One big problem with releasing too much information, even if it's not critical, is that you put it in the public's mind that things happened a certain way. And that can prejudice a jury pool in a way that influences their decision.
Certain clues that are otherwise innocent can tip off a killer that the investigation is heading their way. We had an incident of that in Boston a couple of years ago where a TV report gave a man time to escape back to Ecuador, where he's unlikely to be extradited.
Possibly the biggest danger though is mob/vigilante action. We had a couple of instances of that during the serial killer investigation here. There was a man's name leaked as a target; somebody decided to inflict justice and beat up on a different guy with the same name. And it turned out the first guy had nothing to do with the case beyond being another customer of some of the murdered women.
Public safety is not as simple as we tend to think it is. Maybe they could have done differently -- but maybe not. It's all second-guessing.
RE: One big problem with releasing too much information, even if it's not critical, is that you put it in the public's mind that things happened a certain way.
carbuff, these same results can also occur due to a lack of transparency by investigators. I think it was fairly obvious as to the initial focus by investigators in the L & L investigation. It was days or weeks before investigators concluded that the girls had even been abducted.. Two months after L & L's abduction, investigators stated that they believed them to still be alive.
Twelve months later, a vague description of a vehicle of interest was released by investigators to the public to BOLO. Too little, too late, due to communication & evidence management issues, imo..
L & L's abduction was very high profile and attracted worldwide ms media & social media coverage. This very valuable resource was squandered due to the silence and initial perceived hypothesis by investigators, imo..
Compare the kidnapping of 16 year old Hannah Anderson, by James Lee DiMaggio, in CA, on Monday of this week.. The investigation was conducted very professionally and proactively. The public was kept very well informed and updated by the San Diego Sheriff's Dept. All resources were utilized by SDSO.
The vehicle was located today, due to an aware citizen's tip, in Cascade, Idaho, approximately 1,000 miles north of San Diego, CA and roughly 400 miles from the Canadian border. Victim Hannah Anderson, and abductor James Lee DiMaggio were witnessed deep in the wilderness by horseback riders.
___________________________________
'This is a very urgent plea for help, complete with adequate information provided by the CA investigative agency to insure success, imo'..
NATIONWIDE AMBER ALERT! SUSPECT CONSIDERED "VERY DANGEROUS", MAY HAVE RIGGED CAR WITH EXPLOSIVES! #AmberAlert for California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Search extends to Mexico and Canada! SHARE!
Amber Alert Issued For 2 Children After Remains Of Mother & Child Found In Suspect’s Burned Home Possibly En Route To #Texas or #Canada
DiMaggio and Anderson are said to have had a close platonic relationship. He is now wanted for murder and arson.
“We need the public’s help in locating these people,” Lt. Glenn Giannantorio said. “We would definitely like to locate the children. We believe that if they are with Mr. DiMaggio, that they in danger.”
The Amber Alert was issued after the children’s grandparents reported them missing.
Hannah is described as having blonde hair and blue eyes. She is 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs about 115 pounds.
Ethan is described as 4 feet 11 inches tall, weighing about 65 pounds with sandy blonde hair.
DiMaggio, 40, is described as a White male with brown hair, 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighing about 150 pounds.
Authorities believe DiMaggio may be driving a four-door, 2013 Blue Nissan Versa with the California license plate number 6WCU986. They believe he may be headed to Texas or Canada.
Anyone who sees DiMaggio or the children should call 911 immediately.
#URGENT #AmberAlert #Emergency #Abducted #California #SanDiego #Imperial #abduction Share this flier right away at
https://www.facebook.com/missingcases/like
MAP - San Diego County:
http://goo.gl/maps/l1Mk7
MAP - Imperial County:
http://goo.gl/maps/FRWNL
MAP - Boulevard, California:
http://goo.gl/maps/U7UWE
SOURCE(s):
http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/AmberExternalFCServlet?act=retAmberCase&amberId=11325 and
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013...ains-of-mother-found-in-suspects-burned-home/