Reporter's motive, diligence questioned in libel suit

The lawyer representing Judge Ernest Murphy in his libel lawsuit against the Boston Herald used a reporter's appearance on the TV talk show "The O'Reilly Factor" to attack his credibility yesterday.

The reporter, David Wedge, was on the stand for a second day of detailed and sometimes contentious testimony before a Suffolk County jury. After playing a tape of Bill O'Reilly and Wedge discussing Murphy's sentencing practices on the March 7, 2002, edition of the Fox News Channel show, attorney Howard Cooper challenged statements Wedge made on the show and raised questions about his motive for appearing.

In his opening statement to the jury last week, Cooper described Wedge as a reporter "who disregarded the truth because he wanted to be a media star." Yesterday, describing "The O'Reilly Factor" as a popular national program, Cooper asked Wedge, "You liked going on television, didn't you, sir?"

The reporter responded: "The Herald wanted me to go on. . . . I was encouraged to go on if I could do it."

The high-profile libel trial centers on a series of stories in the Herald beginning with a Feb. 13, 2002, front-page article that portrayed Murphy as overly lenient in sentencing, said he had "heartlessly demeaned victims," and cited unnamed sources who claimed he had said of a 14-year-old rape victim: "Tell her to get over it."

In his suit -- which cited Wedge's appearance on "The O'Reilly Factor" -- Murphy alleged that the Herald coverage triggered a regional, national, and international "news frenzy" that destroyed his reputation, traumatized his family, and prompted death threats against him.

The Herald contends Wedge carefully checked the accuracy of the information he got about Murphy and that it came from reliable sources. In his opening remarks to the jury, Herald attorney Robert Dushman described Wedge as an experienced and accomplished journalist, and said the evidence will show that "Dave Wedge thoroughly investigated Judge Murphy." Because the plaintiff is a public figure, Murphy must prove the Herald stories were not only false and defamatory but were published with a "reckless disregard" for their truth or falsity.

In testimony Tuesday and yesterday, Cooper questioned Wedge in often tense exchanges that focused on the reporter's techniques and standards. Of central import to the case are two crucial quotes attributed to Murphy by unnamed sources in the Feb. 13, 2002, story. One was: "She can't go through life as a victim. She's 14. She got raped. Tell her to get over it." The other, which was described in the context of the judge belittling a 79-year-old robbery victim, was: "I don't care if she's 109."

Addressing the quote about the elderly robbery victim, Cooper said Wedge "reported words that were different than what one of your sources told you" and criticized the reporter for failing to investigate the circumstances of that case. Wedge responded: "We had confirmed everything to my editors' satisfaction. . . . We had no information that any of our information was incorrect."

A similar exchange concerned the statement about the rape victim. Citing his 2002 deposition, in which Wedge said he was told that the judge had said, "She got raped. She's got to get on with her life and get over it," Cooper said that what appeared in the paper -- "Tell her to get over it" -- did not reflect what Wedge's sources had told him.

Wedge acknowledged that the quotes in the deposition and story were "slightly different." But he added that, during his deposition testimony, he was likely paraphrasing what his source had told him. He reiterated that his reporting in the Herald reflected "what all my sources told me."

During yesterday's testimony, Cooper cited a March 6, 2002, story in The Boston Globe, published the day before Wedge went on "The O'Reilly Factor," in which Murphy and one of his clerks denied the judge had made the comments that appeared in the Herald on Feb. 13, 2002. When Cooper pressed Wedge on why he had not tried to interview the clerk before discussing the subject on national television, the reporter said he had no reason to think his story was inaccurate. "Everything that was in my story was true to my knowledge," he said.

Another stark disagreement emerged over how serious an effort the Herald made to contact Murphy before publishing the Feb. 13, 2002, article, which stated: "The judge declined comment yesterday at New Bedford Superior Court."

Wedge testified that he approached a court officer, "asked if I could speak to the judge, and I was told no." Cooper countered that Wedge "never personally told anybody what it is you wanted Judge Murphy to comment on."

Wedge is scheduled to be back on the stand today. The trial, which began last week, is expected to last two to three weeks.