Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!world!eff!mnemonic
From: mnemonic@eff.org (Mike Godwin)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: CNN
Message-ID: <1990Nov20.123524.21449@eff.org>
Date: 20 Nov 90 12:35:24 GMT
References: <1990Nov16.235831.25433@agate.berkeley.edu> <4948@rsiatl.UUCP> <5378@prussian9.UUCP>
Organization: The Electronic Frontier Foundation
Lines: 33

In article <5378@prussian9.UUCP> dogar@motcid.UUCP (Haroon H. Dogar) writes:
>
>Uh... I'm no legal eagle, but it seems to me that for "the government"
>to have tapes of conversations between a defendant and his/her lawyer
>has got to be against some law.

It is not against the law per se. Prisoners' conversations are routinely
monitored, to prevent escape planning, for example. Defense lawyers
know this, and normally have to arrange for unmonitored calls or
face-to-face meetings.

>(I think its equally wrong for CNN to have or broadcast these conversations.)

I don't see how it's wrong, actually. The attorney-client privilege 
merely dictates that certain communications, made under certain
specified circumstances, cannot be admitted into evidence at court;
it doesn't say they can't be ferreted out and exposed by the press.

Of course, you may be saying that it's morally or ethically wrong
for the press to do this, even though it may be legally okay.
I'm not clear what your reasoning for this position is, however.



--Mike



-- 
Mike Godwin, (617) 864-0665 |"If the doors of perception were cleansed
mnemonic@well.sf.ca.us      | every thing would appear to man as it is,
Electronic Frontier         | infinite."
Foundation                  |                 --Blake