Justices Unanimously Bar Release of Photos From Vince Foster Suicide

[LiviaOlivia]

March 31, 2004
By LINDA GREENHOUSE

WASHINGTON, March 30 — The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Tuesday that release of the death-scene photographs of Vincent W. Foster, the Clinton administration's deputy White House counsel who killed himself in 1993, would be an unwarranted invasion of the privacy of Mr. Foster's surviving family members.

The court said the photographs should be shielded from disclosure in a suit brought under the Freedom of Information Act by a California lawyer, Alan J. Favish, who said he doubted the conclusion reached in five separate investigations that Mr. Foster committed suicide. Mr. Favish's "bare suspicion" was an insufficient basis for overcoming the family's privacy rights in light of the scope of the official investigations, the court said, adding that courts should not have to "engage in a state of suspended disbelief with regard to even the most incredible allegations."

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The case therefore presented two legal questions. The first was whether the interest in "personal privacy" protected by the exemption could be invoked not only by the individual whose records were sought, but also by family members. If the answer was yes, the second question was whether release of these photographs would be an unwarranted invasion of the family's privacy. The answer required a balancing of the privacy interest against the public interest in disclosure.

As to the family's privacy concerns, Justice Kennedy said respect for bodies of the dead had a long tradition in culture and law, which Congress presumably understood when it drafted the information act. He said the court was aware of "the right of family members to direct and control disposition of the body of the deceased and to limit attempts to exploit pictures of the deceased family member's remains for public purposes."


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http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/31/politics/31SCOT.html

[rwenos]

1. Vote was 9-0

So it can hardly be called a surprise. Wasn't the guy who wanted the pix a Clinton-hater who regularly has accused the Clintons of "Arkancides"? (If you don't know what "Arkancides" are, run a yahoo or google check. The results will knock your eyes out!)

[mobuto]

2. Well its interesting

Half the Court agrees in a Right to Privacy, the other half wants to gut FOIA. Today everybody gets what they want. Except the paranoiacs.

[VolcanoJen]

3. I'm so disappointed that Alan Favish doesn't show up on FundRace.org.

;-)

[chelsea0011]

4. Don't these people ever give up????

How many thousands of deaths(real deaths) are the Crooked Ones responsible for? There's a story.

And where is the right wing outrage over frivolous lawsuits tying up the courts.

[Moderator]

5. Please discuss here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=452936