High Court Rules Congressman's Divorce Records Remain Sealed
WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, May 4) -- The Supreme Court Monday threw out the appeal of a McAllen, Texas, newspaper, which had tried to gain access to the divorce records of Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (D-Texas).
The justices let stand rulings that said federal courts should not second-guess the decision of the state trial judge to seal the records.
The Monitor newspaper tried to get access to the records when Hinojosa first ran for Congress in 1996, but discovered they had been sealed in 1987 by Judge Fernando Mancias. Mancias would not revoke the ruling, prompting The Monitor's lawyers to file a federal lawsuit requiring that the records be released.
U.S. District Judge H.W. Head ruled that sealing the records without notice or hearing was a violation of the First Amendment right to learn about court proceedings, but the judge did not issue an injunction releasing the records.
"Divorce proceedings have been recognized by the law to bear special sensitivity," the judge ruled. "Mr. Hinojosa was not a public figure at the time he was divorced. The [newspaper] has not offered ... any particular character or legal flaw in Mr. Hinojosa that [it] believes these records will confirm or disclose ... In any event, Mrs. Hinojosa and her children will remain private citizens."
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling last October.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
|
News