Activist Couple Question Ethics of TV Reporter in On-Camera Arrest

A local activist couple have raised questions about the ethics of a television reporter who arranged an on-camera arrest of a man wanted for a parole violation after luring him with a request for an interview about homeless issues.

Logan Heights activists Al and Denise Ducheny said that Channel 39 reporter Paul Bloom, who reports a regular “Crime Watch” segment for the station, lied about his intentions when he requested an interview with William Hammond, president of the local Coalition for the Homeless and an active lobbyist for the homeless. The Duchenys said that Bloom called Hammond, 30, who worked out of their office, and requested an interview about his work for the homeless.

Bloom asked a few questions about homeless issues, said Al Ducheny, but quickly turned the interview to the issue of Hammond’s parole violation. Moments later, “a whole bunch of cops” and a parole officer descended on Hammond and handcuffed him, Ducheny said.

Saw an Opportunity

Bloom said that, as a journalist, he saw “an opportunity to go interview a parole violator and, as a citizen, I notified his parole officer” and police. Saying he saw nothing unethical about the arrest, Bloom added that he was “acting as an advocate of law and order” when he arranged for the arrest of Hammond on Feb. 3. Bloom reports regularly on crime issues dealing with combating crime and criminals.

Parole agent Gary Akin said Hammond was on parole for a 1985 conviction on possession of marijuana for sale. Akin said Hammond was paroled Feb. 27, 1986, and sent back to prison July 15, 1987, for breaking his parole. He was paroled again Dec. 11, 1987, and had not reported to his parole officer in several months, Akin said.

The events leading to Hammond’s arrest began “a few weeks ago,” Bloom said, when police saw him “on TV or somewhere in a shot of some homeless demonstration.” He said police alerted him to the fact that Hammond was a parole violator.

KNSD News Director Nancy Bauer approved the scheme, Bloom said, after much debate among station officials. Bauer failed to return a reporter’s phone calls.

Channel 39 received a bomb threat shortly before its 5 p.m. news broadcast Friday, with a caller saying a device had been placed in the studio as retribution for Bloom’s report. San Diego police were called but nothing was found.

Bloom called Hammond “a dangerous criminal with a fairly long criminal record of violent crimes.” According to Bloom, Hammond had been arrested on two previous occasions with arms in his possession. Akin answered “No comment” when asked if he agreed that Hammond was a dangerous felon.

Makes No Apology

Bloom, a former Channel 39 anchorman, made no apology for arranging Hammond’s arrest.

“I have really good journalistic ethics. I believe in the truth and telling the truth. The truth is that this man is a wanted criminal who was supposed to be back in jail and wasn’t,” Bloom said. “ . . . I don’t believe that journalistic ethics precludes me from setting up an interview with a wanted felon and then letting the police know. . . . I called his parole officer and told him I was going to interview the guy at 1 p.m. I know what you’re thinking, ‘Is this proper reporter involvement?’ You folks in the print media tend to report more about us than we do about you.”

Denise Ducheny argued that Bloom breached all journalistic ethics by arranging Hammond’s arrest.

“You expect to have a certain degree of confidence in a reporter. You don’t expect a reporter to put you in a compromising position, much less bring a bunch of cops with him when he interviews you,” Ducheny said.

Some of Bloom’s Channel 39 colleagues who requested anonymity said they had ethical problems with the incident involving Hammond.

“The feeling around here is that he acted as an agent of the police and was doing their dirty work for them. . . . He seems to have blurred the distinction between reporting on the cops and playing cop,” one reporter said.

Reacted Angrily

Bloom reacted angrily to the charge.

“I am not acting as an advocate of the police,” he said. “I am acting as an advocate for law and order. I am an advocate for the public getting involved. I am against people sitting on their duffs, letting the police do all the work.”

Hammond, who is in County Jail, could not be reached for comment. He had not reported to his parole agent since April and a warrant was issued for his arrest in August. Besides parole violation, Hammond has been charged with having access to a firearm and possessing a knife with a blade longer than 2 inches.

Bloom said he had notified the parole agent that Ducheny, who has a license to carry a concealed weapon, kept a handgun in a desk drawer in the same office where Hammond worked as president of the homeless coalition. That led to the charge against Hammond that he had access to a firearm.