Radio, Television Station Draws Mudd's Fury
Updated: 2:24 p.m. PDT August 13, 2002
"Every other ... station in this community followed the request of the court, except KFMB," Superior Court Judge William Mudd said.
SOUND OFF: 
Mudd spoke for about eight minutes before denying a motion on behalf of KFMB-Radio assistant producer River Stillwood to allow her back into his courtroom.
"The only thing I can do is control my own courtroom," the judge said. "She's out and will remain out."
Stillwood, who works on "The Rick Roberts Show," was kicked out of the courtroom Aug. 8, the morning after her station reported what happened in a closed-door hearing the night before.
Media attorney Joann Rezzo told the judge that Stillwood didn't give him "the source of the leak" because she didn't know who it was.
"She didn't know then ... she doesn't know now ... the source of the confidential information," Rezzo said.
The attorney said there were no reporters at the closed-door hearing, yet information on the hearing still "leaked out to the press."
Mudd said an internal investigation is under way to find out who gave the information to the radio program.
The judge said his first inclination after the report was broadcast was to ban the CBS television network and affiliates KFMB-TV and KFMB-Radio from the trial, but decided against it after his wife told him "to sleep on it."
"They don't get it," Mudd said, referring to KFMB.
The judge said KFMB was the only station to broadcast the information regarding the closed-door hearing, and the only station to show pictures of Westerfield's son, Neal, when he specifically issued an order against it.
Mudd said the station had probably received advice from its attorneys "that they can publish whatever they want."
The judge suggested that Stillwood's boss must be taking "great glee in shoving it in this court's face."
"Let's not kid ourselves, it's not, as he pontificates, to spread the truth and be the nice guy -- it's for ratings," Mudd said.
Stillwood (pictured, right) can still cover the proceedings from an adjoining media room, and KFMB-Radio can send someone from its news department to sit in on the trial, the judge said.
Mudd also singled out what he called "idiots" from a Los Angeles radio talk station "acting like teenagers" in front of the courthouse.
Mudd said he had done a 180-degree turnaround on the issue of allowing cameras and reporters in the courtroom since deciding to allow Court TV to cover the trial live.
In denying Stillwood's request, Mudd quoted from a case involving the Nebraska Press Association: "The extraordinary protections afforded by the First Amendment carry with them something in the nature of a fiduciary duty to exercise their protective rights responsibly; a duty widely acknowledged, but not always observed by editors and publishers."
"It is not asking to much to suggest that those who exercise First Amendment rights in newspapers or broadcasting enterprises direct some effort to protect the rights of the accused to a fair trial," read Mudd.