A bill passed by the House of Representatives in a contested vote on Tuesday would bar police from seeking the public’s help in identifying suspects in most crimes.
House Bill 59 (as amended) has two distinct aspects. The first would bar law-enforcement agencies from releasing or publishing the names and photos of anyone they arrest unless the person is charged with a violent felony and sharing the information is necessary to protect the public’s safety.
In presenting the bill on the House floor, State Rep. Sean Lynn (D-Dover), who practices criminal law in Dover, said that arrestees are innocent until proven guilty and that the publication of their names and images imposes an unjust stigma on them.
“The Dover P-D published every Saturday, Dover Saturday Shoplifters, [which included] the arrest photos of dozens of people who were merely arrested for the misdemeanor offense of shoplifting,” he said. “It subjects these individuals to public ridicule and shame, regardless of the disposition of the crime. If those people were acquitted or the charges were dismissed, the law enforcement agency would never go back and remove those social media posts.”
While there was apparent bipartisan agreement on this part of the bill, the measure’s second aspect drew criticism. It would ban police from sharing the images of wanted suspects with the public unless the alleged crime was a felony offense and the release was deemed “necessary to protect the public’s safety.”
State Rep. Shannon Morris (R-Harrington, Felton) told the chamber that, while he was very supportive of shielding the names and photos of people arrested for misdemeanors, he would be forced to vote against the bill because of its second provision. “We have law enforcement agencies up and down that state that regularly ask for the community’s help to identify a suspect,” he said. “I just think we’re taking away a very important tool [from] law enforcement.”
State Rep. Valarie Jones Giltner (R-Georgetown) took a similar position, noting that the Georgetown Police Department regularly asks for the public’s help in identifying shoplifting suspects, a practice that would be halted if the bill were enacted.
Under Delaware law, shoplifting is a misdemeanor if the total value of the items stolen is less than $1,500.
“My Hispanic community in Georgetown has theft in their grocery stores… [and] they need to be able to tell the Georgetown Police Department, ‘this is who your suspect is, go after him,’” she said. “[Hundreds of dollars] is not small potatoes to the people that own these small grocery stores…This is not an ‘innocent until proven guilty’ [situation]. This is about asking the community to help source and identify a suspect.”
States such as Utah, Louisiana, New York, Washington, and California have laws that limit public access to booking information or restrict its use on social media platforms.
However, there do not appear to be any states currently barring police from issuing photos or videos when seeking a suspect. Generally, law enforcement agencies are empowered to share such material with the public to advance active investigations.
The bill passed without Republican support on a party-line vote of 23 to 11.
The legislation is currently pending action in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
IN PHOTO: State Rep. Valarie Jones Giltner debates House Bill 59 with the bill’s sponsor, State Rep. Sean Lynn, in the House on Tuesday.
