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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It’s against the law that rocked the First Coast.
Two years after Tristyn Bailey, elderly 13, was once tragically murdered through her classmate, a basis created in her reminiscence has helped change a Florida law.
“This legislation was a result of multiple public records requests that were made to the State Attorney’s Office in St. Johns County relating to the crime scene photos of her death,” stated Matthew Hinson, an lawyer with the Tristyn Bailey Memorial Foundation, who has been operating carefully with Tristyn’s circle of relatives. “This process took several months, but it was finally brought to our attention in January of this year.”
Hinson, who helped draft the law, showed that it was once added to the Rex and Brody Act.
“We were able to push this through, and just last Thursday the governor signed our bill, which protects the release of crime scene photos of any minor child who has been murdered in the state of Florida.”
According to Hinson, Senate Bill 404 is already having an affect.
“It’s significant. We’ve already received one call from a county down south requesting a copy of the bill from the prosecutor’s office. Even though it has yet to be published, the new law is providing support to another family there,” Hinson stated. “Through this act, we will be able to stay Tristyn’s legacy alive.”
Credit: Bailey Family
Tristyn Bailey
The new modification makes it a third-degree legal to unlock {a photograph}, video, or audio recording documenting the killing of a minor with out first acquiring permission from the sufferer’s circle of relatives or the courts.
“We thought what better way to approach this than to make this the first big legislative agenda for the foundation. It was urgent, given the ongoing nature of Tristyn’s case, and we knew we could have a significant impact on families across the state of Florida,” Hinson added. “I sat down and wrote this piece of legislation for the foundation, which we then presented to the Florida Prosecutor’s Association, and they backed it, and from there we just started calling everyone we could in Tallahassee. They were already in session, so we couldn’t just introduce a bill. We had to try to get on to another bill as an amendment.”
Hinson believes this change that got here into impact the second Governor DeSantis signed it’s offering much-needed coverage to the neighborhood.
“There are so many children who are now in high school that were in Tristyn’s class, so many friends who are still in middle school, and the last thing they want is to click on some random person’s Twitter profile or YouTube page, thinking they’re learning something good about Tristyn, and then suddenly they’re coming face-to-face with her crime scene photos. And there’s no benefit to that,” Hinson remarked.
The Tristyn Bailey Memorial Foundation plans to proceed to be an suggest for sufferers, providing self-defense categories, instructing oldsters and children about the risks of social media, and offering scholarships to native youngsters.
The basis is organizing its first annual golfing event at St. Johns Golf and Country Club on November 6, 2023. If you wish to lend a hand sponsor the tournament or play in the event, talk over with tbstrong.org.
