Journalists arrested during the Republican National Convention breathed a sigh of relief last Friday – local authorities in St. Paul announced they would not prosecute them.

The announcement comes as welcome news for journalists, media organizations and citizens who launched a national public outcry to drop the charges against the arrested journalists. But many questions still remain about what appeared to be a planned attack against journalists and free speech during the RNC.

“We still need answers about why and how journalists got swept up in these arrests in the first place,” said Nancy Doyle Brown from Twin Cities Media Alliance.  “And more than anything else, we need to ensure that this never happens again. We’ll never know how many important stories never got told because their authors were behind bars, not in the streets.”

Nearly two dozen reporters were arrested during the four-day event, including Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and two of her producers, Associated Press reporters, student journalists, and local TV photographers.

Other journalists were pepper-sprayed, and reporters with I-Witness were held at gunpoint during a “pre-emptive” police raid aimed at disrupting protesters. The press release from St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman’s office noted that the city’s attorney will use a “broad definition and verification to identify journalists who were caught up in mass arrests during the convention.”

Some of the most compelling and important reporting from the RNC came from independent journalists outside the Xcel Center. It’s vital that all journalists can operate without fear of intimidation or repression.

“We’re pleased that the St. Paul authorities ultimately acted to uphold the rights of all journalists — including those citizens using blogs, cheap cameras and cell phones to report news as it happens,” said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press, the national media reform organization. “Our task now is to ensure that our press remains free to report on the events, issues and stories that matter to our country, our communities, and our democracy.”

Less than three days after the initial arrests, more than 60,000 people across the country signed on to a letter from Free Press, demanding that Mayor Coleman and local authorities immediately “free all detained journalists and drop all charges against them.” These letters were delivered to St. Paul City Hall the day after the convention following a press conference that included local citizens and many of the journalists who had been arrested earlier in the week.

“The news from St. Paul City Hall is certainly welcome regarding the decision to drop charges against journalists who were arrested and cited during the RNC,” said Mike Bucsko, executive officer of the Minnesota Newspaper Guild, who spoke at the press conference. “However, it is essential the elected officials in St. Paul and Ramsey County examine the circumstances that led to the needless detention and harassment of journalists to ensure this type of indiscriminate behavior on the part of law enforcement does not happen again.”