The family of actor Bob Saget is filing a lawsuit against the sheriff’s office and the coroner in Orange County, Florida, to prevent the release of photos pertaining to the investigation of his death.
The suit claims that the records — which include photos, video recordings, audio and autopsy information — are “exempt from public disclosure” under state law.
“Upon information and belief, some of these Records graphically depict Mr. Saget, his likeness or features, or parts of him, and were made by Defendants during Defendants’ investigations,” the lawsuit states.
The sheriff’s office released a statement in response to the suit.
“While we are sensitive to the family’s concerns about the right to privacy, that must be balanced with our commitment to transparency, compliance with the law, and the public’s right to know,” the agency said.
Saget died from head injuries associated with a fall in an Orlando hotel Jan. 9, according to the autopsy report.
Dr. Joshua Stephany, chief medical examiner of Orange and Osceola counties, described the cause of death as a fall but didn’t get more specific.
“It is most probable that the decedent suffered an unwitnessed fall backwards and struck the posterior aspect of his head,” Dr. Stephany wrote, referring to the back of the skull.
But an expert told The New York Times that the extensive skull fractures found in the autopsy would normally be consistent with a much more significant fall.
“This is significant trauma,” said Dr. Gavin Britz, chair in neurosurgery at Houston Methodist Hospital. “This is something I find with someone with a baseball bat to the head, or who has fallen from 20 or 30 feet.”
