Duke Law Program Presents 'Trying Cases in the Media: The Role of Prosecutor and the Press' The lunchtime panel discussion at Duke Law School on Thursday, Jan. 25, is free and open to the public Monday, January 22, 2007 Durham, NC -- The role of the prosecutor and the media in high-profile criminal cases will be explored in a lunchtime panel discussion at Duke Law School on Thursday, Jan. 25. The event, sponsored by the law school’s Program in Public Law, will start at 12:15 p.m. in room 3041 of Duke Law School, located at the corner of Towerview Road and Science Drive on Duke’s West Campus. “Trying Cases in the Media: The Role of Prosecutor and the Press” is free and open to the public. Parking is available in the Bryan Center garage. A light lunch will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Those participating in the panel discussion include Duke law professors James Coleman and Thomas Metzloff; American University’s Washington College of Law professor Michael Tigar, whose high-profile criminal clients have included Terry Nichols in the Oklahoma City bombing case; and Joseph Neff, an investigative reporter with the News & Observer who has been covering the Duke lacrosse case. “This is an issue that commonly arises in high-profile criminal cases, but one that has been brought squarely into the public debate by remarks made by Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong as the Duke lacrosse case was unfolding -– remarks that sparked enormous press interest in the case and have resulted in ethics charges filed by the North Carolina State Bar,” said Metzloff, who teaches legal ethics, among other subjects, at Duke Law School. A live webcast will be available at beginning at 12:10 p.m. For more information, contact: Frances Presma, Duke Law School | (919) 613-7248 | presma@law.duke.edu
Finally, like a giant sloth realizing that it has to eat to survive, the Duke Law School recognizes that its right to be the moral arbiter of anything has been totally undermined by its quiescence save for the admirable Prof. Coleman. Should be worth the price of admission, especially if any of the half-informed pot bangers show up.
abb, if the boys hadn't gone public in response to Nifong they would have been lost completely. They had to go around the "fix" or they would have been railroaded. Believe me, we thought about it. We really weighed the situation carefully. It takes a lot of money to go big time like this, and you'd better have the money for extra security. Sadly, we went the way of most of us in this situation of more modest means.
If anybody raises a stink about trying this in the media, I, for one, would have to shout them down. It's all that's left when our justice system gets it wrong. I surely hope Coleman makes some comment to that effect.
Live webcast. Cool. Anyone here have the ability to capture this for those of us who may be unable to watch at our desks?