Judge rules Seattle news outlets must give police images, videos of destructive May protest

A judge in Washington state has reportedly ruled that five Seattle news outlets must comply with a subpoena to give authorities unpublished images and videos from May 30 protests.

Superior Judge Nelson Lee in Washington’s King County ruled that the outlets are not protected under the state's shield law that prohibits authorities from accessing reporters’ unpublished materials, according to the Daily Beast.

Police said they wanted to use to the content to identify suspects involved in an alleged arson of police vehicles and the theft of police weapons.

Nelson also ruled that police could use only the images to investigate the arson and gun investigations and not access cellphone photos and videos.