Berger v. Hanlon

Decision Date13 November 1997
Docket Number96-35266,Nos. 96-35251,s. 96-35251
Citation129 F.3d 505
Parties28 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,384, 25 Media L. Rep. 2505, 97 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 8606, 97 Daily Journal D.A.R. 13,955 Paul W. BERGER and Erma R. Berger, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Rodney C. HANLON; Joel Scrafford; Richard C. Branzell; Robert Prieksat; Kris A. Mclean; Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., A Georgia Corporation; Robert Rainey; Donald Hooper; United States of America, Defendants-Appellees. Paul W. BERGER and Erma R. Berger, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Jack HAMANN; Cable News Network, Inc., a Georgia corporation, Defendants-Appellees.
CourtU.S. Court of Appeals — Ninth Circuit

Henry H. Rossbacher, Nanci E. Nishimura and Tracy W. Young, Rossbacher & Associates, Los Angeles, California, and Jay F. Lansing, Moses Law Firm, Billings, Montana, for plaintiffs-appellants.

P. Cameron DeVore, Davis Wright Tremaine, Seattle, Washington, and W. Anderson Forsythe, Moulton, Bellingham, Longo & Mather, Billings, Montana, for defendants-appellees CNN and Hamann.

Thomas M. Bondy, Assistant United States Attorney, Washington, DC, for defendant-appellee United States.

Appeals from the United States District Court for the District of Montana; Jack D. Shanstrom, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV-95-00046-JDS.

Before: SCHROEDER and KLEINFELD, Circuit Judges, and BREWSTER, * District Judge.

SCHROEDER, Circuit Judge:

When federal agents searched the ranch of Paul and Erma Berger in March of 1993, they acted not only pursuant to a search warrant, but also pursuant to a written contract with appellees Cable News Network and Turner Broadcasting System, authorizing the filming and recording of the search for broadcast on their environmental television shows "Earth Matters" and "Network Earth." The media wanted footage of the discovery of evidence showing that Paul Berger was poisoning eagles, and the government wanted the publicity.

After Mr. Berger was convicted of one misdemeanor count for using a pesticide in a manner inconsistent with its labeling, 7 U.S.C. § 136j(a)(2)(G), and acquitted of three felony counts of the killing of at least one eagle, the Bergers sued both the media and the federal agents under Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Fed. Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388, 91 S.Ct. 1999, 29 L.Ed.2d 619 (1971), for the violation of their constitutional rights. The Bergers also sued the media for the violation of the Federal Wiretap Act, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2511, et seq., for various state law torts, and to enjoin further broadcasts of the video shot at their ranch. The Bergers' principal contentions under federal law are that (1) the federal agents violated their Fourth Amendment rights by permitting commercial television cameras to film the search and by assisting the media in their search for dramatic material, and (2) the media acted sufficiently in concert with the federal agents to be held accountable for that violation as government actors.

On the Bivens action, the district court ruled that the federal agents were entitled to qualified immunity because there was, at the time of this episode, no clearly established law protecting individuals from the commercial recording of a search of their residences. The court also held that the Bergers were collaterally estopped from litigating the reasonableness of the search because the same issues had been decided adversely to Mr. Berger in his criminal trial. In addition, the We reverse the judgment in favor of the federal appellees on the Fourth Amendment claim because we hold the federal officers are not entitled to qualified immunity in this case. Because we hold that the issues litigated in the criminal proceeding were not the same as the issues presented to the district court in this civil suit, we also reverse the district court's ruling that this action is barred. The judgment in favor of the media on the Bivens claim is reversed because, on the basis of the present record, we must consider the media to have acted jointly with the federal appellees, and hence "under color of law." We affirm the district court's ruling that the media are not liable under the Federal Wiretap Act, however.

court rejected the Bergers' claim that the media had become government actors for purposes of Bivens liability.

On the state law claims, we reverse the court's ruling in favor of the media on the trespass and infliction of emotional distress causes of action. We affirm the ruling on the conversion claim, and decline to enjoin further broadcasts.

In reviewing the grant of summary judgment to the appellees, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the Bergers. Bagdadi v. Nazar, 84 F.3d 1194, 1197 (9th Cir.1996).

