The case of Vanessa Leggett, an independent, courageous and principled 
writer who refused to turn over her unpublished notes to prosecutors 
deserves notice. So far, to the shame of the government and the judiciary, 
she has been in jail 37 days. Texas prosecutors are attempting a second try 
at a murder conviction (a jury acquited the defendant in 1998) and insist 
they require Vanessa's unpublished research.

The excellent folks at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, 
who deserve our praise for the support they have lent Vanessa and who have 
helped me on occasion, have collected legal documents here:
http://www.rcfp.org/leggett.html

They've set up a legal defense fund, and I urge Politechnicals who can 
afford a few dollars (or other currencies) to contribute. You can mail 
checks to:
   The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
   1815 N. Fort Myer Dr., Suite 900, Arlington, VA 22209

Or to Vanessa's lawyer:
   Mike DeGeurin
   Foreman DeGeurin Nugent & Gerger
   909 Fannin, Suite 590, Houston, Texas 77010

A Washington Post op-ed today raises Politech-related themes (technology 
reducing the economic barriers to publishing and reaching a worldwide 
audience):

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60302-2001Aug25.html
    So let's return to the question: Just who is a writer? The obvious
    first answer to the question is: Anyone who writes. That is the old
    formula -- if it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck . . . . But
    such an all-embracing definition may be too broad for situations where
    there are strong countervailing societal interests. A murder
    investigation would be viewed as such a situation. Someone with
    crucial information shouldn't be able to declare himself a "writer"
    and thus frustrate a legitimate state inquiry.

The Post has, with the help of the RCFP, compiled a list of 13 other 
reporters who have been jailed for refusing to turn over information in the 
last two decades:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60300-2001Aug25.html

Newsweek ran a relevant interview with First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/618598.asp

-Declan




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