Nassau changes course on 'Wall of Shame'

? In a reversal of policy, Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi announced the mug shots of alleged drunken drivers will no longer be posted on the county?s Web site ?Wall of Shame.? The change comes after

News 12 Staff

Oct 22, 2008, 12:23 AM

Updated 5,991 days ago

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? In a reversal of policy, Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi announced the mug shots of alleged drunken drivers will no longer be posted on the county?s Web site ?Wall of Shame.?
The change comes after a judge ordered the county remove Alexandra Bursac?s name and photograph from the site because it violated her right to due process. Bursac, like the other drivers, was suspected of driving drunk.
?You can?t be punished until there is a finding, until you either plead guilty or are found guilty or something along that line,? Bursac?s attorney Brian Griffin says. The effect of the ?Wall of Shame? was to punish the alleged drunken drivers outside the realm of the court, according to Griffin.
Suozzi says he disagrees with the judge?s decision and will appeal it. Until then, Suozzi says, the county will only post the names and mug shots of those found guilty to avoid lawsuits.
Suozzi launched the ?Wall of Shame? last spring after a Nassau police officer was critically injured by an alleged drunken driver.