FERMANAGH and Omagh District Council have agreed to write to local newspapers in regards to concerns surrounding Caoimhe’s Law.
The proposed law will make it a criminal offence to film, share, or publish images and videos of victims at fatal or critical road crash scenes, especially before families are notified in order to protect dignity and prevent trauma.
At last week’s Council meeting, Chief Executive Alison McCullagh noted a response from the Justice Minister in relation to recent correspondence from the council regarding the law.
It was heard the Minister has welcomed the councils interest in implementing the law.
Chair of the Council Barry McElduff also noted that he had recently met with a local road victims group, accompanied by council official Gregory McMullan.
“I wanted to assure them of the councils ongoing interest in the promotion of Caoimhe’s Law,” said Cllr McElduff who then enquired as to what action had been taken recently in support of the law.
The Chief Executive responded, “We have adopted the motion and wrote to neighbouring councils and relevant legislative bodies in Stormont within the Department of Justice.
“The Justice Minister has indicated the cooperation she received and expects matters to move.”
Concluding, Cllr John Feely suggested writing to local newspapers in order to address what he described as the ‘habit of taking photographs’.
“I’ve noticed a trend that when there are road traffic collisions in the area, the local media have a habit of taking photographs and posting them on social media at an early stage before we know if it’s serious or not, I propose we send letters to the local newspaper regarding this and to encourage them to support the issue.”
The proposal was seconded by Cllr Stephen McCann.
