Joke press release sparks human rights complaint
A police department in Canada mistakenly sent the media a fake press release about a murder investigation involving the ‘Fresh Mouth Killer.’ The victim’s family claimed it was racist and filed a human rights complaint. Wait until you read the cops’ reaction.
Cops in this town are investigating the murder of Adam Yellowhead, who was found slain in an area where people known to get drunk on mouthwash gather.
Amid the investigation, a detective wrote a fake press release on Sept. 1 intended for his colleagues, but he mistakenly sent it to reporters. The subject line read: “Fresh Mouth Killer Captured!!” According to the Toronto Star, the “half-written email … included a misspelled joke about ‘Scope'” (spelled “Scpoe”).
It referenced the slaying of Yellowhead and reportedly contained racist overtones.
Seconds after the release went out, police sent a follow-up retracting it.
“It’s obviously a very unfortunate situation that doesn’t bode well for us, and certainly our apologies [go] to the victim,” Police Chief J.P. Levesque told CBC on Sept. 4.
The victim’s family, as well as members of Yellowhead’s Nishnawbe Aski Nation tribe, were understandably upset, and they lodged a complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.
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