Marathon Bombing Suspect Capture Photos

The State Police Sergeant that took and released those photos of the Marathon bombing suspect's surrender appears to be in serious hot water. So far he has received a one day suspension, and has been relieved from his duties as official photographer, but going forward, he faces a disciplinary hearing, and it appears he may be at risk of being terminated and losing his pension.  Should he have released the photos? Obviously not - it could have a negative effect on the suspect's trial, especially in the death penalty phase. As a general rule, I don't think crime scene photos ought to be published at all, but in this case I think the Rolling Stone cover photo of the suspect was equally offensive. The Sergeant claims his conscience demanded he do what he did to counterpoint the Rolling Stone cover, and to show, as he put it "the real face of terrorism". The State Police are going to want to "save face", but I think he ought to be given the benefit of the doubt, and at least be offered the alternative of retiring at his current pension level rather than being terminated and losing everything.

I have heard no explanation about why they opened fire on the (unarmed, as it turned out) suspect while he was hiding in the boat. The only indication they had that he was even still alive was a FLIR image that showed movement. There was no indication that there was any imminent threat, yet they opened fire anyway. It seems to me that if we're willing to "overlook" that, we ought to give the same benefit of the doubt to the Sergeant. Termination for releasing a couple of photos seems like overkill. Let's give the guy a break.