Today’s news / Prosecutors seek conviction for care home documentary

Prosecutors seek conviction for care home documentary

A documentary by TV 2 in 2020 sparked public debate by showing the treatment of a 90-year-old dementia patient, Else Marie Larsen, at Kongsgården nursing home. Journalist Michael Bech and TV 2 director Anne Engdal Stig Christensen are now indicted for violating privacy with the film’s footage. The prosecution is seeking fines for displaying unauthorized private images. Bech refutes the charges, noting that intimate areas were blurred and all recordings were approved by the subjects’ families and guardians. Two home employees featured in the documentary previously received fines for neglecting to change Larsen’s diaper and covering her in blankets to mask the smell. Initially, Aarhus Municipality tried to ban the documentary and later withdrew complaints, but the police persisted with their investigation. The case has led to a protracted legal battle, with the Supreme Court ordering TV 2 to release footage and the European Court of Human Rights dismissing TV 2’s case.