Why You Will Not See The Cruz Warrant Here
Posted by Kirk Varner, News Director
on July 19th, 2010 at 05:30:41 pm , 5425 views
After some discussion amongst our newsroom staff today, I've made the decision not to post the full text of the arrest warrant in the case of Francsico Cruz, the 19 year old who is charged with the brutal rape and murder of 16 year-old Chloe Ottman last week in Waterbury.
It is not the kind of decision I make lightly, because our stated goal is to be as transparent as we can in bringing you the news each day. Whenever it is possible to share with you documents such as this, we usually do so, if only to allow those who want the ability to read all of the details of a particular crime.
But in this case, the horrific details on what the suspect alleged he did, are so graphic and disturbing that we were uncomfortable making them too easily accessible in their entirety.
Our reporter Erin Cox and web editor Rebecca Santillo have done an excellent job distilling the key details of what allegedly happened into our stories that will appear here at wtnh.com. They are graphic enough to tell you the story properly.
The full warrant will likely appear elsewhere online and that will be someone else's decision on what is acceptable for them to publish.
All I can say is that in 30-plus years of working in newsrooms and reading police documents about terrible crimes, this was just about the worst warrant I've ever come across, and so we won't be posting it here.
52 comments
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
I respect your decision to be responsible in your reporting as to what should be known by the public and what does not need to be known, and sometimes what should be kept quiet if it endangers someone. And thanks for letting us know.
07/19/10 @ 17:45
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
Thinking about that decision a little more, and the media has to be careful also to not publicize, editorialize and entertain commentary that would prejudice a case and make it impossible then to have a fair trial. So for that I also think you are wise to take care.
07/19/10 @ 18:14
Comment from: John [Visitor] 
Agree wholeheartedly. There is no reason to post details here.
07/19/10 @ 18:15
Comment from: strange [Visitor]
Kirk, Why do you always feel the need to justify your decisions on here. You're so afraid of just making a decision and sticking by it. You want to cover your a** when others post it, so you explain to the world why you didn't. And since when do you guys hold anything back? You've become nothing but smear and hype. Are you going to post the Desiree arrest warrant? There was nothing graphic in that.
07/19/10 @ 18:27
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
Wow! "strange"! What a rant! I don't think he posted out of fear, let me know if I'm wrong, but out of consideration he gave us an explanation. I appreciated it. And I'm glad that Varner recognized this website in visiting it to share anything with us. Chill, man!
07/19/10 @ 18:32
Comment from: Lou Lange [Visitor]
I respect Mr. Varner's decision not to publish the warrant. Not all of us need the lurid details.
07/19/10 @ 18:52
Comment from: guest [Visitor]
I believe that your choice not to disclose the details, which you usually disclose with outright glee, is nothing more than outright censorship, probably for some personal reasons, such as you know this person, and don't want to participate in what you don't think twice about with anybody else. I just don't buy it at all. I know what WTNH reveals about everybody else. If you can't be fair and balanced, quit, and let somebody else do your job, since you can't seem to handle it objectively, Kirk. This is supposed to be NEWS, not "You don't need to know, for my personal reasons." Get lost Kirk!
07/19/10 @ 21:53
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
WOW! Another rant! I may agree on some of what 'guest' and others have said about being consistent in what kinds of things are reported and what not. It did seem like arbitrary favoritism about withholding info about your own employee when allowing all kinds of crap about everybody else. Still, that does not change the facts of THIS case. It may be logical to say that if someone is not fair to one then s/he shouldn't be fair to all, but that's not good. Better to be fair in this case now than to follow past patterns just because it is a familiar rut.
A reporter is actually obligated to be discrete in what is disclosed, so that any disclosure will not do harm, and this is not the same as 'censorship'. Actually, it is not censorship to fill in 5 minutes of air-time with what is highest priority and let the rest go. It's impossible to report all possible news in great detail in the time given.
If anyone gleefully spouted off a half-baked report irresponsibly in the past, then that should just stop.
The reasons given were not personal reasons in not giving full disclosure, though your reasons for wanting to know it all may be not the most altruistic yourself.
The demand that he quit because he has not pleased you today, well, I think that is bordering on violation of the TOS.
good night
07/19/10 @ 23:30
Comment from: Janice [Visitor]
Its on several other websites..news and TV stations in the area and a few national news service website...and the state of CT court system website.
07/20/10 @ 06:55
Comment from: Laurie [Visitor]
I think the article was graphic enough. Further details will only be tramautic for other readers. I think it was a respectful decision.
07/20/10 @ 07:09
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
Janice, were you one of the kids that told your parents that you should do something because everyone else is doing it? I tried that, and my parents said, 'if everyone else were going to jump off a cliff, would you go too?' wow, that just reminded me of the animals that do herd together, like pigs and buffalo and they do all follow each other like that.
I'm impressed when I see someone who puts in an effort to think and reason, consulting other wise people to try to make the wisest decision possible, not just the most convenient one, or popular one, or profitable one.
