A Superior Court justice says Maine Public and WGME TV must provide outtakes of interviews related to a 25-year-old murder conviction that’s under fire now for alleged prosecutorial misconduct.
In 1992, Anthony Sanborn was convicted of murdering Portland teen Jessica Briggs on a Portland pier. But from jail he has always maintained his innocence. And he was released on bail last month after a key witness recanted her original testimony, saying she had bad vision and was coached by police.
Prosecutors and defense lawyers are now battling over whether his conviction should be reversed or dismissed.
Outtakes from interviews Maine Public Radio and WGME held with the prosecutor in the case, Pamela Ames, are now a friction point.
“I am not ducking anything. As you can tell, I know this case. I remember this case backwards forwards and inside-out,” says Ames, now in private practice, in a portion of the Maine Public Radio interview that was broadcast.
Defense lawyer Amy Fairfield says the complete recordings would be essential to preparing Sanborn’s case and proving his innocence. The broadcast stations argued Sanborn’s interest in the unpublished recordings did not outweigh their First Amendment right to gather and report the news. But after listening to the full recordings in private, Superior Court Justice Joyce Wheeler now says they must be turned over.
In a two-page ruling, Wheeler says the press’ constitutional rights are outweighed by Sanborn’s right to a fair trial and to confront his accuser. And she ruled the case raises issues that strike at the heart of citizens’ confidence in government, making it a question of “grave public concern.”
Attorney General Janet Mills had no comment on the ruling. A lawyer for the broadcast stations said Maine Public was disappointed by the ruling but had not decided whether to appeal, and he had not heard back from WGME.
Sanborn’s lawyer could not be immediately reached for comment.
This story was originally published on May 30, 2017 at 4:19 p.m. ET.