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No longer recognizable: This edited photo of a suspect comes from the Murrieta police

Photo: AP

Anonymization with a difference: The police in Murrieta, California, released so-called mugshots in which the faces of the suspects were covered with the heads of Lego figures. However, the company now defended itself against its use, as reported by Fox News and the AP news agency, among others.

Murrieta police had been posting photos edited in this way for some time. But the procedure received more attention after an Instagram post from the authority last week. “Why the obscured faces?” the agency wrote on March 18 about a photo that showed five people whose faces were obscured by Lego heads with different facial expressions.

In the post, police referenced a California law that went into effect on January 1st. It further restricts the publication of mugshots on social media by authorities. “The Murrieta Police Department prides itself on transparency with the community, but also respects the rights and protections the law affords everyone, even suspects.”

In the United States, it is common for law enforcement agencies to post photo galleries on social media for “Mugshot Mondays” and “Wanted Wednesdays.” However, experts also point out the negative effects of this approach. For people awaiting trial, mugshots can lead to an assumption of guilt. It also makes it more difficult for those convicted to put the crime behind them after they have served their sentence.

More anonymity for suspects

Under California's new law, law enforcement agencies are now required to remove all mugshots posted on social media - including those of people arrested for violent crimes - within 14 days. There are exceptions, for example, if the person continues to be a fugitive and poses an immediate threat to public safety. California already had restrictions on the publication of mugshots. This is probably why the police in Murrieta have been using the Lego method for a long time.

But in the future she will probably have to think of something new: On March 19, Lego got in touch and "respectfully asked us not to use their intellectual property in our social media content, which we of course understand and will follow," shared a representative of the police. »We are currently exploring other methods to continue publishing our content in a way that is engaging and interesting for our followers.«

bbr/AP