The mother of a 17-year-old girl who was killed in 2019 has filed a lawsuit accusing officials of sharing sex and murder videos with the media.
The death of Bianca Devins prompted widespread media attention when images posted by her murderer went viral.
Now her family’s lawsuit alleges that explicit footage recorded by her killer was given to documentary makers.
The family is suing Oneida County in ny State and officials including local DA Scott McNamara.
The filing alleges they “acted unconscionably and lawlessly” toward the victim with “reckless dissemination of evidence” to media producers seeking to hide the case.
The lawsuit claims Kimberly Devins, Bianca’s mother, was shattered to find out videos taken by Brandon Clark had been shared. She now fears the fabric of them having sex also will go viral online, just like the other images he shared of her daughter’s murder.
It also accuses officials of breaking federal kiddie porn laws, because the evidence included video footage of Bianca having sex with Brandon Clark before he killed her.
The BBC contacted Oneida County District Attorney’s Office and Mr McNamara, but both are yet to reply .
A viral murder
Bianca Devins was killed in July 2019 by Clark, 21, who stabbed the teenager in his car as they were driving home from a concert in Queens, a borough of latest York City.
He documented the attack online – posting graphic images of Bianca’s body to platforms like Snapchat and Instagram, also as a Discord server employed by her friends.
He attempted to require his own life after the murder, but survived. He was prosecuted and was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March this year.
Images Clark posted of Bianca Devins’ body spread rapidly on social media within the aftermath of her murder. the general public nature of her killing led to rapid climb in both her and her killer’s Instagram accounts, with impersonators shooting up and reposting the pictures to require advantage of the morbid interest.
Kimberley Devins has said she still receives online abuse and graphic photographs of her daughter’s body from trolls.
- The teenager whose murder was exploited for clicks
After his arrest, it emerged that Clark had also recorded videos of the murder. The lawsuit says that dashboard clips showed him having sex with the 17-year-old before stabbing her to death after accusing her of infidelity during a “jealous rage”.
Kimberly Devins long-feared this footage would be made public and, consistent with her lawsuit, sought assurance from Oneida County prosecutors that the fabric would be protected.
The lawsuit alleges she was later told by two sets of documentary makers that the sex and murder videos had been shared with them by the district attorney’s office, along side nude photographs from her daughter’s phone.
Carrie Goldberg, a lawyer who specialises in sexual exploitation, is representing Kimberly Devins.
“This has been emotionally devastating and fatiguing,” Ms Goldberg told the BBC. “The family has not had each day of peace since Bianca died over two years ago.”
She described the mother’s experience of “perpetual hell” as she continues to receive graphic online abuse, including the pictures of her daughter’s body.
The lawsuit also alleges that Kimberly Devins has repeatedly been denied access to the evidence that has been shared with the media.
It says enforcement officials previously told Kimberly that ny state’s kiddie porn laws, which have a younger limit, didn’t apply on the shared material as Bianca was 17. Both she, her legal counsel and therefore the lawsuit say the video and nude photographs are unlawful under federal law and accuse the plaintiffs of disseminating kiddie porn .
The lawsuit is seeking exemplary damages and an injunction to prevent the fabric being shared any longer .
The BBC contacted the documentary producers named on the lawsuit for comment.
Kimberly Devins has spoken about eager to change the laws on graphic content being shared on social media within the aftermath of her daughter’s killing.
Ms Goldberg says she is additionally hoping to pursue action against social media firms concerning the case.
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