Photo Alex Lloyd Gross Delaware Valley News.com File photo US Supreme Court
by Alex Lloyd Gross
The Loredo Police Department in Texas is now on the hook for legal fees, after officers arrested Priscilla Villarreal, after she published on her online website information about a fatal traffic accident that had not been made public. The information was confirmed by police before she went to press with it.
In 2017 Villareal published two articles, one about a fatal accident and the other about an officer who died by suicide. Months later a warrant for her arrest was issued. She turned herself in and a lower court dismissed the charges because the law was vague and the judge said is was unconstitutional. .The law in question states it is a felony for a person to solicit or receive information from a government official that has not yet been made public if it’s with the intent to obtain a benefit.
Under this law a journalist that calls up a police department and asked for information on something that has not been released is a felon, if the person who released it is not authorized to release it.
When Villareal sued police after her arrest, Laredo Police tried to claim qualified immunity. Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court said No, and told police they had no immunity . The amount of money this is costing taxpayers could exceed a million dollars when you factor in legal fees and a court settlement.
The Supreme Court reversed a decision and now the case can be heard in a lower court. “This case is vital for free speech, a free press, and ensuring officials are accountable when they trample the First Amendment,” her lawyer, JT Morris said.