07/20/10 @ 08:25
Comment from: Hosed by the system [Visitor]
The way our screwed up legal system works, NOTHING should be released until AFTER the circus of a trial....Look whats happening in the damn Petit case...* whistles*
Why give the bottom dweller defense attorneys ANYTHING to aquit???? EVEN when someone is outright friggin guilty?????
07/20/10 @ 08:33
Comment from: hans [Visitor]
This lack of disclosure helps the suspect; your censorship is disturbing.
07/20/10 @ 09:37
Comment from: James [Visitor]
Yeah, this censorship IS disturbing. Either you report the news or you leave it ALL alone. You don't try and take something personal. You don't think that reporting what is alrwady available is going to harm one side or the other. You cannot even argue that this is responsible reporting based on your history.This goes to PROVE what I have been writing all of these years. 8 gives it's audience SUBJECTIVE news, not objective news. No Desiree in-depth stories. You pick and choose which stories to exploit and which ones to downplay.
Why don't you make the choice to stop reporting on Boston sports and to move that weather map to the right to cut off Cape Cod and show all of NYC and more of NJ? Make THAT good choice! In New Haven, CT, no sports lead story should be Boston sport unless it was national. It certainly should never come before ANY NY/NJ sports team!
If things remain the same, pretty soon people will have to go and get their own news...
07/20/10 @ 09:56
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
Well, James, we certainly disagree on that! A lot of my friends are in Cape Cod or Martha's Vineyard this summer, and a lot are Boston Red Sox fans, including me. I am not involved at all in anything to do with New Jersey, and very little with New York or Long Island. We are Southern New England here - Ct/RI/Mass and eastern upstate New York as well as NYC and Long Island.
07/20/10 @ 10:13
Comment from: wtby resident [Visitor]
I wholeheartly agree with WTNH not to disclose the warrant in full detail. We get the story's bottom line. I think its in the best interest of mainly the Ottman family to not have their childs details of this horrific attack disclosed to the public. Out of respect for the family and friends of Chloe, thank you WTNH for not diclosing the disturbing details.
07/20/10 @ 10:17
That was the right call. Thank you.
Comment from: Kevin G [Visitor]
Thank you Kurt,Children read these websites, they get enough bad ideas from the TV, if the details are as graphic as you imply then we do not need to be giving children nightmares here.
As for "fair and balanced"...tell you what, I think channel 8 does a descent job most of the time, I do not, for one, want to be given the news and then the entertainment spin and then asked to "decide".
I want th facts, I do not want to decide, that is Kurt's job.
Keep up the good work
07/20/10 @ 10:54
Comment from: James [Visitor]
I am not sure where you went with that. You said that you did not have much to do with NJ - you are all "southern new england," but then you closed it out with my whole point of our being in the NYC area.No offense, but outside of the casinos, eastern CT is a no man's land. It is the least populated part of the state for a reason. If it were in the Boston area with a reasonable commute, then it would have more people in it. Not on INCH of CT is in the Boston metro area which is why 8 and these other alleged CT stations need to stop reporting on Boston sports.
New England is not a state the last time I checked. No one really knows what New England is except naming six states. New England or no NE, CONNECTICUT - not New England, is a part of metro New York City which is not in dispute and any news channel in CT that calls itself CT news needs to report from this perspective. There is no Boston metro region in CT period.
07/20/10 @ 10:58
Respectfully, i absolutely agree!!
Comment from: TransParent57 [Visitor]
Did anyone wath the movie "The Verdict" with Sally Field and Paul Newman? Sally Field's character published the story of Paul Newman's female friend who had an abortion years back. It caused her to kill herself out of shame of what her family and friends would now think of her. Moral of the story: Just because it is news does not mean you can leave your brain and heart on the sidelines. Kirk did it right. Do not publish the gory details but communicate and let us know why he did it that way. God knows there are PLENTY of media outlets who will publish every last bit of ink - so for the inquisitive, go there to satiate your lust for every detail.
07/20/10 @ 14:23
Comment from: teacher from waterbury [Visitor]
I have lived in Waterbury all my life and also have been teaching there for 9 years. All of the graphic details are on the Republican American website today. It literally made me sick to my stomach when I read them. I also have a 5 year old son who happens to watch television (or be in the room when I am watching t.v). I am usually there to monitor what is on, however there are times that I am making dinner etc. when I do not get to hear everything that he may be watching/exposed to.
There is no way I would ever want him to hear about such horrible violence. The details involved in this case are NOT for family viewing/listening. The news is on from 5-6:300pm--when most families are watching.
I support your decision not to disclose all of the details. She was a 16 year old young girl that underwent an unspeakable and monstrous act. If people want to read the specifics, they can find them elsewhere. You certainly have my respect.
07/20/10 @ 15:06
Comment from: na [Visitor]
I believe (especially from a news reporting outfit) you should give your audience the choice. That way it’s on the reader. Click HERE to red the warrent. However, I respect your decision.
07/20/10 @ 15:40
Comment from: Kirk Varner, News Director [Member]
Thanks for the comments everyone. (And yes, I mean all of the comments.)We do know that the warrant is available other places online, and that's fine. Our decision was whether or not we would make it available here.
