A DeKalb County judge on Wednesday issued an order restricting what parties can say to the news media during the ongoing criminal case against suspended CEO Burrell Ellis.
Superior Court Judge Courtney Johnson said the case has attracted significant media attention and expressed concern about extensive publicity tainting the would-be jury pool.
Johnson hastily convened a hearing Wednesday morning to consider an emergency motion filed late Tuesday by District Attorney Robert James, who sought a limited gag order.
James noted Ellis had recently posted a video on YouTube and had created a website entitled “Friends of Burrell Ellis.” In the video, Ellis said the trauma of the search of his home, where his 83-year-old mother was there alone, lingers to this day.
“The DA went through my closets, my wife’s personal items, my kids’ toy bins and even my trash and found nothing illegal or improper because I have done absolutely nothing wrong,” Ellis said in the video.
Johnson noted that the video included Ellis’ thoughts and opinions on the case, the case’s facts and the attorneys involved, “namely District Attorney Robert James.”
In her order, Johnson prohibited “all participants in the trial” from discussing with the media the possibility of a guilty plea; the existence of a confession; any opinion on the guilt or innocence of the Ellis or a suspect; and any information that a lawyer knows is likely inadmissible in a court proceeding or would “create a substantial risk of prejudicing an impartial trial.”
Parties also cannot talk about “the character, credibility, reputation or criminal record of a party, suspect in a criminal investigation or witness, or the identity of a witness, or the expected testimony of a party or witness,” the order said.
Johnson said attorneys for the state and the defense can only talk about a few things, such as any information contained in the public record, the scheduling or outcome of court hearings and “the claim, offense or defenses involved.”
Any party failing to adhere to her order, Johnson wrote, “may be punished by a finding of being in contempt of court and/or disciplinary action by the State Bar of Georgia.”
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