County should charge for Peterson trial

The day it was announced that San Mateo County was one of three counties in the running for the trial, county officials did not express joy. Rather, they were concerned about the cost. San Mateo County Supervisor Jerry Hill was quoted in the Daily Journal, "It's appropriate to move the trial, but it's certainly not fair to place it in a county that's struggling."

County officials are concerned because the state has yet to reimburse the county for hosting the "Billionaire Boys Club" trial in the '90s. Officials are also concerned because Stanislaus County is having difficulty collecting money from the media for its impact during the trial.

True, Anne LeClair, director of the San Mateo County Convention and Visitors Bureau, sent out informational packets about the county to court officials in Stanislaus County. That's her job. LeClair took hits for not appearing to be sensitive to the nature of the trial, but no one asked her how she felt about the murder, just the impact of the trial. And she is not an elected official.

So why the controversy over the county's plan to charge media for its impact on the county? It's because the media is the one reporting it. It's the same national media that first characterized the county and Redwood City as homogenous and middle class. True, there's a healthy middle class here, but to say Redwood City is homogenous is ridiculous to anyone who has spent any amount of time here.

Both the county and Redwood City have bent over backwards for the media onslaught. They have committed time, resources and employees to ensure that the media has what it needs to cover the trial properly. Roads have been closed, parking has been created and power and telephone cables have been stretched to media camps. Reading the national reports of the Peterson case, one could believe that San Mateo County is trying to profit from the case. It's not.

The county is facing up to a $50 million shortfall from state takeaways and reduced revenue. Job cuts could be in the hundreds. The cost of the Peterson trial will likely reach the millions for both Redwood City and the county. To not make up for that loss in revenue would be foolish.

It's not a matter of freedom of speech or freedom of the press either. The media has every right to cover the Peterson trial, that right is not being infringed upon. However, it doesn't have the right to be a burden. Even without the Peterson trial, reporters still have to put coins in meters, pay for copies of lawsuits and pay for Internet access at the courthouse.

In Modesto, members of the media reportedly tried to pay jail guards for information, so what's the difference in paying for a service they need?

Charging the media for its impact is a smart move because it means less county and city services will have to be cut once the media packs up its microphones and satellite trucks.