Denver: Colorado Federal Court Seeks Public Comment on Phone-Sealing Pouch Pilot at Four Courthouses
The U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, based in Denver, announced on October 20 that it is seeking public comment on a proposed 18-month pilot under which most visitors to the federal courthouses in Denver, Colorado Springs, Grand Junction and Durango would keep their cellphones in lockable fabric pouches during their visit, unable to open them until leaving, unless a judge permits access. Lawyers, journalists, jurors and several other categories would be exempt. Comments are due by 5 p.m. on November 16.
According to Denver Focal, the proposal was put forward by the U.S. Marshals Service. Court Clerk Jeffrey P. Colwell said the court has received repeated reports of members of the public using phones in courtroom galleries, hallways and at the clerk's counter, and considers the measure prudent. The court says unauthorized filming could expose witnesses, jurors, law enforcement officers and court staff to intimidation or online doxxing, and that recording security features such as camera locations and officers' posts creates safety risks. The pilot is intended to enforce longstanding bans on recording, photography and video inside courthouses. Critics have raised concerns about emergency phone access and about the pouches' magnetic closures interfering with medical devices; the court said medical exceptions would be considered individually. (GSM, based on Denver Focal reporting)
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Wikimedia Commons CC BY 2.0 / Nan Palmero（Byron White 联邦法院）
