The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet is holding a hearing Wednesday on cameras in the courts.
Appropriately, there will be cameras in the hearing courtesy of C-SPAN, which has long pushed the Supreme Court and federal courts to open their proceedings to the TV public, just as Congress has done.
The hearing will examine the Sunshine in the Courtroom Act of 2013 (H.R. 917), which would provide for cameras in federal appellate and district courts, including the Supreme Court, and at the discretion of the judge, which exceptions for cases where cameras would threaten due process and with the exception that jurors shall not be shown.
C-SPAN is not among the witnesses at the hearing, but did send a statement reiterating that call, particularly as concerns the Supreme Court, but stopping short of supporting legislation.
In fact, it said that H.R. 917 deals with administrative and policy matters surrounding televising the federal courts that it C-SPAN says it believes "are subjects more properly addressed by others."
