According to a post on The Root, Debra Harrell, the South Carolina woman who was arrested after she left her daughter unattended at a park, has had her interrogation video and personal information posted by Augusta, Georgia ABC affiliate WJBF.
The station reportedly posted an unedited video of a police interview with Harrell, in which her personal information was revealed, including her address, phone number, and Social Security number:
The original posting of the video was an unedited version that included Harrell’s personal information, Jezebel reports. The video has since been redacted, but Harrell’s information was public for at least an hour.
Harrell’s attorney tells iMediaEthics they intend to sue the station:
“We’re filing suit. The crux of the lawsuit was improper public disclosure of private confidential infomation,” Harrell’s lawyer Robert Phillips told iMediaEthics by phone just now.
Harrell’s lawyer said the video came from a police interrogation of Harrell where she had to provide the personal information.
WJBF then aired the video without apparently editing out the information. The timestamp for the story and video, “Only On 6: Mother Explains Why She Left Daughter in Park,” shows it was originally posted AUg. 11 at 4:33 PM but updated at 5:35 PM. It was posted by Deon Guillory, WJBF’s GMA Weekend Anchor/Reporter, according to the byline.