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TV news trucks surround quiet courthouse
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There were no obvious signs of extra security outside the Fulton County Courthouse today.
You would never know that Friday’s mayhem had occurred unless you looked across Martin Luther King Jr. Drive where at least eight TV news trucks from both local stations and national networks were parked.
At the corner of Central Avenue and MLK Drive, Ashley Smith, the Gwinnett County woman taken hostage by the suspect, was being interviewed live by NBC’s “Today”show.
A young man standing behind her was led away and handcuffed by a police officer after he refused a network official’s request that he move. He said he was on a public sidewalk and had a right to be there.
The man, who worked for another television network, was released by police a few minutes later after apologizing and agreeing to leave. He then got in his car and left.
Immediately after her “Today” interview, Smith, wearing a pink jacket, khaki pants and black gloves, was interviewed on CBS’ morning show. Smith continued to give interviews to other media outlets for at least 45 minutes. At 8 a.m Smith was hustled away from the courthouse by several people from her lawyer’s office and was driven away in a red Ford Explorer driven by Richard Hyde, chief investigator for the law firm Balch & Bingham.
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