PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The New England First Amendment Coalition has joined the call for the Justice Department to turn over seized Associated Press phone records.
Rosanna Cavanagh, the coalition's executive director, wrote a letter to U.S.
Attorney General Eric Holder, saying the snooping into 20 AP bureau and personal phone lines "indicates that a failure of supervision or leadership has occurred on your watch."
In addition to taking a lead role in adoption of a federal shield law and returning the AP's records, Cavanagh asked Holder to suspend subpoenas for press data or telephone records until Justice personnel can be trained in the guidelines.
The letter also calls upon Holder to support enactment of a federal shield law that would protect journalists. The Rhode Island Press Association also asked members to support the shield law.