A.G. Loves P.W.

In the sensational trial of Oleomargarine Heir Minot F. ("Mickey") Jelke III, convicted last year of being pimp for glamorous New York prostitutes, Manhattan General Sessions Judge Francis L. Valente barred newsmen from the courtroom. Judge Valente imposed his press ban after ruling that "extensive press coverage to a case of this kind is catering to vulgar sensationalism" (TIME, Feb 16, 1953). Manhattan dailies promptly handed Valente a failing mark in journalism by giving much more elaborate, tabloid-style coverage to the "mystery" trial than they might have given had the trial been open.

Last week the Appellate Division of New York's Supreme Court flunked Valente in law as well.

In a 3-2 decision, the court ordered a new trial for Jelke, sentenced to three to six years in prison and now out on $50,000 bail. Reason: Valente's ban had prevented him from getting a fair public trial the first time. Said the court's sharply worded rebuke: "We conceive it to be no part of the work of the judiciary ... to decide what a newspaper prints or to what portion of the people it caters to sell its papers. A judge may have his personal opinion as to the good taste of what may appear in public print, but ... he has no right ... to restrain or dictate what portion of court proceedings shall be made available for reading by the public."

Hearst's Journal-American read the decision to mean that it could now publish all the secret court transcript, promptly serialized on Page One the testimony of Call Girl Pat Ward. (The J-A thoughtfully substituted "A.G.." "R.M." and other initials for her customers' full names in the interests of "fairness.") But while other Manhattan papers had access to the juicy testimony, they printed not a word of it. They decided it was old stuff because the case had been so thoroughly covered when it was still "secret."

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