It is fitting, then, that my first entry to the Wall of Shame is none other than-a Wall of Shame! Apparently our friends in Nassau County decided the humiliation of being arrested, booked, spending the night in jail and then going through the criminal justice system was not good enough to deter the would-be criminals of their fine county. (Thanks to How Appealing for the story). In the name of “deterrence,” these law-breakers would also have their mugshots and criminal charges posted online for the world to see.
How ironic that one of these alleged “law-breakers” actually knows their Constitution better than the fine folks at the Nassau District Attorney’s Office. The arrestee, let’s call her “Jane,” was picked up for a DWI. (Her name is already all over the web, the least I can do is not contribute to the further destruction of her personal life). Her picture was plastered online, but she sued Nassau County to take down her photo and won. The New York State Supreme Court ordered the County to remove the picture, correctly pointing out that posting the mugshots and charges of innocent people violates due process, among other things.
Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi insists he is in the right and the pictures are necessary to deter drunk driving. He will appeal the ruling, and in the meantime only post pictures of those actually convicted. (Which is another topic altogether.) Unfortunately, the pictures are still there (or they were there when this blog was originally posted – they have since been taken down) for the world to see thanks to the fine folks at Newsday.com, who in their pursuit of the highest echelon of journalistic integrity have decided the public deserves its legal peep-show. (They want to make super-extra sure you know that everyone is innocent until proven guilty though! Just look at the fine print!)