Senate measure blocks access to photos, videos of mass killings

The public would be blocked from accessing photos, video or audio involving the killing of a victim of mass violence, under a measure advancing in the Florida Senate.

The Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee on Tuesday backed a proposal (SB 186) that would create a public records exemption for records related to the death of an individual in incidents in which three or more people, not including the killer, are slain in an intentional act of violence.

“In the age of the internet there is potential for commercialization of these photographic and video products,” Sen. Tom Lee, a Thonotosassa Republican who sponsored the bill, said. “There is also some law enforcement that is concerned about these being used as recruiting tools and training tools for what was done right and not done right.”

The First Amendment Foundation has expressed opposition to the bill.

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