(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is protesting the order to jail journalists Kathy Scruggs and Ron Martz. According to RSF’s information, on Thursday 3 June 1999, Fulton County State Court Judge John Mather ordered the imprisonment of Scruggs and Martz of the “Atlanta Journal Constitution” on contempt charges for refusing to reveal their sources. The order was […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is protesting the order to jail journalists Kathy Scruggs
and Ron Martz. According to RSF’s information, on Thursday 3 June 1999,
Fulton County State Court Judge John Mather ordered the imprisonment of
Scruggs and Martz of the “Atlanta Journal Constitution” on contempt charges
for refusing to reveal their sources. The order was suspended indefinitely
when the newspaper immediately filed its intent to appeal.
The two journalists are being sued for libel by Richard Jewell. In an
article published in 1996, Scruggs and Martz identified him as a suspect in
the 27 July 1996 bombing in Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park. Since then,
Jewell has been cleared by the Justice Department.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the attorney general:
by calling into question a fundamental principle of press freedom: the right
of journalists to protect their sources
international human rights organisations to be “disproportionate” in
relation to the harm suffered by the victim
the
order
Appeals To
The Honorable Janet Reno
Attorney General of the United States
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Room 4545
Washington, D.C. 205300001
Fax: +1 202 514 4371
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
