Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette v. Baker

788 F. Supp. 379, 20 Media L. Rep. (BNA) 1434, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4163, 1992 WL 68345
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Indiana
DecidedApril 2, 1992
DocketF 92-66
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 788 F. Supp. 379 (Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette v. Baker) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette v. Baker, 788 F. Supp. 379, 20 Media L. Rep. (BNA) 1434, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4163, 1992 WL 68345 (N.D. Ind. 1992).

Opinion

ORDER

WILLIAM. C. LEE, District Judge.

This matter is before the court on motion of the plaintiffs, The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, Craig Klugman, and Janice Karlo-vich, (collectively, “the Journal-Gazette”) for a preliminary injunction, filed March 26, 1992. The issues have been briefed by the Journal-Gazette. The defendants, the Honorable Norman E. Baker, and the Allen Superior Court have not filed responsive documents. On March 31, 1992, Cheryl J. Murray’s motion to intervene in this action was granted. The court conducted hearings on the matter on March 31, and April 1, 1992. For the following reasons the Journal-Gazette’s motion for preliminary injunction is GRANTED.

Background

Cheryl J. Murray was appointed guardian for her 70 year old father, Raymond Murray, Sr., due to the father’s incapacitation. This appointment was effected by order of the Allen Superior Court, in its Cause No. 02D02-9107-GU-133, on August 27, 1991. According to the Journal-Gazette’s published report of March 14, 1992, 1 Mr. Murray is “a terminally ill patient” at Parkview Memorial Hospital (“Parkview”), who became comatose after unsuccessful “triple bypass surgery earlier this year.”

On March 10, 1992, Parkview petitioned the Allen Superior Court for declaratory relief, or in the alternative, for removal of the guardian. Parkview’s prayer for declaratory relief requested the Allen Superi- or Court to order that life support systems be withdrawn from Mr. Murray. Alternatively, Parkview requested that Cheryl Murray be removed as the guardian, in *381 favor of a successor who would make health care decisions for Mr. Murray. Furthermore, Parkview’s petition requested the Allen Superior Court to enter a protective order covering their requested proceeding, due to the likely presentation of matters which would be subject to the physician-patient privilege. A hearing on Park-view’s motion was set before Judge Baker for April 8, 1992.

A hearing to show cause as to Cheryl Murray’s failure to file a guardianship inventory was set by the Allen Superior Court for March 23, 1992. On March 20, 1992, the guardianship inventory was filed with that court. On March 23,1992, apparently at the request of Parkview, Judge Baker held some sort of a proceeding in the case. 2 That proceeding took place in Allen Superior Court courtroom number one, which was not locked to the public. At the outset of that proceeding, Judge Baker and the parties engaged in discussion which concluded with an agreement that the physician-patient privilege would not be abrogated by the fact of the testimony; additionally, Judge Baker ruled that the proceeding would be subject to a protective order. Judge Baker took inventory of all present in the courtroom, and commenced to take recorded, sworn testimony from at least one witness, that being Cheryl Murray. Cheryl Murray was not represented by counsel at that time.

At some point during the March 23 proceeding, plaintiff Janice Karlovich, a reporter for the Journal-Gazette entered the courtroom, took a seat in the front row of the spectator area, and commenced taking notes on her reporter’s note pad. Apparently, Ms. Karlovich’s presence was not detected, or at least, not complained of, until some time later, after Cheryl Murray completed her testimony. 3 During Ms. Karlovich’s presence in that courtroom, Cheryl Murray stated that she had arrived at a decision regarding the future administration of life support for her father, and that barring reconsideration, this decision would become effective at a specified date, that date in the near future. While Ms. Karlovich was in that courtroom, Cheryl Murray revealed that date.

After that proceeding was concluded, Ms. Karlovich interviewed Cheryl Murray outside the courtroom. During this interview, Cheryl Murray confirmed that she had made the decision to withdraw life support from her father, but refused to confirm the effective date of this decision. Sometime later, Ms. Karlovich asked Catherine Ediger, counsel for Parkview, whether the protective order Judge Baker had granted that day would bar publication of the information Ms. Karlovich learned exclusively through the reporters’ presence at the proceeding. Ms. Ediger judiciously responded by suggesting that Ms. Karlo-vich speak to the Journal-Gazette’s attorney. Suspecting that the terms of the protective order would be of immediate interest to counsel for the Journal-Gazette, and knowing that Judge Baker had not reduced the protective order to writing by the end of the March 23 business day, Ms. Ediger prepared a form of protective order sometime that evening. Judge Baker subsequently signed that order at his home that *382 night. 4 A copy of the order was then provided for the Journal-Gazette.

Journal-Gazette editor, plaintiff Craig Klugman testified before this court that the newspaper desired to publish information Ms. Karlovich acquired by her attendance at the March 23 hearing. Mr. Klug-man further testified that the Journal-Gazette did not desire to risk contempt of court, unless it perceived no other alternative. 5 On March 24, 1992, the day following the Allen Superior Court hearing, the Journal-Gazette filed an emergency petition to intervene in the guardianship case, and also filed an emergency petition to set aside or modify the protective order. Judge Baker summarily denied these petitions that same day. On March 26, 1992, the Journal-Gazette commenced this action.

At this court's April 1, 1992 hearing on the preliminary injunction, the Journal-Gazette asserted that further efforts to have the Allen Superior Court’s protective order reviewed in the state court would involve a further delay, which would extend well beyond the date that Cheryl Murray’s decision to withdraw life support systems becomes effective. This assertion was not contested by counsel for Judge Baker or the Allen Superior Court.

Abstention

A threshold matter of concern in this case is whether the court should entertain the Journal-Gazette’s request for a preliminary injunction, due to the doctrine of Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37, 91 S.Ct. 746, 27 L.Ed.2d 669 (1971). “The basic principle of Younger abstention is that, absent extraordinary circumstances, a federal court should not interfere with pending state judicial proceedings. [This] doctrine has been extended to apply to civil proceedings in which ‘important state interests’ are involved.” Hickey v. Duffy, 827 F.2d 234, 244 (7th Cir.1987); citing Ohio Civil Rights Commission v. Dayton Christian Schools, 477 U.S. 619, 106 S.Ct. 2718, 2732, 91 L.Ed.2d 512 (1986). The policies underlying Younger abstention embrace the federal courts appreciation of:

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Bluebook (online)
788 F. Supp. 379, 20 Media L. Rep. (BNA) 1434, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4163, 1992 WL 68345, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fort-wayne-journal-gazette-v-baker-innd-1992.