UPDATE: Prosecutor & Student Paper Settle Suit Over College Paper Raid

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The Commonwealth of Virginia will pick up the $10,000 legal fees tab of The Breeze, the college paper of Harrisonburg-based James Madison University, that was raided two months ago (see "TUOL" post 4/20/10).

Breeze Editor Katie Thisdell turned over 900 photos to police during the raid, 600 of which were taken during Springfest, where violence erupted and more than 30 arrests resulted.  Prosecutor Marsha Garst said henceforth, authorities will rely on subpoenas to news organizations, instead of search warrants, absent an imminent threat of bodily harm to an individual.Subpoenas enable a court to weigh the merits of the government's need for information against journalist's privilege.

The resolution is seen as reinforcing The Privacy Protection Act of 1980 [42 U.S.C. sec. 2000aa], which protects newsrooms from unconstitutional seizures by law enforcement.

Authorities Raid College Paper; Confiscate Riot Photos

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Offices of The Breeze, the student newspaper of Harrisonburg, Va.-based James Madison University, were raided by the county attorney's office and police last week, who confiscated hundreds of photos concerning an April 10 off-campus riot at which 30 persons were arrested and more than 40 were injured.

The Roanoke Times reports that The Breeze's editor-in-chief Katie Thisdell reluctantly complied with the request of Rockingham County Commonwealth Attorney Marsha Garst after it appeared authorities were prepared to remove the newspaper's computers.  According to the Times report, authorities copied more than 900 images from computer hard drives, only two-thirds of which depicted the riot. The fracas broke out at a spring gathering that drew more than 8,000 students.

The Breeze is being represented by attorneys from the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va. The SPLC believes authorities may have violated the federal Privacy Protection Act [42 U.S.C. sec. 2000aa], which shields news organizations from government searches  absent a warrant.