Media and the Law Awards Presented
Article Date: Monday, July 21, 2008
Written By: Russell Rawlings
The 2008 North Carolina Bar Association Media and the Law Awards were presented Friday evening at the annual summer conference of the N.C. Press Association in Asheville.
The Media and the Law awards program was established in 1989 and is conducted annually by the NCBA Communications Committee. Judging is based on accurate, informative coverage of law-related issues which fosters greater public understanding of the legal system and the role of lawyers in society.
Nominations are submitted by member newspapers to the N.C. Press Association and forwarded to the Communications Committee for review. Law-related reporting is judged separately in the divisions of daily and nondaily newspapers, while the competition for best series is open.
This year’s recipient in the Nondaily Division is Tomas Murawski of The Alamance News. Murawski was selected for an article and sidebars on the crowded courts of Alamance County under the lead headline: Why are Alamance courts so clogged?
The coverage, which grew out of a discussion between the reporter and the county sheriff about overcrowding in the county jail, contributed to improvements in the county’s criminal justice system.
Tom Boney, editor and publisher of The Alamance News, accepted the award on behalf of Murawski.
Sarah Ovaska of The News & Observer is the recipient in the Daily Division for the article “DWI suspects let back on the streets.” Ovaska, who covers the courts in Wake County for the N&O, reported that “drunken-driving suspects in Wake County are routinely arrested, processed and turned loose, despite a policy that calls for intoxicated people to be held until a sober person picks them up.”
Joseph Neff of The News & Observer is the winner in the category of Best Series for his insightful review of the Duke lacrosse case, “Rush to Judgment.” Quoting Deputy Managing Editor Steve Riley, who submitted the nomination, “Joseph Neff was able to piece together the untold story of how and why District Attorney Mike Nifong pushed forward and inflamed racial and class tensions – without credible evidence of a crime.”
Hugh Stevens of Everett, Gaskins, Hancock & Stevens accepted the awards for Best Article and Best Series on behalf of The News & Observer. A longtime member of the NCBA, Stevens also has a longstanding relationship with the press association, where he served as general counsel and lobbyist, and the N&O, where he serves as legal counsel.
In accepting the awards, Stevens seized the opportunity to thank the North Carolina Bar Association for its efforts in recognizing outstanding legal reporting throughout the past two decades.