Cameras in the courtroom will be banned during Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell's joint trial.
District Judge Steven Boyce ruled Friday that "authorization of all video and photographic coverage in the Courtroom in this case at all further proceedings, including this trial, is revoked." Audio recording will be allowed via courtroom microphones operated by court personnel, but any third-party recording devices must be approved, according to the court document.
State prosecutors previously filed a motion, saying they want to keep the proceedings open to the public but support banning recording devices like TV cameras. Both the state and Vallow's attorney's say their reasoning is due to the placement of a Court TV camera and microphone in last month's hearing. Court TV stands firm they strictly followed the court's order, and did not record or listen to any private conversation between counsel and their clients.
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Boyce wrote in the order the right to access to the trial should be protected but "the scope of the coverage cannot supersede the rights of all parties to the fair administration of justice in this case." Boyce said in the decision also comes from "documentaries, dramatizations and fictionalized movies focusing on the Defendants and allegations in this case have already been produced," all before the trial begins.
Boyce notes the media involved case coverage have not interrupted court proceedings and no misconduct from media personnel has been witnessed.
In the order, Boyce writes any residents of Fremont County who planned on monitoring the trial will be provided with designated seating at the trial.
"It is unfortunate that local citizens, including citizens of both Fremont and Madison Counties, who bear the cost of this case and should be given local access to this trial, should they wish to attend, now cannot do so without inconvenience," Boyce wrote in the decision regarding the trial's move to Ada County.
Read the full order here:
