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| Saturday Morning NewsEarnhardt's Widow Settles With Florida NewspaperAired March 17, 2001 - 7:06 a.m. ETTHIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED. MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: In some other news this morning, the widow of racing legend Dale Earnhardt has reached a deal with a Florida newspaper over Earnhardt's autopsy photos. CNN's John Zarrella has the story. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Questions regarding what might have caused the death of race car driver Dale Earnhardt could be answered within days. After two days of negotiations, attorneys representing Earnhardt's wife and family and attorneys for "The Orlando Sentinel" newspaper, reached agreement on how autopsy photos would be examined. TOM FRANKLIN, "ORLANDO SENTINEL": We said from the beginning we do not want to publish the photos, we don't want to copy the photos. We're not even going to send a reporter or editor into the room. ZARRELLA: "The Sentinel" has maintained that a medical expert examining the photos may be able to determine for certain if Earnhardt died of basal skull fracture, which has killed three other drivers in the past year. That information, the "Sentinel" says, could save lives in the future. Earnhardt's widow, Theresa, said releasing the photos would serve no public purpose. But late Friday, the "Sentinel" and the Earnhardts reached agreement. An independent medical expert will review the autopsy photos under strict court supervision for about 30 minutes. Upon completion of the review, the photos will be permanently sealed from any further public inspection or review. (on camera): Anyone else who wants access to the photos will have to petition an appeals court. Already, the publisher of a Web site is charging the agreement violates Florida law, under which autopsy photos are generally considered public records. (voice-over): The Web site publisher says Friday's announcement is no more than an agreement between two private parties. Legal experts say given Florida law, it may be difficult to ultimately stop the release of the photos. LORNA VERALDI, FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY: I think short of legislative action, there's probably not much chance that a judge ultimately would find grounds for an order that the photos not be released. ZARRELLA: It may, in fact, come down to Florida's legislature, which next week is expected to debate a bill that would exempt autopsy photos from the public records. John Zarrella, CNN, Miami. (END VIDEOTAPE) TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com |
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