A German man who was convicted of murder back in 1982 has earned the “right to be forgotten” – meaning he can force Google to hid him and his crimes from search.
The man was ordered to serve a life sentence for murdering two people on a yacht and has since been released after serving just 20 years.
The murders were shocking enough to be the subject of a book and documentary.
Karlsruhe’s constitutional court ruled in the murderer’s favor as the murderer in question didn’t want his family name to be associated with the murders he committed.
The “right to be forgotten” law is controversial as it can give murderers and others the right to censor the internet to hide their crimes and prevent people – including prospective employers – from learning about their dark past.
The law forces publications and search engines such as Google to hide the crimes from the internet.
Publications are allowed to keep archived articles online but, if asked (in this case by the convicted murderer), they could be forced to remove them.
While there’s currently a “right to be forgotten” for convicted murderers, there’s not yet a “right to be remembered” for those who are the victims of such crimes.
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