In re Morrissey, 996 F. Supp. 530 (D. Va. 1998), United States District Judge Robert E. Payne
MEMORANDUM OPINION
The defendant, Joseph D. Morrissey, a member of the bar of Virginia and the bar
of this Court, stands convicted of two counts of contempt of court which were
instituted by show cause orders on February 12, 1997 and April 9, 1997,
respectively. In each show cause order, Morrissey was directed to show cause why
he should not be found guilty of criminal contempt for willfully, intentionally,
and contumaciously violating Local Criminal Rule 57(C) of the United States
District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ("Local Rule
57(C)"). The charges were tried to the Court sitting without a jury. The
findings of conviction were fully documented on the record on October 31, 1997
and are incorporated by reference herein.
...
IV. CONCLUSION
With knowledge of Local Rule 57(C), Morrissey willfully, deliberately, and
contumaciously violated it on February 11. In the same frame of mind, he
did so again on April 1 after having received one citation for contempt and
after having been admonished by a judge of this Court to act in conformity with
Local Rule 57(C) and not to try the case in the press.
The rule in its entirety, and the two parts of it which Morrissey violated, are
intended to secure a fair trial by an impartial jury. The comments by Morrissey
clearly fall within the definition of the principal evils sought to be avoided
by speech-restrictive rules because it was reasonably likely that the comments
would influence the outcome of the trial and prejudice the venire, even if an
untainted panel could be found. The restrictions imposed by Local
Rule 57(C) are both necessary and narrow in scope.
For the reasons explained above, the reasonable likelihood of interference with
a fair trial standard passes constitutional muster. Accordingly, the Motion to
Dismiss the Show Cause Orders is DENIED.
The Clerk is directed to send a final copy of this Memorandum Opinion and the
accompanying Order to all counsel of record.
It is so ORDERED.
Robert E. Payne
United States District Judge