The Connecticut legislative panel, appointed to examine restrictions on access to records in the wake of the Sandy Hook school shooting, voted 14-3 to recommend "setting up a new system that will allow the public, including members of the media, to privately inspect [crime photos, 911 audio tapes and other information from homicides], also including video and internal police communications from a homicide. They would then go through a process to obtain actual copies, ultimately having to prove there's a strong public interest in the information," the Associated Press reports. It is not unknown if Connecticut legislators will adopt the recommendation.
The panel would shift the burden onto the media or other members of the public requesting the information.
The taskforce also recommended that "the identity of minors who witness a crime of violence, sexual offense or drug offense should not be disclosed," the AP reports.
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