Judge blocks release of public records that show bodies of Gene Hackman and wife
Santa Fe-based Judge Matthew Wilson said post-mortem and investigative reports that do not show the couple’s bodies can be released.
A court in the US has blocked the release of any public records that show the bodies of Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa, but said other images and documents can be disclosed.
A representative for the Hackman family estate had urged a New Mexico judge to seal photos, video and documents to protect the family’s privacy.
Santa Fe-based Judge Matthew Wilson had put a temporary hold on the release of records pending Monday’s hearing.
Judge Wilson said anything that does not include images of the couple’s bodies could be released.
The partially mummified remains of Hackman and Ms Arakawa were found in their Santa Fe home on February 26, when maintenance and security workers showed up at the home and alerted police.
Authorities have confirmed Hackman, 95, died of heart disease with complications from Alzheimer’s disease about a week after his wife’s death.
Hackman may have been unaware Ms Arakawa, 65, was dead.
Her cause of death was listed as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which is a rare, rodent-borne disease.
New Mexico’s open records law blocks public access to sensitive images, including depictions of dead bodies.
Experts also say some medical information is not considered public record under the state Inspection of Public Records Act.
Estate representative Julia Peters has emphasised the possibly shocking nature of photographs and video in the investigation and potential for their dissemination by media in the bid to block them from being released.
The Hackman family estate also sought to block the release of post-mortem reports by the Office of the Medical Investigator and death investigation reports by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office.
A lawyer for the estate, Kurt Sommer, argued during Monday’s hearing that the couple took great pains to stay out of the public limelight during their lifetimes and that the right to control the use of their names and likenesses should extend to their estate in death.
The bulk of death investigations by law enforcement and post-mortem reports by medical investigators are typically considered public records under state law in the spirit of ensuring government transparency and accountability.
At the start of Monday’s hearing, Judge Wilson granted a request from media outlets including The Associated Press to intervene.
Authorities unravelled the mysterious circumstances of the couple’s deaths and described their conclusions at a March 7 news conference without releasing most related written and photographic records.
One of the couple’s three dogs, a kelpie mix named Zinna, was also found dead in a crate in a bathroom cupboard near Ms Arakawa.
Two other dogs were found alive.
Susan Madore, a publicist who had worked with the Hackmans for years, gave evidence that the couple relished living in Santa Fe because it afforded them anonymity.
Hackman retired in the early 2000s.
Ms Arakawa had no children, while Hackman is survived by three children from a previous marriage.
Privacy is also likely to play a role as the couple’s estate is settled.
According to probate court documents, Hackman signed an updated will in 2005 leaving his estate to his wife while the will she signed that year directed her estate to him.
With both dying, management of the estate is in Ms Peters’ hands.
A request is pending to appoint a trustee to administer assets in two trusts associated with the estate.
Without trust documents being made public, it is unclear who the beneficiaries are and how the assets will be divided.
Lawyers who specialise in estate planning in New Mexico say it is possible more details could come out if there were any legal disputes over the assets.
Even then, they said, the parties would be likely to ask the court to seal the documents.
