A North Carolina judge denied two Asheville Blade journalists accused of trespassing a First Amendment defense, and a jury subsequently convicted them in a case involving their detention while covering an after-hours police sweep of a homeless encampment.
The journalists, Matilda Bliss and Veronica Coit, have filed a notice of appeal, with a key point raised by lawyers being body camera footage showing that police arrested the journalists so that they would not be able to record the Christmas night 2021 evictions.
Buncombe County Superior Court Judge Tommy Davis instructed the jury not to consider the constitutionality of the charges against Coit and Bliss, telling jurors that they were to decide whether or not the defendants had remained on the premises, having done so without legal right, after being notified not to remain by an authorized person.
The convictions have been met with swift condemnation from First Amendment and journalism advocacy groups.
“Matilda Bliss and Veronica Coit have been convicted of breaking a curfew in a public park by being there after dark, but the sun doesn’t set on the First Amendment,” said Clayton Weimers, executive director of the U.S. Bureau of Reporters Without Borders. “Journalists not only have the right to gather news when and where it is occurring, but they have a professional obligation to act as watchdogs on government actors. This ruling is very disappointing and will set back press freedom in North Carolina.”
“We don’t have secret police in the United States,” said Seth Stern, director of advocacy at Freedom of the Press Foundation. “Officers are not entitled to operate without press and public scrutiny just because it’s dark out. The Constitution requires that journalists be given sufficient access to public land to report the news, no matter the time.
“Even if Coit and Bliss eventually win, the people of Asheville and surrounding Buncombe County have already lost,” Stern said. “They gain absolutely nothing from their government weaponizing curfew laws to punish journalists for doing their jobs. The journalists have never been accused of harming anyone and should have been commended, not tried on the taxpayers’ dime, for spending their Christmas attempting to inform the public.”
“We are gravely concerned by the jury’s guilty verdict in the trial of Asheville Blade reporters Matilda Bliss and Veronica Coit,” said Katherine Jacobsen, U.S. and Canada program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists. “The two journalists should never have been on trial. They were performing a public service and recording police activity. Their conviction is a blatant violation of their First Amendment rights, and their convictions set an unsettling precedent for journalists in Asheville and the nation.”
“The conviction of Asheville Blade journalists Matilda Bliss and Veronica Coit for trespassing highlights a concerning trend that undermines press freedom and civil liberties,” said Muneeba Talukder, staff attorney at the ACLU of North Carolina. “It is disheartening to witness the government’s attempt to suppress journalists’ ability to report the news and hold those in power accountable. The Constitution guarantees journalists sufficient access to public spaces to fulfill their crucial role in society, regardless of the time or circumstances. We must recognize that by punishing journalists for simply doing their jobs, we restrict people’s access to information therefore hindering their ability to stay informed about important matters.”
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Chris Graham
