UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE
DISTRICT OF VERMONT \1: s. DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF VER!101.T
FILED 5J1'11f
BY
DE
~1'YCLERK
In the Matter of: )
Sealing Sentencing Transcripts )
)
GENERAL ORDER # 71
The Judicial Conference of the United States has approved a policy of
restricting from routine public disclosure the Statement of Reasons attached to the
Judgment in a criminal case. The Judgment is a public document, however,
information contained in the Statement of Reasons may include information regarding
cooperating witnesses, and other references indicating that a defendant has provided
substantial assistance to the government. Recognizing that this information may pose
a risk to the defendant's safety as well as to the safety of others, the Judicial
Conference agreed to place reasonable restrictions on public access to the Statement
of Reasons.
The Sentencing Guidelines reflect a similar concern. In determining whether
to grant a departure from the Guidelines for substantial assistance to the government,
"[t]he sentencing judge must ... state the reasons for reducing a sentence" on this
ground, however, "[t]he court may elect to provide its reasons to the defendant in
camera and in writing under seal for the safety of the defendant or to avoid disclosure
of an ongoing investigation." U.S.S.G. § 5Kl.l, commentary.
The court has determined that these same concerns are present in that part of a
publicly available sentencing transcript that details the nature and extent of a
defendant's cooperation with or substantial assistance to the government. To that
end, the court has agreed to place certain limitations on public access to this portion
of the sentencing transcript. These limitations will not unduly interfere with the right
of the public and media to be present at any sentencing and will only pertain to that
AO 72A
(Rev. 8/82)
portion of the sentencing transcript that is docketed. Sealing of a portion of the
sentencing transcript shall not constitute authorization to exclude the public from the
courtroom during any portion of the sentencing, and shall not obviate the need for the
judge to state the reasons for reducing a sentence on the grounds of cooperation or
substantial assistance on the record.
IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED, that if the presiding judge determines that
sealing of a portion of the sentencing transcript is necessary to protect the safety of
the defendant or others, or to avoid disclosure of an ongoing investigation, and that
this need substantially outweighs the public's interest in obtaining an unsealed copy
of the sentencing transcript, the judge shall issue an appropriate sealing order on the
record. The sealing order shall be part of the sealed portion of the sentencing
transcript Thereafter, all unsealed portions of the sentencing transcript shall remain
available to the public. The sealed portion of the sentencing transcript, however, shall
be available only to the United States Probation Office and the United States
Sentencing Commission. If an appeal is filed, the sealed portion of the sentencing
transcript shall also be made available for review by the Court of Appeals, counsel for
the government, and counsel for Defendant. The presiding judge may issue an order
unsealing the sealed transcript for good cause shown.
SO ORDERED.
Dated in the District of Vermont, this ~ay of May, 2014.
United States District Court
AO 72A
(Rev. 8/82)
