A JUDGE has restricted public access to photos and videos from actor Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa's deaths.
Hackman, Arakawa, and one of their dogs were found dead under mysterious circumstances at their sprawling New Mexico estate on February 27.
Santa Fe sheriff officials found the Academy Award-winning actor, 95, dead, fully clothed and in a wet room off the kitchen with his cane laid next to him.
Meanwhile, Arakawa, 65, was later discovered dead on the bathroom floor, near a space heater, and tablets from a prescription bottle scattered on the floor.
Arakawa’s body was said to have been found in a state of partial mummification.
The death was initially rumored to be suspicious, but police and medical professionals quickly ruled out any foul play.
Dr. Heather Jarrell, the chief medical examiner of New Mexico, revealed that Arakawa died of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which is caused by contact with rodents like rats and mice.
Hackman's cause of death was ruled as hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiac disease, Jarrell added.
An autopsy showed Hackman had advanced Alzheimer's, which played a significant role in his death.
The couple died on separate dates, as authorities believe Arakawa was last alive on February 12, while Hackman is suspected to have died around February 18 – the last day his pacemaker reported heart data.
Dr. Jarrell said that because of Hackman's advances Alzheimer's, it is possible he did not know his wife was dead in the home.
“Mr. Hackman showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer's disease. He was in a very poor state of health,” the medical examiner said at a March 7 press conference.
“He had significant heart disease, and I think ultimately that's what resulted in his death.”
One of the couple's three dogs, Zinna, was also found dead in a crate near a bathroom by Arakawa.
Although Arakawa had no children, Hackman is survived by his three children from his first marriage with Faye Maltese.
PRIVACY DEBATE
On March 31, lawyers argued in a court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, about whether the autopsy and body cam footage of the pair should be released to the press.
The arguments follow a temporary restraining order granted by Judge Matthew Wilson on March 17, which restricted public access to autopsy reports by the Office of the Medical Investigator and death investigation reports by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office for the estate.
Lawyers for Hackman's estate, one of the actor's children, attorneys for Sante Fe County and the University of New Mexico for the Medical Examiner were all present at the hearing.
Lawyers for CBS and the Associated Press were also present at the First Judicial District Court.
Kurt Sommer, an attorney for Gene Hackman's estate, argued that the estate has a right “to protect Gene and Betsy’s property, including photographs and videos of their dead bodies.”
He cited the privacy law in New Mexico that limits public access to sensitive images, including depictions of dead bodies.
“Gene and Betsy Hackman’s names, likenesses and images are valuable and need to be protected and is clearly proven out by virtue of the press wanting to get his hands on the documents to exploit them for their own personal profit and gain,” he argued.
During his closing statement, the attorney stated that his clients, the Hackman children, have the right of privacy not to have pictures of their father's lifeless body posted online.
Despite the pair's public personas, Somer argued that the couple “took great pains” to make their lives private.
“They lived in a private gated community. They lived very quietly in Santa Fe and unfortunately, they died a very tragic death,” he said.
Sommer noted that Hackman would only ever do two hours of press for his movies and repeatedly denied CBS News Sunday Mornings' interview requests.
The attorney called the media's request to unseal photos and videos of Hackman's death “nothing more than backdoor exposure to the Hackmans’ lifestyle that could not be attained by the press during their lifetime.”;
“There’s no damage to the media by waiting until these matters are decided, a significant amount of videos have already been released to the press,”; Sommer said.
Arguing for the release of the documents to the media, Walker Boyd said it was not common for a judge “to stop state entities from doing their statutory required jobs.”
Boyd mentioned that New Mexico's privacy laws do not grant a person the same privileges in death as it does in life.
“The estate and intervening family members do not possess the right of privacy being asserted here,” he said.
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