Cynthia M. Jeffries

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Charge:	Contempt of Court
Sentence:	72 hours
Years Imprisoned:
Year Crime:	1997
Year Convicted:	1997
Year Cleared:	1998
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Mississippi
County or Region of Crime:	Washington
City of Crime:
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Cynthia Jeffries was wrongly convicted in 1997 of contempt of court in Washington County, Mississippi for reporting on information discussed in the courtroom during the manslaughter sentencing hearing about 21-year-old Brian Hollingsworth when he was a juvenile. The judge warned Jeffries not to write about some of what was discussed in the courtroom about Hollingsworth as a juvenile. Jeffries wrote an article about the hearing that was published on June 11, 1997 in the Delta Democrat Times that included some of what was discussed in the courtroom when Hollingsworth was a juvenile. She was sentenced to 72 hours in jail. On December 17, 1998 the Mississipi Supreme Court vacated Jeffries conviction on the basis the information she reported was stated in the courtroom where it was heard by a number of people and thus it was a violation of her right to freedom of speech for the judge to have punished her by finding her in contempt."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:	"On December 17, 1998 the Mississipi Supreme Court vacated Jeffries conviction on the basis the information she reported was stated in the courtroom where it was heard by a number of people and thus it was a violation of her right to freedom of speech for the judge to have punished her by finding her in contempt."
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Was Perpetrator Identified?
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Age When Released:
Sex:	Female
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Information Source 1:	"Cynthia M. Jeffries v. State of Mississippi, 724 So.2d 897 (1998) (MS Supreme Court)"
Information Location 1:	"http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17494054776931526352&q=%22cynthia+jeffries%22+mississippi&hl=en&as_sdt=2,48"
Information Source 2:	"Reporter's Contempt Conviction Overturned, AP story, The New York Times, December 19, 1998, p. A10"
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Cynthia M. Jeffries

Charge:

Contempt of Court

Sentence:

72 hours

Years Imprisoned:

Year Crime:

1997

Year Convicted:

1997

Year Cleared:

1998

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Mississippi

County or Region of Crime:

Washington

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Female

Skin/Ethnicity:

Information Source 1:

"Cynthia M. Jeffries v. State of Mississippi, 724 So.2d 897 (1998) (MS Supreme Court)"

Information Location 1:

"http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17494054776931526352&q=%22cynthia+jeffries%22+mississippi&hl=en&as_sdt=2,48"

Information Source 2:

"Reporter's Contempt Conviction Overturned, AP story, The New York Times, December 19, 1998, p. A10"

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Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: