Cooley's remarks strike a nerve

The other night, DA Steve Cooley told some reporters that Robert Blake was guilty as sin and a miserable human being. He also remarked that the jury that acquitted him was "incredibly stupid." Today's LAT runs an editorial titled "A Stupid Remark" that chastizes Cooley, and in the Daily News the jury foreman says "I'm just disgusted."

By the way, an emailer who says he heard Cooley's original remarks writes: "I was at the SPJ meeting when Steve Cooley called the Blake jury stupid. What I think is pea-brained is that whoever first ran with this story not only missed the point, but I believe did a disservice to the public. Cooley discussed how television has interfered with jury expectations and how juries in Los Angeles rarely convict celebrities, something the DA's office is trying to figure out. He also discussed a possible run for state Attorney General, and some reporter (I think it first came from the A.P.) reports that he called the Blake jury stupid. Los Angeles reporters need to stop the bombastic news reporting where-in they take five words out of a possible 1,000 and create a splashy headline. Personally, I think the reporter should be ashamed of himself/herself."