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| San Francisco Police Call Freelancer Possible ‘Co-Conspirator’ in Report Leak | San Francisco Police Call Freelancer Possible ‘Co-Conspirator’ in Report Leak |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| Ratcheting up an investigation that has been criticized by news organizations and press-freedom groups, the San Francisco Police Department said a freelance journalist who had obtained a leaked police report was a suspected “co-conspirator” in the purported “theft” of the document. | Ratcheting up an investigation that has been criticized by news organizations and press-freedom groups, the San Francisco Police Department said a freelance journalist who had obtained a leaked police report was a suspected “co-conspirator” in the purported “theft” of the document. |
| The allegation, contained in a statement issued by the Police Department late Tuesday, was the first instance of law enforcement authorities describing the journalist, Bryan Carmody, as a subject of their investigation, according to Mr. Carmody’s lawyer, Tom Burke. | The allegation, contained in a statement issued by the Police Department late Tuesday, was the first instance of law enforcement authorities describing the journalist, Bryan Carmody, as a subject of their investigation, according to Mr. Carmody’s lawyer, Tom Burke. |
| Mr. Carmody has covered news events in the Bay Area — crime scenes, fires, car crashes — for nearly 30 years as a self-employed journalist. In February, he obtained a police report from an unidentified person, or persons, related to the death of San Francisco’s longtime public defender, Jeff Adachi. | Mr. Carmody has covered news events in the Bay Area — crime scenes, fires, car crashes — for nearly 30 years as a self-employed journalist. In February, he obtained a police report from an unidentified person, or persons, related to the death of San Francisco’s longtime public defender, Jeff Adachi. |
| Mr. Carmody said the document was among the supporting materials he sold to three local news programs that aired reports based on his work the day after Mr. Adachi’s death. Mr. Carmody’s reporting indicated that Mr. Adachi, who was 59 when he died in February, collapsed at the apartment of a woman who was not his wife. (In addition to the police report, Mr. Carmody obtained photographs of the apartment showing alcohol bottles and marijuana gummies.) | Mr. Carmody said the document was among the supporting materials he sold to three local news programs that aired reports based on his work the day after Mr. Adachi’s death. Mr. Carmody’s reporting indicated that Mr. Adachi, who was 59 when he died in February, collapsed at the apartment of a woman who was not his wife. (In addition to the police report, Mr. Carmody obtained photographs of the apartment showing alcohol bottles and marijuana gummies.) |
| The Police Department said Tuesday that it viewed the manner in which Mr. Carmody obtained the report with suspicion. “As the investigation developed,” it said in its statement, “Mr. Carmody was and continues to be viewed by investigators as a possible co-conspirator in this theft, rather than a passive recipient of the stolen document.” | The Police Department said Tuesday that it viewed the manner in which Mr. Carmody obtained the report with suspicion. “As the investigation developed,” it said in its statement, “Mr. Carmody was and continues to be viewed by investigators as a possible co-conspirator in this theft, rather than a passive recipient of the stolen document.” |
| William Scott, San Francisco’s police chief, told reporters that investigators believed that Mr. Carmody’s contact with whoever had provided him with the police report “went past just doing your job as a journalist.” | William Scott, San Francisco’s police chief, told reporters that investigators believed that Mr. Carmody’s contact with whoever had provided him with the police report “went past just doing your job as a journalist.” |
| The police obtained search warrants and raided Mr. Carmody’s home this month, taking a sledgehammer to his door and seizing his equipment and archives, after he refused to divulge the identity of his source. | The police obtained search warrants and raided Mr. Carmody’s home this month, taking a sledgehammer to his door and seizing his equipment and archives, after he refused to divulge the identity of his source. |
| At a hearing in San Francisco Superior Court on Tuesday, a judge set a schedule for the filing of briefs related to Mr. Carmody’s motion to quash the search warrants, which would prevent the information the police obtained in the raid from being used against him or anyone else. The government’s briefs are due by the end of the month. Mr. Carmody was allowed to retrieve his equipment and archives after the hearing. | At a hearing in San Francisco Superior Court on Tuesday, a judge set a schedule for the filing of briefs related to Mr. Carmody’s motion to quash the search warrants, which would prevent the information the police obtained in the raid from being used against him or anyone else. The government’s briefs are due by the end of the month. Mr. Carmody was allowed to retrieve his equipment and archives after the hearing. |
