just before 3 p.m. on Jan. 11 without having been searched or its contents downloaded. Simon’s attorney, Kevin Chapman, told the Tracker they are working with a computer expert to confirm whether the phone’s contents were accessed while it was in custody.
“Having it returned quickly does not solve the problem,” Simon told the Tracker. “Once the veil of secrecy is pierced, the message to the sources or future sources is that law enforcement can still find out who they are, and that message is difficult to stomach.”
Simon said he was particularly concerned by the decision to hold off serving the warrant until it could be done in front of his presumed sources in order to intimidate them.
Judge Benjamen Johnson also signed a search warrant sent to Verizon Wireless for Simon’s phone records, which the Tracker documented here. On Jan. 11, Remus, the BCI agent, wrote a letter to Verizon telling them to “PLEASE DISREGARD IMMEDIATELY.” The police investigation has since been closed.
Stenehjem told the AP that some people involved in the chain of events did not know that Simon was protected by the shield law and expressed regret over the mistake.
In a statement shared with the Tracker, Stenhjem said, “This office reviewed the matter and determined that the phone was lawfully taken pursuant to a valid search warrant issued by a judge.
“The attorney general advised the agent that in light of a state statute that requires a further court warrant to view the contents of the phone in cases like this.”
A spokesperson for Stenehjem’s office told Fargo-based outlet InForum that moving forward all current and future BCI agents will receive training on the state’s shield law and it will be incorporated into the curriculum at the Law Enforcement Training Academy.
Chapman told the Tracker he is researching potential civil rights claims but said they have not decided if or when they will file a lawsuit.
“There has to be a freedom of the press. Reporters should be able to feel free to go get the news and to do investigative journalism without law enforcement breathing down their necks and then pressuring them for their sources,” Chapman said. “This is a perfect example of overreaching on behalf of law enforcement into the rights of private citizens and it simply cannot stand.”
A portion of the search warrant for the cellphone belonging to radio reporter Tom Simon, who was reporting on a school board’s handling of the departure of the district’s former superintendent.
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,returned in full,False,law enforcement,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,Journalist,warrant,State,None,False,[],,,,, 2022-01-26 15:13:32.007244+00:00,2022-11-08 20:38:34.280404+00:00,Search warrant issued for North Dakota reporter’s phone records amid police investigation,https://pressfreedomtracker.us/all-incidents/search-warrant-issued-for-north-dakota-reporters-phone-records-amid-police-investigation/,2022-11-08 20:38:34.209928+00:00,,LegalOrder object (167),,Subpoena/Legal Order,,,,Tom Simon (KXWI-FM),,2022-01-04,False,Williston,North Dakota (ND),48.14697,-103.61797,"A North Dakota police investigator obtained a search warrant for the phone records of Tom Simon, a Williston-based reporter for Coyote Radio 98.5 and Williston Trending Topics News Radio Live, on Jan. 4, 2022.
The Associated Press reported that Simon was covering a series of closed-door meetings about the school board’s handling of the departure of the district’s former superintendent. Simon told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that multiple individuals contacted him with details from an executive session of the school board. In the wake of his reporting, Williston police initiated an investigation at the behest of the school board president and enlisted the help of the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation to identify Simon’s sources.
Judge Benjamen Johnson signed a search warrant for the seizure of Simon’s cellphone and a second warrant issued to Verizon Wireless for the reporter’s cellphone records on Jan. 4. Both warrants were reviewed by the Tracker.
During a school board meeting on Jan. 10, BCI agents approached Simon, demanded that he identify his sources, presented him with the signed search warrant and confiscated his cellphone. The Tracker has documented that seizure here.
Under the state’s shield law, police cannot seize a journalist’s work product without a court hearing to determine if the “failure of disclosure of such evidence will cause a miscarriage of justice.” No such hearing was held in Simon’s case.
The AP reported that North Dakota Newspaper Association Attorney Jack McDonald contacted state Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem about the seizure the following morning, and Stenehjem immediately ordered the phone returned. That same day, BCI police investigator Charissa Remus wrote a letter to Verizon telling the communications company to “PLEASE DISREGARD IMMEDIATELY.” The police investigation has since been closed.
Stenehjem told the AP that some people involved in the chain of events did not know that Simon was protected by the shield law and expressed regret over the mistake.
In a statement shared with the Tracker, Stenhjem said, “This office reviewed the matter and determined that the phone was lawfully taken pursuant to a valid search warrant issued by a judge.
“The attorney general advised the agent that in light of a state statute that requires a further court warrant to view the contents of the phone in cases like this.”
A spokesperson for Stenehjem’s office told Fargo-based outlet InForum that moving forward all current and future BCI agents will receive training on the state’s shield law and it will be incorporated into the curriculum at the Law Enforcement Training Academy.
Simon’s attorney, Kevin Chapman, told the Tracker he is researching potential civil rights claims but said they have not decided if or when they will file a lawsuit.
“There has to be a freedom of the press. Reporters should be able to feel free to go get the news and to do investigative journalism without law enforcement breathing down their necks and then pressuring them for their sources,” Chapman said. “This is a perfect example of overreaching on behalf of law enforcement into the rights of private citizens and it simply cannot stand.”
A portion of the search warrant issued to Verizon for phone records belonging to radio reporter Tom Simon, who was reporting on a school board’s handling of the departure of the district’s former superintendent.zf
",None,None,None,None,False,None,[],None,None,False,None,None,None,False,False,None,None,None,None,False,journalist communications or work product,['DROPPED'],Verizon Wireless,telecom company,Third-party,warrant,State,None,False,None,,,,,