The Indiana Publisher

Casey Smith Indiana Capital Chronicle Indiana's Supreme Court could soon adopt a new trial rule that would allow cameras and media coverage of public court activities. If adopted, the new rule would give local judges across Indiana discretion to allow news media to broadcast, televise, record or photograph nearly all civil and criminal court proceed- ings, as long as the recording does not distract participants or "impair the dignity" of the pro- ceedings. The state's current judicial conduct rules do not allow cam- eras and recorders during trial court proceedings, although the supreme court has given special permission for video-coverage in specific cases. While the public has been allowed to watch live-streamed hearings from some Indiana courts during the COVID-19 pandemic, recording them has remained prohibited. A decision to change the rule could mark a shift in the approach to transparency in Indiana courts, which county judges told the Indiana Capital Chronicle they generally support. What the new rule would entail A judge could limit or end the broadcast at any time. Court matters that are closed to the public — either by state statute or Supreme Court rules — would automatically be exempt, however. Media broadcasts of minors, juvenile matters, sex-offense vic- tims, jurors, attorney-client com- munications, bench conferences, and materials on counsel tables and judicial benches would also be prohibited, according to the proposed rule. Judges could Publisher The Indiana Volume 87, Issue 8 • August 2022 Published monthly After a two-year hiatus, the Hoosier State Press Association awards event is returning to an in-person gathering. The lun- cheon will take place Friday, Sept. 23 at the Bitwell Event Center in Indianapolis. The luncheon is an oppor- tunity for journalists across the state to celebrate recognition for the exceptional work done at their newspapers last year. The event will include the presentation of the Blue Ribbon Newspaper awards — HSPA's highest recogni tion given to one daily and one weekly member newspaper honoring overall excellence. The awards event was sus- pended in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. "I am very excited that we are able to host an in-person event this year," said HSPA Foundation President Robyn McCloskey. "It's another sign that life is starting to get back to normal and this is an event that I know a lot of people look forward to each year." Attendees will start the day at 10:30 a.m. with an investiga- HSPA Awards Luncheon set for Friday, Sept. 23 See Awards, page 3 Johnny Magdaleno Indianapolis Star Eight Indiana hospitals are violating state records laws by withholding information on how they are spending public funding they've received for their nursing homes, according to a new lawsuit filed by IndyStar. The allegations were made in Marion County court in a legal complaint filed by IndyStar and IndyStar investigative journalist Tony Cook. The complaint claims the public hospitals are "prevent- ing the public from knowing how their tax dollars are being spent." IndyStar has requested comment from attorneys represent- ing the hospitals, which are some of the largest nursing home owners in the state. They are Hancock Regional Hospital, Hendricks IndyStar sues 8 hospitals for obscuring public spending data on nursing homes See Star, page 2 Indiana Supreme Court proposed rule could permit cameras in local courts See Cameras, page 2 Decision expected to be issued later this year The practice of diverting nursing home funds to other uses was documented in the 2020 IndyStar investigation "Careless." See the story at https://bit.ly/2QpSbIf . Event includes investigative journalism session with IndyStar's Tony Cook, Michelle Pemberton Cook Pemberton "I am very excited that we are able to host an in-person event this year." — Robyn McCloskey, HSPA Foundation President

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