Judge removes seal on court records in 'Girls Gone Wild' case
For the first time, a judge ruled that citizens have a right of access to served search warrants.
By Associated Press
Published March 4, 2004
PANAMA CITY - A judge has sided with a newspaper and unsealed court records in a criminal case against the producer of the Girls Gone Wild video series.
Circuit Judge Dedee Costello ruled Tuesday in what the News Herald's lawyer called a "landmark decision."
The newspaper, of Panama City, had challenged an order by Bay County Judge Thomas Welch sealing search warrants and related documents in the case of Joseph Francis, of Lake Tahoe, Nev.
Costello is the first state judge to rule that citizens have a constitutional right of access to served search warrants, said News Herald lawyer John Bussian.
He said judges have come to the opposite conclusion in some recent high-profile cases. They include the Colorado rape case against Los Angeles Lakers basketball star Kobe Bryant and the Scott Peterson murder case in California.
Francis was arrested last year in Panama City Beach on charges that included racketeering and promoting the sexual performance of a child after a search of his condominium and private jet. He is free on bail and no trial date has been set.
Welch sealed the documents because prosecutors said they were part of an open investigation. But Costello ruled that prosecutors must show that disclosing the information would hinder such an investigation to justify sealing them.
State Attorney Jim Appleman said he would review the ruling to see if there are any revealing facts that would require an appeal. Otherwise, his office would not appeal the decision, Appleman said.
