This year, a new California law prohibits police departments from posting photos revealing the faces of individuals suspected of non-violent crimes. To comply, the Murietta Police Department digitally obscured suspects' identities with Lego minifig heads. Once Lego got wind, they put the kibosh on it.
"The Lego Group reached out to us and respectfully asked us to refrain from using their intellectual property in our social media content which of course we understand and will comply with," said Lt. Jeremy Durrant of the Murrieta Police Department. "We are currently exploring other methods of publishing our content in a way that is engaging and interesting to our followers."
From Patch.com:
According to Durant, the department has obscured suspects' arrest photos using various methods for several years. In addition to the Lego heads, the department has obscured photos with emoji faces, characters like "The Grinch" and, yes, even "Barbie" heads.
Posts on their social pages have included people caught stealing phones, shoplifting, taking part in drug use or sales, soliciting, or other non-violent crimes.
