An intense debate is taking place within the Advertiser newsroom over whether to name the four teenagers involved in a notorious incident in Lanikai on Friday night.
Using different sources, two reporters confirmed the names of the four male youths, members of the Saint Louis School football team. However, we have chosen — at least for now — not to publish those names.
The two main reasons for that decision are:
1. They are all 17, and therefore still considered juveniles by the courts;
2. Their alleged crime was a misdemeanor.
Generally, our policy is not to name juveniles involved in crimes unless it is an especially serious crime. The logic is that just as the courts treat juveniles differently than adults, so should a newspaper. The public scrutiny and shame that comes with being linked to a crime should generally be reserved for adults.
The story has been a Page One story because of the main player, Gerard Jervis, a former Bishop Estate trustee. If an ordinary person had chased some kids who had egged his house and there had been a car crash, the story would probably ended up on B1, or maybe as a brief on Page B3. And the community would probably have passed quickly over the story.
But, Jervis was involved and this is an Page One story. And it has touched a raw nerve in the community, especially among people sick and tired of vandalism and other petty crime that usually goes unpunished. See the comments on our online forum attached to today's story.
Many people in the newsroom want the names published. Their arguments include:
1. The four are 17-year-olds, and though technically juveniles, they are young men and therefore responsible for their actions.
2. Among them are prominent members of the Saint Louis football team, supposedly role models for younger boys. One of them was a state all-star recruited by the University of Hawai’i Warriors. The media and the wider community treat football players as celebrities and their accomplishments are applauded — especially those players who are Division 1-A college recruits. Therefore, their misdeeds should also be reported .
3. Other mainstream media have reported the name of at least one of the boys, the UH recruit. Besides, in the 24/7 online world, the names are probably circulating on various Web sites by now.
4. By identifying them as Saint Louis football players, but not naming them, we place all members of the team under a cloud.
The more aggressive media environment that we all live in now means that organizations that withhold these names know they might be scooped by others with less restraint. Certainly, the Advertiser reporter who worked hard to get the names doesn't like having his information cut from the story.
We will continue to report the story, so I welcome your thoughts on this issue.