EMT Posts Murder Victim Photo on Facebook, Gets Fired
On the list of stupid things to post to Facebook, photos from a murder scene have to be right up there at the top. Apparently, this never occurred to Mark Musarella, a now-former emergency medical technician (EMT) at Richmond University Medical Center in Staten Island, New York.
While on EMT duty on March 30, the 46-year-old retired police officer was called to a murder in the West Brighton area of New York's forgotten borough. According to Fire Chief, while he was on the scene, he snapped a few pics of the 26-year-old victim, Caroline Wimmer, lying dead on the floor of her apartment with the cord of a hairdryer wrapped around her throat. For some inexplicable reason, Musarella turned right around and posted the images on his Facebook page -- as expected, he was swiftly fired by the hospital and the NYPD was notified.
What's worse, one source told the Staten Island Advance that Musarella may not have even learned his lesson: Although the murder scene picture has been taken down, someone with access to his profile told the newspaper that Musarella's Facebook page still had a photo from a car crash he may have responded to.
If you have to be told that posting photos of a murder scene is inappropriate, then something is clearly wrong. [From: SI Live, via: Fire Chief]
Facebook Crime and Punishment
Blackmail
Sending any personal info or incriminating pictures to someone on Facebook is a huge mistake for many reasons. One of the worst possible outcomes is getting blackmailed for money, sex, or, well, anything these sickos dream up. Really, whether they're using a fake profile or not, it's a horrible idea. Read up on the story of an 18-year-old who blackmailed 31 male classmates after he posed as a girl and asked for nude pictures. That's lesson enough.
Impostors
Sure, it can be harmless to impersonate a celeb online or create a fake profile for a movie character. But seriously, there's a definite line you shouldn't cross when pretending to be someone else and it can lead to dire consequences for you. Maybe it's not as extreme as the Moroccan man who was jailed for 43 days after creating a fake Facebook profile of a prince, but you never know. Just steer clear of it.
Self-Incrimination
Do we really have to explain this? Just look up the shoplifter who posed with her stolen merchandise, the many photos of drunk underage teens, and, most recently, the album featuring a couple who killed and ate an endangered iguana in the Bahamas.
Suicide
Social networking sites has been blamed for a lot of things, fairly and unfairly, but in our opinion, the worst offense has been their indirect involvement in suicides. Obviously, there are a lot of factors responsible in each case, but there does seem to be links between social networking and a rash of suicides, and obviously tehre's the case tragic of Megan Meier, who killed herself after a classmate's mom impersonated a teen boy and harassed her over Myspace.
Murder
We've reported on numerous incidents of people getting in trouble because of their online behavior. Now, people are becoming victims because of what they're doing on the Web too. In England, a man was convicted of murdering his estranged wife after she changed her relationship status to "single." So, be careful of who can see your profile and what you're doing, no matter how harmless it seems.
Nigerian Scammers
Oh, you thought this only happened via poorly worded emails, right? WRONG. Once people got wise to their old ways, these con men are turning to social networking sites for new targets. This time, they're hacking into people's accounts and impersonating them to ask for money, usually with some weird sob story. You can check out a transcript of one of these conversations here.
Cooperation
Even if the law isn't on a case, a victim, his friends, or empathetic strangers might be. Since it's easy to get word out for anything online, people are using blogs, forums, and social networking sites to help track down criminals. In one such case, a vehicle thief was tracked down by a bunch of anonymous car enthusiasts after the victim posted his story on a forum. In the end, they identified the guy through his Facebook profile.
Self-Incrimination
Do we really have to explain this? Just look up the shoplifter who posed with her stolen merchandise, the many photos of drunk underage teens, and, most recently, the album featuring a couple who killed and ate an endangered iguana in the Bahamas.
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Reader Comments (Page 2 of 5)
bobpell said 8:01PM on 5-21-2009
No, but the family CAN and will.
yp3ca said 3:19PM on 5-22-2009
krboy67, you strike me as a very intelligent individual...
dunnrh46 said 3:18PM on 5-21-2009
0pps!! my bad!
