MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) – A judge on Friday rejected a request to move pre-trial hearings for a man facing the death penalty in the shooting of city police Officer Michael Briggs.

Lawyers for Michael Addison wanted the hearings moved to a courthouse where news photographers could not see him being brought in and out, wearing handcuffs and prison clothes. They argued such photos would harm Addison’s right to a fair trial by making him look like a criminal in the eyes of potential jurors.

Prosecutors argued that such photos had already been published, so any more would not change Addison’s situation.

But Hillsborough County Superior Judge Kathleen McGuire said no prospective juror would be surprised or unduly prejudiced by seeing a prisoner transported in handcuffs, because that is a normal security measure to prevent prisoners from escaping.

Addison has a right to wear civilian clothing and sit in the courtroom unrestrained during his trial, but not at other times, she said.

Any bias caused by such photos can be dealt with by careful questioning during jury selection and explicit instructions to the jury.

McGuire also ruled Friday the pretrial hearings could be broadcast on television, but only after a one-hour delay “to provide some breathing room if unexpected events occur during the hearings that should not be televised.”

While court proceedings should be open to the media and the public, a death penalty case deserves extra care, she said.

The ruling came in response to a petition by WMUR-TV to broadcast the proceedings live. McGuire said the television station can file a motion to cover the trial live, but only two months before the trial is scheduled to start.

AP-ES-04-13-07 1618EDT

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