A seismic shift is coming to the Indiana justice system next week when local judges will have the power to allow cameras to film proceedings in their courtrooms.
The Indiana Supreme Court is ending a near-total ban on cameras that goes back to the dawn of television. The new rule, which takes effect May 1, gives local judges the power to decide whether or not to allow cameras in their courtrooms.
Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush told WRTV the new rule will give more Hoosiers an inside look at how the courts work.
"We have 2.8 million cases pending in Indiana courts right now," Rush said. "Those cases involve every facet of Hoosier life. And for people to trust the courts, I think they need to know what's going on in the courtrooms."
Here are five questions and answers with Chief Justice Rush about the new rule allowing cameras in Indiana courts.
Question: Why is the Indiana Supreme Court allowing cameras in court?
Rush: "Indiana was one of two states, the last two states were Louisiana and Indiana, that didn't allow cameras in the courtroom. So we thought we'd study it. We don't have everybody on board on this, but we studied it. We've done two different pilots. We have different committees looking at it during COVID. When COVID shut down we live streamed because the Constitution requires that courts be open and, you know, the sky didn't fall.
"We have 2.8 million cases pending in Indiana courts right now. Those cases involve every facet of Hoosier life. And for people to trust the courts, I think they need to know what's going on in the courtrooms."
Q: What kind off feedback did the court get on the recent pilot project that tested cameras in five court rooms?
Rush: "The pilots came out highly favorable... We got dozens and dozens of comments. Some people were for it, some people were against it. But that's our job. We have to balance all that out and the time had come."
Q: So many other states have been doing this for years. Why was Indiana so slow in allowing cameras in court?
Rush: "We're not that slow in some respects. We've been live streaming the Indiana Supreme Court oral arguments... for a long period of time. We had to sort of balance out all the interests, you know. You've got a lot of child victims. You've got protective orders. There are a lot of violent issues... There's probably not a day on the Indiana Supreme Court where I don't have a molest case or a murder case. You want to make sure you protect the victim. So you're sort of balancing that out. We did it in a way that gives trial courts discretion, they know their communities, they will balance out these rights. And I think it will be good."
Q: The new rule gives the local judges a great deal of control over the cameras, should they allow them. Why did the Supreme Court give the local judges this kind of sweeping authority?
Rush: "They know their communities. They know their justice partners, they know their prosecutors. They know their attorneys, public defenders, and a lot of times they know the families. They know everybody that kind of comes in. They are more close (so) instead of a one size fits all, (judges) are able to balance those out.
Q: How might allowing cameras in court change the public's perception of the justice system?
Rush: "We've studied this a long time to where we've really sort of hit that middle ground with transparency and public education on the judicial branch. Because if you ask anybody, it's probably the judicial branch is the least understood branch of government. And here you've got millions of Hoosiers counting on it for justice every year in Indiana. So why not pull the curtains out and say, 'OK, this is what we're doing and this is why we're doing it.' The sky is not going to fall since there are safeguards in place."
Contact WRTV reporter Vic Ryckaert at victor.ryckaert@wrtv.com or on Twitter: @vicryc.
