Wisconsin AG tells residents to not talk to reporters
The Associated Press reports that Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen urged residents of Crandon, Wis., to not talk to journalists covering a mass killing in the town. Dozens of reporters came to Crandon after investigators said Tyler Peterson, an off-duty sheriff's deputy and part-time police officer, shot several people at a pizza party. Van Hollen, speaking at a press conference, told reporters that the families of the victims do not want residents talking to reporters anymore. He said he would not give any further press conferences in Crandon. Ironically, Van Hollen was elected on a platform of promoting government transparency. The
Wausau Daily Herald's editorial summed it up best when it
said, "No one has the authority to suggest that an entire community remain silent."