By Kathleen Flynn
As a Victim’s Right Advocate and a mediator who has worked with both victims and offenders, I fervently oppose opening Police records to the press and the public for a number of reasons. If the City were to cave in and enact said policy, who would oversee and hold the press accountable for what they print? The answer, absolutely no one! Clearly the media has a problem with grasping the difference between facts vs. fiction, personal bias vs. truth, and sensationalism vs. true journalism. Pick up a paper, or turn on the TV or radio, and read about the woman who murdered her child, ate her brain, tore her face off, and then tried to kill herself. I rest my case.
If there were an open policy for the press to read Police records, and you were a rape victim or if your neighbor molested your child the press would be allowed to read every detail of your assault, or your child’s molestation. You would be re-victimized, and forced to relive that horror every day thanks to sensationalistic reporting.
How many victims of rape or any other victim of violent crime do you think would come forward knowing that their right to privacy is going to be violated by prying eyes? Rape and violent crimes are already grossly under-reported as it is, and this type of “sunshine” isn’t going to benefit a single victim I know or have worked with.
What about the rights of someone who has been falsely accused of a crime, or the families of offenders who suffer hate crimes due to press coverage of the case? What about groups like the ACLU, the NAACP, and others who are lying in wait to sue the Police Department or the City over something they think should have been handled differently? None of these groups are trained or skilled in Police work, policies, or procedures, nor were they at the scene of the crime, nor were they sitting in on interviews of witnesses or offenders yet they would be allowed to make judgments on practices they have no expertise in.
While these are just some of the concerns I have on this topic, let me leave you with this to ponder: How much easier would we be making it on child molesters, rapists, robbers, or gang members to study the way Police investigations are handled so that they could cover their tracks better, or figure out exactly who provided the Police with information on apprehending them so they could take their revenge?
Kathleen Flynn is a professional mediator and community activist.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
Great Article, Kathleen. I have to agree - to open police records would be to expose victims to the press, to offenders who would do them harm, and to the world at a time when they need to be protected. To open police records would be to re-victimize victims, and that is not ok.
ReplyDeleteKathleen,
ReplyDeleteGood story. You are right about the press. They always exaggerate or out right lie just to sell their paper or to get you to listen to their radio or TV station. Some of my favorite headlines are, "Michael Jackson was found dead and his nose was missing, or Elvis found dead in his bathroom while on the toilet, or statistics prove SJPD is racially profiling." It is all a bunch of BS. I don’t want to hear the gory details or particulars that only make me want to puke.
And yeah I do think thugs would walk into Police stations to read records just to get a leg up on how to rob, rape, or kill us better. Can't wait to hear what Raj and his zombie followers are going to post on here about this. Let the crying about criminal's rights begin. I guess they think paying off their Queen Attard’s unpaid loans in excess of 200K for her “condo” is okay too.
The real problem is that this city has put both the Merc and the Metro on The Sunshine taskforce. What a joke! Neither has the community interest involved. They just want to sell papers. One wants to sell you dity papers, but the don't care about any body but themselves. Kathleen thank you for remembering the victims.After the Merc writes about the crime they could'nt care about the victims. Just want to expliot them.
ReplyDeleteKathleen,
ReplyDeleteGreat article. I agree if the police department is forced to publish police reports victim's of violent crime will be victimized twice, increasing the odds that they may never be able to psychologically recover from their experience. Unfortunately, the Murkey news and all media truly do not care about victims and law abidding citizens. This is why I encourage Bay area residents to stop buying the Murkey news so that it can meet its destiny of going out of business.
Kathleen, keep up the good work.
SeeingRed
what about the gang cases? I know from experince that the greatest fear victims/witnesses have is coming forward and providing informaiton. There is a misconception that the *gangsters* will "get them". The release of info would be *another* hurdle to have the community help law enforcment to solve *violent* crimes.
ReplyDeleteAnother issue I have that not has been addressed is who will be held accountable when (only a matter of time) a victim or witness(s) are intimidated? What re-course will the victims have?
-none-
Public Records precludes sex crimes and those involving juveniles in the first place. As for the other "cases" such as gang offenses...those cases where investigations maybe be hampered do not have to be released, however the burden is on law enforcement to prove why release is a problem...I don't like the idea either, until someone truly stands up to those who are "nosy" then they will continue to push the police for these reports. The media has always tried to obtain more info by any means so the PIOs and Records/Communications personnel have their work cut out for them.
ReplyDeleteI believe that any case that goes to court for trial, except juvenile cases, is subject to public record.
ReplyDeleteCases which go to court and adjudicated are public record. Records not pursued by the Santa Clara County District Attorney are not public and may not be released. Anyone can request them under PRA, however all you receive is a synopsis and not a redacted copy of the report. Any report turned over for prosecution must be redacted before it becomes public record. This affords "victims" the right to be anonymous.
ReplyDelete