New Brunswick Today Challenges Court Gag Order on School Incident

New Brunswick Today, a New Jersey news outlet, is petitioning a state appeals court to overturn a judicial order that restricts its reporting on a May 8 incident at New Brunswick High School. The incident occurred when a 16-year-old student brought an airsoft pistol to school, triggering a lockdown.

New Jersey Superior Court Judge Thomas D. McCloskey issued the restrictive order on July 9, barring the outlet and other journalists from identifying the student or publishing unredacted security camera footage. This ruling followed a lawsuit filed by the New Brunswick Board of Education after the news outlet released leaked footage. That footage contradicted the board's initial assertions that the lockdown had been a routine drill.

Lawyers for the news outlet argue that the judicial order constitutes an unconstitutional prior restraint on the press. They assert that First Amendment protections outweigh the privacy concerns of the student and claim the order effectively grants the government veto power over the press.