The arraignments were around 2 am in Troy, just about the far western edge of our coverage area. Photographer Jason was dispatched to get the video. The district justice provided copies of the affidavits filed by police. The work in Troy was finally finished around 4 am.
Here comes issue number one. We transmit video and information via cell phone, and coverage in the western part of Bradford county isn't the greatest. Jason had to high tail it to Towanda, where the service is better. He sent the video back to editor Tim back at home base in Moosic.
Jason also sent back, electronically, the police paperwork, and that leads us to issue number two. Three defendants. Multiple charges. A complicated case. Lengthy paperwork. If that wasn't enough the crime was grisly, gruesome, and downright horrific. We had to find the words to convey exactly what happened, while still conforming to broadcast standards. Morning TV is a different animal. It family time. Parents are getting the kids ready for school. Some aspects of the crime were sexual in nature, and the rest were, literally, bloody awful.
Executive producer Brigid poured over the pages and pages of affidavits, conveying to me what police allege happened. After 43 years of broadcasting (plus knowing the back roads and side streets), I can bang out a script pretty fast. The 4:30 am edition was completed with seconds to spare. I jumped in my newsroom camera chair to deliver the first news of the arrests at the top of the broadcast.
As the morning broadcast progressed, we had a few more minutes to digest what police believe happened, and every report, every half hour, had new facts. This story is an artichoke-- one unsightly layer after another.
I should add, while all of this was happening out in the newsroom, producer Leo was in the control room to make sure the broadcast ran smoothly. Jon and Mindi delivered the introduction to my stories, rolling with the latest changes, and I know the first time they saw some of the copy was when it zipped past on the teleprompter.
It's a cliché, but television, especially morning television, is a team effort. Yes, my face is on the marquee, but it takes a lot of people to get me there.
