Remember that post about the trial judge who called the appellate court a "kangaroo court"? Well, the appellate court has rescinded its reaction and its outrage, once it learned that the judge wasn't talking about them at all but rather was jokingly referring to a "strikes board" that the prosecutor needed to consult before dropping a strike. And so I am clarifying the record as well. Nevermind!
It does raise an issue for bloggers. How can we tee off on folks if all we know is what's been reported in the press? It's something I think about a lot. The issue has arisen in the context of discussions of legal ethics and public igures such as Lynne Stewart, John Yoo, Mike Nifong, Samuel Alito. and others. Fortunately, I didn't tee off on the trial court in this matter. And, in the cases involving the public figures above, we did have some source documents to consider. But more generally, does anyone have any thoughts on where to draw the line on public condemnation on ethics matters where the press accounts are all we have?