Documents filed in the attempted murder case against the parents accused of starving their 12-year-old daughter will remain open to the public, but the lawyers will be prohibited from making public statements about the case outside the courtroom.

Circuit Judge Rhonda Nishimura yesterday denied a request by attorneys for parents Denise and Melvin Wright Jr. to seal the documents, but agreed with them and issued a gag order prohibiting out-of-court statements about the case.

The Wrights are charged with attempted murder of their daughter, who was found earlier this year weighing 50 pounds, about 30 pounds less than normal. The public's outrage over the case also was fueled by the disclosure that the Wrights had been charged in 2000 with a misdemeanor of endangering the girl's welfare, but that the girl was returned from foster care to the parents.

Debra Loy, a deputy public defender representing the mother, argued for the sealing and the gag order. She said the media coverage has been laced with inaccuracies and exaggerations that jeopardize the parents' right to an impartial jury for a fair trial.

She also cited remarks made outside of court by city Deputy Prosecutor Maurice Arrisgado that the case represented the "most heinous, egregious disregard of human life" and there is "no explanation why this child was lost for so long."

Lane Takahashi, the father's court-appointed lawyer, joined in Loy's arguments.

Arrisgado defended his remarks, saying he wanted to alert the public there might be other children in a similar plight.

Jeffrey Portnoy, who represented The Honolulu Advertiser, did not oppose the request for a gag order, which he said has been recognized by the courts as long as it doesn't prevent a newspaper from publishing information it gathered.

But he said the Wrights' request for a "blanket" sealing of documents to prevent the public from viewing documents filed in the public courthouse is unconstitutional.

Portnoy said he's never heard of a jury not being selected for a case here because of the media coverage.

Loy suggested that the documents filed in court first be reviewed by the judge to determine if they should be made public.

Arrisgado said he did not have a position on the defense request, but said, "It sounds like a logistical nightmare."

Nishimura ruled that the request is "too broad at this juncture."

The other lawyers declined to comment later, but Portnoy said Nishimura rendered "the absolute correct decision."

"This is an important case, but the principle goes beyond the case," he said. "It goes to the right of the media and the public under the First Amendment to see what's going on in their courtrooms, not just what goes on live, but what's filed."

In a separate court case, state attorneys have asked Family Court District Judge Bode Uale to reconsider his ruling prohibiting the state Department of Human Services from releasing records related to the 2000 case.

Lillian Koller, the department director, had planned to release medical records, police reports and social worker evaluations, but Uale granted a request for the order by the child's guardian. The judge said the release would be potentially harmful to the girl and would not be in her best interests.

The Wrights are scheduled to go on trial in the attempted murder case next year.

Reach Ken Kobayashi at kkobayashi@honoluluadvertiser.com.