Free Speech vs Privacy Rights

[Tishy]

Two firefighters in Boston were killed in the line of duty in August. The autopsy reports, which are not considered public documents in Massachusettes were leaked to the media and the media published them. The autopsy reports show that one of the firefighters had a blood alcohol level of .27 and the other firefighter killed had traces of cocaine in his system. What is also coming to light is that there may be at least 150 firefighters that have fought substance abuse problems since 2004. This last part is alledged, and not proven at this point.

My question here is this. Should the public be made aware of the problems of a city's civil servants? The firefighters work for the city and the tax payers pay for their salaries. However, does the family have the right for some privacy? And does the family have the right to the $150,000 death benefit that is paid to firefighters who are killed in the line of duty (in the fine print, it does state that it won't be paid out if the firefighter is impaired).

I'm really torn on this issue. I think that the public should be made aware of this, especially if it is a growing problem. But I also have the utmost respect for firefighters and their families and I don't think that they should have to go through additional pain. I would love to hear what others have to say on this issue.

Here is the linkto the website that first found out about this story. It's at whdh.com

BOSTON -- Mayor Thomas Menino called for a review of the city's fire department in the wake of Boston media reports that autopsies of two firefighters killed in the line of duty showed one had more than three times the legal limit of alcohol and a second had traces of cocaine in his system.

Autopsy reports are not public documents in Massachusetts. The media reports cited confidential sources briefed on the autopsies. State and local officials have declined to comment publicly about the content of the autopsy reports.

Menino, asked about the reports, said he was concerned about procedures in the department, and said he's launching an investigation.

"I will order a stem to stern look at the procedures and practices of our fire department in the City of Boston," Menino said.

Firefighters Paul Cahill, 55, of Scituate, and Warren Payne, 53, of Canton died battling a blaze in a one-story restaurant in the city's West Roxbury neighborhood in August.

Investigators said the fire burned for an hour or more inside a drop ceiling where grease had accumulated before turning into a fast-moving inferno.

Payne, a 19-year veteran of the fire department, had two children and Cahill, a 14-year veteran, was a father of three. They were hailed as heroes and their funerals drew firefighters from across the country. They were the first Boston firefighters to die in the line of duty since 1994.

A message left at the Cahill home was not returned on Thursday. A phone number for Payne's home was not listed.

The reports sparked a legal battle when lawyers from a firefighter's union went to court on Wednesday after learning that a local television station was prepared to run a report on the autopsy results.

Suffolk Superior Court Judge Merita Hopkins sided with the union and ordered WHDH-TV Channel 7 not to air details of the autopsies, but that ruling was overturned on Thursday after the station appealed. The Boston Globe and Boston Herald both ran reports on the autopsies, also citing unnamed sources they said were briefed on the autopsies.

The reports said Cahill had registered a blood alcohol level of .27, more than three times the legal limit in Massachusetts, and Payne had traces of cocaine in his system.

During a court hearing on Thursday, lawyers for WHDH-TV argued that the earlier court ruling was an infringement on the station's First Amendment right to free speech.

"You cannot run into a court and prevent the media ... from publishing information it has," said Mike Gass, a lawyer for the station.

Paul Hynes, a lawyer for the union, said the station knew autopsy reports in Massachusetts are not public documents and should not run information obtained from people who saw the autopsies.

"We know that information was not lawfully obtained," he said. "Are we to believe that they are simply going to report the story or put their spin on it?"

Appeals Court Justice Andrew R. Grainger lifted the injunction.

Edward Kelly, president of Boston Firefighters Local 718, demanded a criminal investigation into the leaking of the autopsy results and prosecution of anyone responsible.

"The reckless and illegal release of confidential information has placed an undeserved emotional trauma on the Cahill and the Payne families at a time when the grief and suffering from their loss is ongoing," he said.

"There is one undeniable and indisputable fact. Two Boston firefighters were killed in the line of duty due to a violent building explosion," he added.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health typically conducts an investigation, including looking at toxicology reports, before approving federal death benefits for firefighters -- benefits that could be as much as $150,000 a family.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

[juniorz1]

Free speech, while it can be hurtful, is always more important than privacy.

However, nobody should gossip because it just isn't right.

Good topic Tishy!

[agathi]

i totally agree with you