Hide Article Text (OCR)
bY M Witenwa et ZIELENZIGER Chicago Sun-Times CHICAGO — A court at tempt to force two journal ists to reveal their sources of confidential information has been dropped in Juvenile Court. Attorneys for Clifford Finley, charged with the at tempted murder of an 18- year-old Ohio tourist, Friday told Presiding Juvenile Court Judge William S. White that their client did not wish to pursue subpenas against two Chicago Tribune reporters who disclosed Finley's juvenile record in a newspaper account of the shooting. The article, which ap peared in the May 23 editions of the Tribune, carried a de tailed description of Finley’s juvenile record, including the fact that that he had been arrested “16 times as a juve on Since he was 9 years old.” The exactness in detail with which the records were described led Finley’s at torneys to charge that the defendant's juvenile files had been ‘‘Leaked’’ and sought to discover, through the subpena, the source of the breach of confidentiality. Under the Illinois’ juvenile code, the law enforcement records of all minors under age 17 are not open to public inspection and cannot be dis closed except by specific court order. But another state statute gives reporters a right to keep secret their sources of information unless “‘a specif ic public interest . . . would be adversely affected if the factual information sought were not disclosed.” A potential conflict be tween the two statutes was avoided when Finley dropped the subpenas. But Finley’s attorneys said their goal had been ac complished nevertheless. ‘Now the word is out that secrecy of juvenile records has to be maintained,” said Brian Silverman, head of the Juvenile Court's public de fenders. ‘‘Merely by the pub licity given the suit we got what he wanted.”
Newspaper Details
Colorado Springs Gazette
Colorado Springs, Colorado, US
Sun, Sep 03, 1978
Page 26
Full Page
Clipped by
Paige F.
USA 15 Jun 2026
Other Publications Near Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs Gazette
Colorado Springs Independent
Colorado Springs Weekly Gazette
Ranchland Farm News
Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph
