Phoenix Family Sues Wal-Mart Over Nude Photo Incident

Beware. Wal-Mart photo technicians are censors, and their photo departments are merely extensions of local police, because any photos taken there for development are screened under their secret "unsuitable print policy".

That's what happened to a Phoenix couple who took their vacation photos to the big box retailer, and since some of the images showed their three daughters in the bathtub, naked, the kiddie porn flag was raised.

In short, the police were called, and the three children were separated, placed in foster care, and had their genitals examined for signs of sexual abuse.

Although parents Lisa and A. J. Demaree were completely cleared, they have filed suit against Wal-Mart, the Arizona Attorney General and the city of Peoria, seeking punitive damages for "defamation and outrage".

According to the complaint against the state, Wal-Mart reported the photos to the Peoria Police Department, then Arizona Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Hunter "published defamatory remarks to more than 35 family members and friends of plaintiffs, falsely stating that plaintiffs Lisa and A.J. Demaree 'sexually abused' their children."

A Peoria police detective named Krause "made false and defamatory statements to agents and employees of the defendants, medical providers, and others, including, but not limited to, accusations that plaintiffs had sexually abused their children, sexually exploited their children, took pornographic photos of their children, and/or that said parents were engaged in illegal actions by taking bath and play time photos of their children," according to the complaint against the state.

Another stinging example of how fucked-up we are as a society when it comes to matters of the human body. Good luck to these folks, I hope they get a bundle of cash for this completely idiotic mess.

An opinion column on the Demarees is here.