[Col. Mustard]

From Associated Press article:


Families of some of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting last December are gathering online signers to a petition asking Connecticut legislators to block the release of gory crime scene photographs and other evidence.

The petition, posted on Change.org, had more than 50,000 signers Monday evening.

It asks state lawmakers “to pass a law that would keep sensitive information, including photos and audio, about this tragic day private and out of the hands of people who’d like to misuse it for political gain.”

A bill backed by Gov. Dannel Malloy, a Democrat, would allow law enforcement officials to withhold from the public evidence from the mass shootings Dec. 14, in which 20 first-graders and six educators died, unless the families give written permission. The bill also would limit disclosure of the death certificates of those killed to immediate family members.

The petition lists the families of eight of the victims as sponsors.

Media groups and advocates of public records laws have voiced concerns that the legislation would harm government transparency and set a bad precedent by exempting specific incidents from freedom of information laws. They say it would encourage other crime victims to ask the state to limit disclosure of records now routinely released to the public and make the Newtown deaths seem more important than the dozens of others in the state each year.

Petitioners Nicole and Ian Hockley, whose son Dylan was killed at the elementary school, said in a statement released by Change.org that they do not want to see the photos of Dylan or hear 911 recordings of the response to the shootings.

“I want to preserve his memory as a beautiful boy -- not as a gun-riddled corpse,” Nicole Hockley said in a posting on the petition website. “I also do not want his brother Jake to see these photos or listen to the execution of his brother, friends and teachers on 911 tapes.”

Tricia Pinto, whose son Jack died in the shootings, said the photos and recordings “serve no purpose to the public but will cause a lifetime of agony to our families, our surviving children and the town.”

The state’s Legislature is scheduled to end its session Wednesday.

The Society of Professional Journalists and other media groups have written to Malloy opposing the legislation.

“If you hide away documents from the public, then the public has no way of knowing whether police … have done their jobs correctly,” said Sonny Albarado, city editor at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and board president of the Society of Professional Journalists.

[banana dick]

good, nobody needs to see that shit. 20 babies were murdered, let them rest in peace and let their families live without the fear of being sent these pictures. because that is all that will happen if they are released, and we all know it.

[shavedkitty]

“If you hide away documents from the public, then the public has no way of knowing whether police … have done their jobs correctly,” said Sonny Albarado, city editor at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and board president of the Society of Professional Journalists." well said

[ldelgadillo]

as much as I love to look at dead bodies, if I were a parent of a dead child, I wouldn't want that picture out there. hippocritical i know, but there it is. these families have suffered enough, releasing these pics would be horrendous for these families.

[Col. Mustard]

And that is exactly why I loved this topic. We want what we want when it works for us, but when it knocks on OUR front door, we have issues with it and look to make exceptions. American kids aren't anything special when you consider every child is a fucking snowflake.

[banana dick]

the parents have every right to block the release of any crime scene photos. sorry dudes, but we have no "right" to see gore. there is also absolutely no reason to release these photos, other than to satisfy a bunch of sick fucks' curiosities. like I said; nobody needs to look at pictures of mutilated children, and the parents' wishes will ALWAYS be more important than your desire to see a dead baby.

releasing the photos does nothing but put the parents at risk of being exposed to them, and that's a fact. there will always be plenty of gore around. stop acting like people are obligated to show it to you, because they're not.

[PrettyHateMachine]

Originally Posted by Col. Mustard ↗

And that is exactly why I loved this topic. We want what we want when it works for us, but when it knocks on OUR front door, we have issues with it and look to make exceptions. American kids aren't anything special when you consider every child is a fucking snowflake.

I agree with you in a way. But, I believe the parents should have the right to choose whether or not pictures of their deceased children can be released. I'm not saying that because the victims were children, but because they should have the right to refuse release of the photos and whatever else relating to the deaths of their children.

On the other hand, the parents that do not want the photos released should not have the right to try and deny other parents who wish to release the photos, as long as the photos other parents wish to release do not have the children of parents who refuse depicted in those photos. I'd imagine that would be rather difficult, unless they can manage to cut those children out of the photos somehow.

[Douan]

Pics or didn't happen ffs. Conspiracy!

[GregK]

I dont even want to see tbh. Funny how the general oppinion on a gore site is actually unwanting. We know the reality of the pictures i suppose. Either way, no thanks.

[GregK]

why would any parent want a picture of their dead baby on the internet? I really doubt thatd be a problem.

Originally Posted by PrettyHateMachine ↗

I agree with you in a way. But, I believe the parents should have the right to choose whether or not pictures of their deceased children can be released. I'm not saying that because the victims were children, but because they should have the right to refuse release of the photos and whatever else relating to the deaths of their children.

On the other hand, the parents that do not want the photos released should not have the right to try and deny other parents who wish to release the photos, as long as the photos other parents wish to release do not have the children of parents who refuse depicted in those photos. I'd imagine that would be rather difficult, unless they can manage to cut those children out of the photos somehow.