Maneuvers in Memphis

W. Preston Battle, criminal court judge in Tennessee's Shelby County, is determined to keep the trial of James Earl Ray from turning into a courtroom circus. To make sure, Battle has issued a code of procedure that, among other things, prohibits any prejudicial, out-of-court discussion of the case by the principals. Last week, with the trial of Martin Luther King's alleged assassin still more than a month away, Battle made it clear that he meant what he said. He not only found Ray's lawyer and private detective guilty of contempt, but he issued contempt citations against two Memphis newsmen.

What touched off the jurist's wrath was the behavior of Defense Attorney Arthur J. Hanes Sr. Hanes has not only talked to the press about the possibility of a Communist conspiracy in the King murder, but has also complained bitterly about the sheriff's unusually strict guard over Ray. Some of his protests were dutifully echoed by Defense Detective Renfro Hays. Like good courthouse reporters anywhere, Roy Hamilton of the Memphis Press-Scimitar and Charles Edmundson of the Memphis Commercial Appeal printed the complaints.

Ray's Rights. No one denies that Ray is being guarded with extraordinary zeal. Since his extradition from England last July, he has been kept in a third-floor cell in the Memphis courthouse, watched over by two ever-present deputies. Eight bright mercury-vapor lamps burn at all times. Two closed-circuit TV cameras are always trained on the cell. Except when Ray is conferring with his lawyer, a microphone listens in. Only one other murder suspect in the U.S. is currently being held under such strict security provisions. That man is Sirhan Sirhan, who will stand trial in Los Angeles for the murder of Robert Kennedy.

Hanes has protested what he called the "cruel and unusual punishment" of his client. But at last week's hearing, Judge Battle saw no violation of Ray's rights. He described the security measures as "reasonable." Even more exasperating to the judge was the defense's out-of-court suggestion that Ray's sanity may be in danger. Such talk, Battle said, was "extremely prejudicial and constitutes a clear and present danger" to picking an impartial jury and holding a fair trial. Certainly, the state's case might be damaged if any jurors felt that Ray had been driven out of his mind. As for the lights, Battle said that Ray could buy a sleeping mask for his eyes. Looking squarely at the prisoner, who appeared healthy enough, Battle said: "Ray has been sleeping more than I have lately."

Battle conceded that his curbs on the press were at "a frontier of the law." But the U.S. Supreme Court decision upsetting the murder conviction of Dr. Sam Sheppard, he explained, placed on all judges a duty to keep pre-trial publicity from turning a sensational trial into a legal shambles. Battle refused to impose sentence immediately in the contempt cases, even though the lawyer for the two Scripps-Howard papers argued that his inaction had the effect of blocking an appeal. If Battle's maneuver was aimed at silencing the papers, it failed. Next day, Commercial-Appeal Editor Frank R. Ahlgren wrote: "Such handcuffing of the press and blindfolding of the citizens cannot be accepted by a responsible newspaper, which must report all important happenings to the people." Despite that proper journalistic sentiment, it remains to be seen just how the contempt citations will affect coverage of the case.

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