The Crime in Writing True Crime (Continued)

Finally, Judge Hill’s bailiff walked outside and bellowed to the press that they couldn’t interview the jurors. It was against the judge’s orders.

"It’s not legal," yelled Cynthia Hunt, a reporter for the Houston ABC affiliate. She argued that the judge had removed that from the media orders.

"It’s not my problem," the bailiff replied and left. But he soon returned, with Judge Hill’s media orders in his hand and read them aloud to the press.

Two months later, Hill handed down her decision, upholding her order.

December 3, 2001, Judge Hill began hearing pre-trial motions on the Yates case. The day ended with Russell Yates’ attorney, Edward Mallett, requesting that the judge release his client from the gag order. He claimed that Yates had been issued a witness subpoena "to keep him from speaking and attending his wife’s court proceedings." And, indeed, Russell Yates had not been allowed in the courtroom during his wife’s competency hearing. He was a witness who had never been called to testify.

The following Sunday night, Russell Yates and Harris County District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal both appeared on 60 Minutes, in the segment that had been previously scheduled to air in September. Both men appeared to be in violation of Judge Hill’s gag order.

The following morning, media covered the courthouse, believing Yates, but not Rosenthal, would be arrested for contempt of court. Neither was arrested. Instead, Hill eventually appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the situation. Rumor circulated that "Mac" Secrest, the special prosecutor who — like Hill — was a former Harris County prosecutor, would purposefully prolong his investigation until after the trial so that no one, particularly the DA, would have to be arrested.

January 3, 2002, I received a phone call from a reporter in Houston advising me that if I wanted press credentials for the Yates trial, I had to apply for them by January 4. I immediately emailed the request and drafted a "chit-chatty" letter, on my business letterhead, thanking Jack Thompson and Janet Warner for getting me into the competency hearing and requesting a press pass for the Yates jury selection and trial. I specifically stated, "I don’t need to be there every day, just the days y’all deem open enough for another reporter." After all, our relationship had always seemed chatty and based on Texas politeness — the ole honey gets more than vinegar teaching. I faxed that letter to the courts’ administrative offices.

The following day, Janet Warner phoned me, told me that I couldn’t get in for jury selection. It was already full, she said, but I had a seat "for every day" of the trial. We also discussed the possibility of me getting into jury selection after about two weeks, i.e. after the novelty had worn off. She told me to call her back in two weeks; it was a possibility. The conversation seemed all honey.

That same day, Vanessa Leggett was finally released from prison on her contempt of court charge — not because she had turned over her sources, but because the grand jury had expired, five and half months after she’d been jailed.

Sunday night, January 20, 2002, Good Morning America asked me to be on their next morning’s show. Time magazine’s story on Andrea Yates was finally coming out, its reporter was going to be on Today, and GMA needed counter programming. I accepted the GMA offer — my book about Andrea Yates would be on the stands in the next week or two, more than five months after I had first notified the DA’s office.

So on Monday, January 21, in the midst of Yates jury selection, Time’s Timothy Roche was on Today and I was on GMA, as well as ABC World News. That same week, Oprah’s O magazine published a Yates story by Suzanne O’Malley. I heard that Janet Warner was unhappy with me for thanking and acknowledging her in my book. I was advised to phone Warner and apologize, which I did.

During that conversation, Warner told me that Judge Hill was "angry" with me, felt that I had "misled" her about the book’s publication date, and that I was on a "list" of people that the judge was "checking in to." (I had never communicated with the judge, so I don’t know how I "misled" her.) Time was also on that list, Warner said. She strongly insinuated that I would not be receiving my press credentials. For the first time, our chit-chatty conversation had a sense of terseness to it. Still, polite honey superficially coated the vinegar.

Concerned, I asked St. Martin’s Press to fax another letter of request to the courts’ administrative office, which St. Martin’s did.

January 30, I received a phone message from Janet Warner:

"Hi, Suzy, this is Janet Warner with Harris County. I’m in receipt of a letter from Anderson Bailey, the editor of St. Martin’s Press requesting us helping you get a seat for the trial. I’m afraid we’re not going to be able to honor this due to the fact that Breaking Point has already been published and is on the rack, so we don’t think we’re going to be able to give you a seat for the trial. If you have any questions..."

About the same time, a producer for 48 Hours asked for my assistance on a Yates program. It would not air until after the trial, I was told, but 48 Hours had, with Judge Hill’s approval, behind the scenes access to the judge, prosecutors, defense attorneys and more. In other words, it appeared to be a flagrant, judge-approved violation of the gag order.

I wanted my press credentials for the trial.

I phoned someone who I knew had regular contact with Judge Hill and said I know what’s going on with 48 Hours, I want my press credentials.

My source advised me to request a meeting with Judge Hill because, he said, she had repeatedly mentioned a portion of my book in which Russell Yates boasted about his master PR plan to change the outcome of the trial — beginning with the 60 Minutes segment.

I put that in the book because I thought it ludicrous that Yates believed he could control the national media.

I was informed, though, that the judge had bought into it and believed it since, by coincidence and ABC’s need for counter-programming, Time magazine, GMA, ABC World News, O, and my book all came out at the same time. My source also told me that if I met with the judge, I wouldn’t even have to bring up the topic. The judge would, she was that obsessed with the subject.