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andy said 3:59PM on 5-21-2009
What do you expect - he's some white trash from Staten Island.
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Patty said 4:06PM on 5-21-2009
Shutter_Bug you said it perfectly!!!!!!!!! Not much left to say after "Idiot" lol
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James said 4:07PM on 5-21-2009
as a flight paramedic i can only say this......the EMS industry is mistreated underpaid and has a bad image most of the time. This is all we need is some ignorant unethical moron posting pictures like this to really kill everything our industry does. i hope they strip his license and file charges on him for privacy law violation.
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David Brown said 8:22PM on 5-21-2009
They are looked down upon because of a few arrogant ones. Emergency Medical Technition and Emergency Medical Services needs to be spelled out no more arrogant initials and for god sakes its an ambulance stop trying to be political correct. Stop passing level one trauma centers to take that trauma code 6 more minutes to your level 2 base hospital. Seconds still count run not walk. Some act like they are going to lunch on an emergency the cool sunglasses have got to go (CHIPS is not on TV anymore) Pretend every patient is someone you care about. ( every homeless soul was once a child) would you abuse them then. Stop stagging on every call grandma had a little sip of wine. Use your head you not a boyscout troop. Put spotlights back on ambulances for god sakes. Stop spelling ambulance baclwords on the hood its stupid most pull over for the siren not the spelling on the hood. There are good Paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicins out there without the attitude pay them better and respect will follow. Fire the paratrooper wannabies with the I am in charge ego/
Mike F said 4:28PM on 5-21-2009
I guess its ok for porn to be on facebook. Or nude girls. All I can say is you SOCCOR moms and dads need to let your BRATS see the REAL world. Not the phony one you hid them in.I think the EMT deserves credit. If I owned an ambulance company he would have a job right now.
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hthwdwmgm13 said 5:34PM on 5-21-2009
If you had an ambulance company, and gave him a job you wouldn't have an ambulance company much longer since his actions were against federal HIPAA law.
Lynne said 4:32PM on 5-21-2009
Was he forced into an early out from PD, it sounds like the guy has some issues and not from to many crime or accident scenes!
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Lita said 4:41PM on 5-21-2009
Cretins like this feed into the most base among us, and far too many of us go right along--the leaking of celebrity medical reports to the likes of The Enquirer, et al, which we snatch up at the checkstand; our need to hear the actual 9-1-1 tapes (why have a transcript when the pain and anguish of the caller are so much more fun?). What has happened to us when we can't put ourselves in the place of the victim? Or the family and loved ones and how these things must effect them? Would we want someone to do this to someone we care about? Pictures of this creep and others like him should be posted everywhere. And their existence should be made a living hell.
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Raejean French said 4:48PM on 5-21-2009
Disgusting, inhuman, unconscionable. The man should be criminally prosecuted by his former employer for having abrogated his official code of ethics, and sued by the victim's family. Sick, sick, sick.
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pamelatida said 7:40PM on 5-21-2009
The victim can haunt him and haunting is very effective
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EDDIE said 5:40PM on 5-21-2009
This ---king idiot needs the crap beat out of him.....WAIT....I'll do it
where's the joker lives?
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Lorin said 5:48PM on 5-21-2009
what a complete idiot....moron...insensitive...thoughtless...what else ?? you just have to wonder about people like that. if this gets them excited and they enjoy the pictures....what else do they enjoy??
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Chuck said 5:51PM on 5-21-2009
Another public worker impersonating a professional.
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gettingstoned said 5:57PM on 5-21-2009
WHAT A A$$HOLE THIS IDIOT IS HAVE SOMETHING BAD TO HIM
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Paris want to be !! said 6:19PM on 5-21-2009
WHAT A PUNK !!!!!
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Zero said 6:22PM on 5-21-2009
Some creeps cant just buy a dirty mag & spank their monkey, they have to be weird.
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wongtpa said 6:24PM on 5-21-2009
He msut be an Obama democrat! Dumb!
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