Couple Sues Walmart Over Daughters' Bath Photos

They briefly lost custody after employees called police
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Suggested by GeorgeL
Posted Mar 9, 2013 10:34 AM CST
Couple Sues Walmart Over Daughters' Bath Photos
File photo of a Walmart store.   (AP Photo/Seth Perlman, File)

An Arizona couple dropped off a memory stick of photos at Walmart to have them developed and lost custody of their three daughters for more than a month as a result. The reason? Some of the photos of the girls—ages 5, 4, and 1 at the time—were taken at bathtime, reports ABC News. "There are a few after the bath," says mom Lisa Demaree. "Three of the girls are ... lying on a towel with their arms around each other, and we thought it was so cute." Walmart employees, however, worried the children were being sexually exploited and called police.

Child services took the children, and it wasn't until a superior court judge looked at the photos and deemed them harmless that the family was reunited. The Demarees have sued Walmart, saying the company should tell customers it has an "unsuitable print policy" and that it might call the cops, reports Courthouse News Service. A federal judge sided with the chain, ruling that employees can't be held liable for reporting what they believe to be abuse, and the case is now in the hands of an appeals court. (More Walmart stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X