Comment on US journalist arrested while covering protest goes on trial

IOWA CITY, Iowa — A journalist went on trial Monday on charges stemming from her coverage of a protest against racial injustice in Des Moines last year, after Iowa prosecutors defied international pressure to drop a rare effort to punish a working reporter. Des Moines Register news reporter Andrea Sahouri, who was pepper-sprayed and jailed while reporting on a clash between protesters and police in May, is charged with failure to disperse and interference with official acts. If convicted on the simple misdemeanor charges, the 25-year-old would be fined hundreds of dollars and have a criminal record.