Aurora Limits Police Communication Raising Questions Over Public Safety And Transparency

By Kyla Pearce | The Denver Gazette

Proponents argue arestees have a right to privacy until adjudicated

An Aurora City Council decision to alter social media policies for the police department has raised concerns from press freedom and public safety advocates, who worry that limiting what police can release to the public will impact safety and limit media professionals’ ability to access crime information.

City Council members and local activists who support the policy changes, however, say they are not intended to limit information sharing, but rather to protect due process and limit what they describe as “harmful editorializing” in police communications.

The resolution, which passed Monday with four “no” votes from the city’s conservative lawmakers, would bar Aurora Police Department officials from posting jail booking photographs, often referred to as mug shots, and suspect names on social media and in press releases until a suspect is convicted or pleads guilty. That can often take months, or years.

It aligns the APD’s communication policies and procedures with those of every other city department, meaning all communications are required to go through the city manager’s office before being made public, according to the ordinance language.

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