Lawsuit Contends Pinellas County Sheriff's Office Violated Minor Nick Bollea's Privacy Rights as a Florida Juvenile.
TAMPA, Fla. -- Attorneys for 17-year-old minor Nick Bollea (Nick Hogan) today disclosed that they have sued Pinellas County Sheriff's Office for violating Nick's privacy rights guaranteed by Florida law by releasing tapes of private, highly personal phone conversations between Nick and his family, and for allowing TV cameras into jail to film him expressly against his wishes.
The civil lawsuit, filed in Pinellas County Court, contends Nick's privacy rights as a juvenile inmate have been infringed by the Sheriff's Office in numerous ways, including the following:
* Releasing taped conversations of Nick talking to his parents. In doing so, the Sheriff's Office failed to apply to Nick the same standards of privacy that all Florida juvenile inmates are granted by law. While Nick was sentenced as an adult, the unambiguous fact remains that he is still legally a minor until his 18th birthday on July 27.
* Violating Florida statutes on juvenile justice which specify that records of minors, such as the tape recordings, only be disclosed in confidence to such entities as the Department of Corrections, the Parole Commission, the court, law enforcement agents, school superintendents and licensed professionals assessing the treatment of a juvenile.
* Releasing taped inmate calls that are not "public record" as defined by Florida statute.
* Despite Florida laws that make clear that no photographs or TV footage be made of inmates without their permission, allowing on May 27 a TV news crew to videotape Nick and his parents against his wishes during a private visit. This incident occurred after Nick's parents went out of their way to accommodate the Sheriff's Office by visiting their son during off hours because, as celebrities, there was concern their presence might cause a commotion among other inmates.
* Releasing surveillance video of Nick to the media that was supposed to be taken for security purposes, and therefore is not a public record as defined by Florida statutes.
The lawsuit seeks to prevent the Sheriff's Office from further infringing on Nick's privacy as a juvenile inmate by enjoining the Sheriff's Office from releasing tapes of private conversations between Nick and his parents, surveillance videos taken for security purposes and allowing TV cameras to film him unless he expressly grants permission.
Said attorney Morris "Sandy" Weinberg of the of Tampa office of the Zuckerman Spaeder law firm: "Nick only asks that he be treated no differently than the other inmates at the Pinellas County Jail. Instead, the Sheriff's Office has singled him out by the unprecedented release to the media of his personal calls with his family and the intrusion into his family visitations by the media."
Added David Houston of the Law Office of Davis R. Houston in Reno, Nev.: "It's unfortunate that we are required to file a lawsuit against the Sheriff's Office to compel them to follow the law and respect the privacy rights of a juvenile and his family. A judge's order should not be required to stop the Sheriff's Office from putting Nick, his family and their most intimate thoughts on public display."