| The police said the sharing of the report could have constituted several crimes, including “the unlawful dissemination of official information,” “the willful obstruction of justice” and “receiving stolen property.” | The police said the sharing of the report could have constituted several crimes, including “the unlawful dissemination of official information,” “the willful obstruction of justice” and “receiving stolen property.” |
| The police have not taken a similarly aggressive stance toward Evan Sernoffsky, a crime reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle who relied on unnamed sources familiar with the same report for an article he wrote about Mr. Adachi’s death. | The police have not taken a similarly aggressive stance toward Evan Sernoffsky, a crime reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle who relied on unnamed sources familiar with the same report for an article he wrote about Mr. Adachi’s death. |
| Law enforcement authorities have not taken any apparent action against Mr. Sernoffsky, the newspaper that employs him or others in the same newsroom who have covered the story, according to Audrey Cooper, The Chronicle’s editor in chief. | Law enforcement authorities have not taken any apparent action against Mr. Sernoffsky, the newspaper that employs him or others in the same newsroom who have covered the story, according to Audrey Cooper, The Chronicle’s editor in chief. |
| The raid of Mr. Carmody’s apartment took place in the wake of President Trump’s frequent anti-press remarks and the federal government’s prosecutions of the whistle-blowers Chelsea Manning and Reality Winner. The Police Department’s statement on Tuesday sought to characterize Mr. Carmody as someone hoping to profit from ill-gotten official materials in his possession, rather than as a journalist. | The raid of Mr. Carmody’s apartment took place in the wake of President Trump’s frequent anti-press remarks and the federal government’s prosecutions of the whistle-blowers Chelsea Manning and Reality Winner. The Police Department’s statement on Tuesday sought to characterize Mr. Carmody as someone hoping to profit from ill-gotten official materials in his possession, rather than as a journalist. |
| “Investigators learned that Mr. Carmody was offering to sell the stolen report to various Bay Area news organizations,” the statement said. “Mr. Carmody’s LinkedIn profile shows that he is a ‘Freelance Videographer/Communications Manager, USO Bay Area’ and that he was not employed by any of the news organizations who received the stolen report.” | “Investigators learned that Mr. Carmody was offering to sell the stolen report to various Bay Area news organizations,” the statement said. “Mr. Carmody’s LinkedIn profile shows that he is a ‘Freelance Videographer/Communications Manager, USO Bay Area’ and that he was not employed by any of the news organizations who received the stolen report.” |
| It is common for self-employed journalists to sell their work to news outlets that do not employ them. Those engaged in the kind of quick-hit journalism practiced by Mr. Carmody are commonly known as stringers. | It is common for self-employed journalists to sell their work to news outlets that do not employ them. Those engaged in the kind of quick-hit journalism practiced by Mr. Carmody are commonly known as stringers. |
| Investigators believe that whoever leaked the police records to Mr. Carmody is employed by the Police Department, the statement said. As a public defender, Mr. Adachi often challenged the department over allegations of abuse. | Investigators believe that whoever leaked the police records to Mr. Carmody is employed by the Police Department, the statement said. As a public defender, Mr. Adachi often challenged the department over allegations of abuse. |
| The raid of Mr. Carmody’s apartment prompted criticism of what free-press advocates have characterized as a trampling of First Amendment rights and a California shield law that protects journalists. Several dozen news organizations, including The New York Times Company and Dow Jones & Company, have filed a friend-of-the-court letter in support of Mr. Carmody. | The raid of Mr. Carmody’s apartment prompted criticism of what free-press advocates have characterized as a trampling of First Amendment rights and a California shield law that protects journalists. Several dozen news organizations, including The New York Times Company and Dow Jones & Company, have filed a friend-of-the-court letter in support of Mr. Carmody. |
| Mayor London Breed, after initially supporting the police, shifted her position over the weekend. “The more we learn,” she said of the raid, “the less appropriate it looks to me.” George Gascón, the city’s district attorney, has been less equivocal in his public criticism of the search. |