Every week, the Paso Robles Press publishes the “Red Light Roundup,” an exhaustive list naming every person arrested during the prior week along with the particular crime that led to the arrest. Although the feature states that suspects are innocent until proven guilty (albeit in very small print), that disclaimer does not undo the reputational harm caused when a person’s name appears beside words such as DUI, theft, drug possession, or domestic violence—especially when the final disposition of their case is “not guilty.”
An arrest is an accusation, not a finding of guilt. Yet the accusation receives publication while the outcome receives none. Charges may be dismissed, reduced, rejected by prosecutors, or resolved by an acquittal. When that happens, it would stand to reason that every effort would be made to announce the final verdict. I can think of no reasonable argument to the contrary.
I offer two solutions to this problem. One potential solution might include adopting a new policy of reporting only final case dispositions. With this option, the words “innocent until proven guilty” can be removed as well. If this doesn’t satisfy our eagerness to embarrass fellow citizens, then consider listing arrests but include a separate section that lists the final disposition. I cannot imagine the proponents of the current format taking issue with this option, as it will give them a double dose of schadenfreude—well, at least for those cases ending in an actual conviction.
Public records may be legally available, but availability alone does not make their selective publication responsible journalism. If an accusation is considered important enough to print, its resolution carries even more importance. Fair reporting requires more than a disclaimer; it requires completing the record.
Ryan-Paul Stiner
Paso Robles
This article appears in Nov 12-19, 2026.
