Off-Topic: Brian Farmer Murder Trial

I was just asked what's happened to my reports of the Brian Farmer murder trial. Yesterday I was asked to cease posting daily trial reports on my blog. The reason is that what I post might influence the jury, leading to the case being dismissed on a technicality. Since this was put to me as a polite request I immediately agreed to comply, instead of getting involved in a lengthy discussion about my blog. I do, however, consider my posts harmless, and I shall present my reasons here.

First of all, the jury has been instructed not to follow the court case by reading about it in newspapers or online. There is, of course, the danger that a juror might be a passionate film fan and accidentally stumble on my posts on this blog. After all, this is a film blog, not the place he would normally expect to find trial reports. I have already taken this into account. My trial reports only include things said in front of the jury. I have omitted the discussions held between the judge and the lawyers while the jury is out of the room. I have also been careful not to claim any of the defendants are guilty or innocent, merely reporting what they say and what the five lawyers in the case say about them. What I mean is, if a lawyer says that defendant X is lying I make it clear that it's the lawyer's opinion, rather than just saying "X was obviously lying".

Obviously I am not a professional court reporter. I have never received training as a journalist. Nevertheless, asking me to cease the reports shows that my skills are being underestimated. I know what to write and what not to write. I shall continue with my daily reports, but I shall no longer make them available to the general public. I shall make the reports public when the trial is over. I apologise to my regular readers for any inconvenience. This is a purely English problem. In America murder trials are broadcast live on the Internet, then posted to YouTube at the end of the day.