Toy company makes request after altered images – which hide suspects’ identities in line with state law – go viral

Toy company makes request after altered images – which hide suspects’ identities in line with state law – go viral

A southern California police department has been handcuffed by Lego after the toy company asked the agency to stop adding Lego heads to cover the faces of suspects in images it shares on social media.

The Murrieta police department has been using Lego heads and emojis to cover people’s faces in posts on social sites since at least early 2023. But the altered photos went viral last week after the department posted a statement about its policy, prompting several news articles and, later, the request from Lego.

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Murrieta police had an internal discussion about posting photos of arrestees in general and announced a new department policy on Instagram in January 2023. The community had requested more of their “weekly roundup” posts, so the department said it started using the Lego heads and emojis to comply with the law while still engaging with Murrieta residents.

  • octopus_ink@lemmy.mlEnglish
    33·
    8 months ago

    Cops don’t even see the problem.

    “We are currently exploring other methods to continue publishing our content in a way that is engaging and interesting to our followers,” Durrant wrote, declining further comment.

      • dalekcaan@lemm.ee
        6·
        8 months ago

        Please bear with us while we make our descent into a dystopian hellscape more marketable and boost Twitter engagement. Don’t forget to smash that like button 👍

    • AbidanYre@lemmy.worldEnglish
      12·
      8 months ago

      You’re a police department, not a fucking Instagram model.

      * Not directed at you, octopus.