Common Pleas Court Judge Todd A. Hoover ordered the hearing closed to the public in spite of objections raised by attorneys for DeNaples that it should be conducted in open court.

"This is a very serious matter, and Judge Hoover is proceeding accordingly," said attorney William C. Costopoulos, a member of the DeNaples defense team, during a break.

Attorneys for DeNaples and a codefendant allege that secrecy rules were violated, and as proof offer scores of newspaper stories about the cases. The articles cite unnamed sources who spoke about grand jury matters on condition of anonymity.

Hoover has been ordered by the Supreme Court to determine whether a special prosecutor should be appointed.

Lawyers for DeNaples have issued subpoenas for 15 reporters from six news organizations - including 10 from The Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News - who were called to testify about their sources.

Lawyers for the news organizations have asked the judge to throw out all the subpoenas for journalists, saying that the state's shield law protects them from having to identify confidential sources.

Hoover ruled last week that the reporters do not have to produce any documents related to what they wrote sought under the subpoena. He is still weighing whether the reporters have to appear to give testimony.

"It's an open issue," said lawyer Gayle Sproul, who represents the Associated Press and the Allentown Morning Call.

DeNaples, a Scranton businessman who owns the Mount Airy Casino Resort, was charged with perjury in late January for allegedly lying to state gaming regulators about his alleged ties to crime figures.

The Rev. Joseph Sica, a Catholic priest who is a friend of DeNaples', was charged with perjury for allegedly lying to the grand jury about ties to the late Russell Bufalino, former head of the Northeastern Pennsylvania crime family.

Both have pleaded not guilty.

The charges were filed after a Dauphin County grand jury heard evidence presented by county prosecutors.

As the hearing convened at the Dauphin County Courthouse yesterday, a number of deputy sheriffs and other law enforcement personnel were called to testify before Hoover.

Michael S. Schwoyer, former deputy chief counsel for the Bureau of Investigations and Enforcement, and David Kwait, director of the Bureau of Investigations and Enforcement, also appeared for a short time before the judge.

"He answered every question that was put to him," Robert A. Graci, a lawyer for both men, said as Schwoyer left the courthouse. He declined to comment further about either witness because the judge had ordered the hearing closed.

"I think it would be inappropriate for me to comment about what went on in a closed-door meeting," said Graci.

The shield law states that no reporter "shall be required to disclose the source of any information procured or obtained by such person, in any legal proceeding, trial or investigation before any government unit."

The law firm of Sprague & Sprague, which represents DeNaples, also has been trying to find the identity of confidential sources for a former Scranton Times reporter who wrote about grand jury testimony of two former Lackawanna County commissioners in an unrelated matter.

The state Superior Court ruled in that case that the shield law protects reporters in cases involving alleged grand jury leaks. The state Supreme Court in April heard arguments in an appeal of that case, which has not yet been decided.

Yesterday, Chief Justice Ronald Castille said at a monthly luncheon of the Pennsylvania Press Club in Harrisburg that he had long been a supporter of the state shield law.

"We actually have a strong reporter shield law in Pennsylvania, and I can say I've always been for it," said Castille, who said he could not comment on any matters before the high court.