THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, July 21, 1994 TAG: 9407210003
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Opinion
SOURCE: By JEFFREY A. BREIT
LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
I was distressed to read the letter to the editor from Norfolk Commonwealth's Attorney Charles D. Griffith Jr. regarding his controversial handling of recent criminal prosecutions. It is fine for Mr. Griffith to present his side of the story in the newspaper - he is entitled to a fair shake and a thorough hearing just like everybody else. I am concerned, though, that he takes more pains to ``blame the messenger'' than to present his side of the story. I am particularly concerned at the suggestion that it is somehow improper for a reporter to accept an Excellence in Journalism Award from the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.
The Virginia Trial Lawyers Association is not, as Mr. Griffith puts it, a special-interest group ``dominated by criminal defense attorneys.'' In fact, our 2,600 members represent a wide variety of interests in the legal system, practicing personal-injury law, family law, worker's-compensation law, commercial-litigation, criminal law, civil-rights law, employment law, etc. Roughly 10 percent of our members practice solely or primarily in the field of criminal law, a number of them as prosecutors. We are proud to have many outstanding criminal-defense attorneys in VTLA; they do not, however, in any way ``dominate'' the association.
The Excellence in Journalism Award was established by VTLA to reward journalists for extraordinary work in protecting the public. The primary criteria for selecting the winner are:
(1) The story's bearing on individual rights or consumer protection.
(2) The quality of writing.
(3) The amount of effort required of the journalist.
(4) The impact of the story on public awareness.
Over the years, the Excellence in Journalism Award has gone to a wide variety of stories concerning consumer protection and the rights of individuals in their dealings with institutions both public and private. Award-winning investigative reports have covered fraudulent fund-raising activities, neglect of the elderly and the mentally ill in homes for adults, and child abuse at a state school for the disabled.
The winning entry for 1992 investigated ethical and financial misconduct by lawyers in private practice and the ability of the legal profession to protect the public from such conduct. That subject may not be a crowd-pleaser among lawyers, but it is important (as is the conduct of the commonwealth's attorney's office) to those of us who believe it is vital to uphold the integrity of our profession.
Mr. Griffith's charge that reporter Joe Jackson's acceptance of this award from VTLA calls journalists' objectivity into question is groundless. Because of the variety of issues covered in award-winning stories and the level of competition for the award, the notion that Mr. Jackson or any other reporter could pick a topic with the expectation of thereby winning the award is a little far-fetched. I fear that this line of argument might be Mr. Griffith's attempt to divert attention from his own difficulties.
If Mr. Griffith wants us to understand that his job in public office is difficult and demanding and that the legal and ethical decisions it requires are not easy, then I believe him. I hope that was the message he intended to convey in his letter, and not that he believes his office should be unencumbered by public scrutiny. MEMO: Mr. Breit, a Norfolk attorney, is vice president of the Virginia Trial
Lawyers Association.Mr. Breit, a Norfolk attorney, is vice president of
the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.
by CNB