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Paul and Erma Berger reside on a 75,000 acre ranch in Montana. At the time of the search, Mr. Berger was 71 and Mrs. Berger was 81. In January of 1993, former employees of the Bergers apparently went to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service ("USFWS") and told USFWS agents that they had seen Mr. Berger poison or shoot eagles a few years earlier. Upon hearing about the investigation, the media appellees, Cable News Network, Inc. and CNN employee Jack Hamann, together with Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. and TBS employees Robert Rainey and Donald Hooper, approached agents of USFWS to see if a television deal could be worked out. The media wanted footage for their environmental programs and the government wanted to publicize its efforts to combat environmental crime. On March 11, 1993, approximately two weeks before the search was executed, the Assistant U.S. Attorney in charge of Mr. Berger's investigation, federal-appellee Kris McLean, and media correspondent Jack Hamann, executed the following letter agreement on CNN letterhead:

Dear Mr. McLean:

This confirms our agreement that the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Montana agrees to allow CNN to accompany USFWS Agents as they attempt to execute a criminal search warrant near Jordan, Montana, some time during the week of March 22, 1993. Except as provided below, CNN shall have complete editorial control over any footage it shoots; it shall not be obliged to use the footage; and does not waive any rights or privileges it may have with respect to the footage.

In return, CNN agrees to embargo the telecast of any videotape of the attempt to execute the search warrant until either: (1) a jury has been empaneled and instructed by a judge not to view television reports about the case; or (2) the defendant waives his right to a jury trial and agrees to have his case tried before a judge; or (3) a judge accepts a plea bargain; or (4) the government decides not to bring charges relating to the attempt to execute the search warrant.

Please acknowledge your agreement to the foregoing by executing the signature line below.

Sincerely, Jack Hamann, Correspondent, CNN Environment Unit.

Acknowledged signature of Kris McLean, Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Montana, Helena, Montana.

cc: Jennifer Falk Weiss, CNN Legal Department. Chet Burgess, CNN Environment Unit.

On March 18, a magistrate judge issued a search warrant for the Bergers' ranch, authorizing the search of the ranch and appurtenant structures, excluding the residence, for evidence indicating the taking of wildlife. According to the Bergers, the magistrate judge had no knowledge of the planned media According to the Bergers, the media participated in a pre-search briefing the day before the search, at which the federal appellees shared with the media details of the material included in the warrant and supporting materials that were supposed to remain under seal until after the search.

participation during the search, and there is no contention by the appellees that when the magistrate judge issued the warrant, he approved the videotaping of the search for broadcast purposes.

On the morning of the search, the government team, accompanied by a media crew, gathered on a county road leading to the ranch, to discuss the execution of the warrant. The cameras videotaped that gathering. The broadcast team then proceeded with the federal agents and AUSA McLean in a caravan of approximately ten vehicles to a point near the Bergers' ranch. Media cameras mounted on the outside of government vehicles, or placed in their interior, documented every move made by the federal appellees. At all times during and immediately prior to the search, USFWS Special Agent Joel Scrafford was wired with a hidden CNN microphone which was continuously transmitting live audio to the CNN technical crew.

Mr. Berger approached and met the caravan in a pickup truck on the road leading up to the ranch. Agent Scrafford proceeded to inform Mr. Berger of the search warrant, and asked him whether he could ride to the house in Mr. Berger's truck so that he could explain to Mrs. Berger what they were going to do. Mr. Berger allowed Agent Scrafford to ride with him in the pickup truck. Upon arriving at the Bergers' residence, the two men entered the house together. Audio recorded at the site indicates that Mr. Berger consented to Agent Scrafford's entry into the home at this time. The parties disagree on whether the agents who entered the residence with Agent Scrafford searched the residence for incriminating evidence, and whether Agent Scrafford's subsequent entries into the home were consented to. However, it is undisputed that Agent Scrafford recorded all his conversations with the Bergers inside the house.

The Bergers were not informed that Agent Scrafford was wearing a microphone or that the cameras that were visible during the search belonged to the media. The media recorded more than eight hours of tape and it broadcast both the video footage and the sound recordings made in the house.

Mr. Berger was tried on an amended information charging him with the taking of at least one golden eagle, in violation of...

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