That's not censorship, it is just making the decision that we feel is right for us and our audience. It's making a judgment call.
The point to my posting here was to let you know what we were doing and why.
As always, thanks for taking the time to engage the discussion.
-Kirk Varner
07/20/10 @ 16:50
Comment from: Trixie [Visitor]
Im with Louisiana on this, rather than putting a rapist in jail, castrate him and then let him loose in the Playboy mansion. All kidding aside, this guy deserves nothing less than to be neutered like a farm animal and I guarantee there will be plenty of volunteers if you ask for them. I volunteer.
07/20/10 @ 17:09
Comment from: Laura [Visitor]
I'm not sure why people feel they have a "right" to know every last detail of such a heinous crime. A child was raped and murdered. The suspect has apparently confessed to the crime and there is evidence to substantiate the confession. All the necessary evidence will come out in the trial, if there is one. Why would anyone want, or need to know such horrible information? Why is it your "right"? A child was raped and murdered. Hopefully, the suspect will be tried,found guilty, and sent to prison for the rest of his life, better yet, the death penalty. Is it going to make you feel better if you know all the details? The poor child and her family don't need everyone knowing the gory details. As for the suspect, he will get his punishment, whether its in prison or upon his death, natural or otherwise. As a parent, it is beyond my comprehension such a crime was committed - I don't need to know the specifics. Let the justice system do its job.
07/20/10 @ 21:23
Comment from: Emily [Visitor]
Thank you! If that were my daughter I would not want all those details released either. It's horrific enough for the Ottman Family to know. All we need to know is that it was a horrific crime that was commited, details are uneccessary for the public. Those details should have been at the discretion of the family not any reporters. Again....Thank you! That is why I count on News Channel 8! ;)
07/20/10 @ 21:46
Comment from: James [Visitor]
I still do not agree with it. Now if Kirk could be as strong in making sure that the racist stuff in the comments section actually does not make it on as he did with this (shows he is watching), then 8 could be OK. You still hhave to put an end to Boston sports reporting. Who cares what the Hartford area stations are doing? They are up in the Hartford - a totally different metro region, so of course they report the news differently. Serve your BASE.
07/21/10 @ 02:46
Comment from: Vandal [Visitor]
i myself and a few others are thinking he is covering cant prove it thats why i say thinking but pretty sure it will show up when they do all the tests
07/21/10 @ 03:06
Comment from: Trumbull Seniors [Visitor]
We certainly do agree with your decision. Many families have your station on while having dinner, to catch up on the news of the day. Families do sit at the table with their children, who should not be hearing that. Having said that, could you please tell us why at first you decided not to publish the incident with Desiree and then changed your mind? Honesty with your viewers, unless you were instructed by your Attorneys not to be, would be fair. Would appreciate and honest answer to an honest question.
07/21/10 @ 15:13
Comment from: Janice [Visitor]
WOW,, you ARE ignorant aren't you? Must be nice to grow up in in Fairyland
07/21/10 @ 15:17
Comment from: Ken [Visitor]
Are we going to get more then a passing blurb about the traffic reporter on her trial date of the 27th??
07/21/10 @ 19:49
Comment from: Tom [Visitor]
Kirk, I very well understand your reasons. From what I read (and you will). I not only agree with you, however with also all who added here.We I'm sure more than old enough to figure out details without out being told. Granted, I'm very sure the women and the WTNH were ready to voimt whan the facts are.
The point is some young lady is now gone. That also happens to young men.
And never forget how their family's feel.
07/21/10 @ 20:00
Comment from: Orion [Visitor]
There is something very evil about someone who demands to know, and rants about being denied being provided, the intimate details of a childs sexual murder. Why do you need or want to know this? Some things are none of your damn business. Look at yourself. These crimes are committed by people who lack the ability to feel any empathy for others and use them for their own entertainment. Sound familiar?
07/22/10 @ 03:15
This comment does not make any sense - say again!
Comment from: Angie [Visitor]
[amquote by="Ken" id="66289"]Are we going to get more then a passing blurb about the traffic reporter on her trial date of the 27th??[/amquote]Doubtful,,they don't want to embarrass her even though she did it to herself,, you can follow the story better in the WGGB website,,they are covering it and allowing comments.
07/24/10 @ 10:36
Comment from: jeff [Visitor]
kirk... good call... i've read such reports daily for 16 years... and they do bother the reader, the bad dreams from reading such come weeks later, and you never forget the wretched details... man's inhumanity to man...
07/24/10 @ 22:06
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
I agree with jeff, that a person can get a kind of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) from seeing pictures and/or reading about traumatic things like that. PTSD is from either being in or witnessing catastrophic events, and seeing the pics and reading details is like witnessing the event. Some of us, unfortunately are obligated to do that, like the police, the jury, the judge, the people who have to testify,, but not all of us need to be so intimately involved. It does occasionally happen that a part of PTSD involved or results in a kind of addiction to such things, but that is part of a disorder that we don't have to entertain.
07/25/10 @ 18:35
Comment from: jeff [Visitor]
you right... there is (was) almost a 'High'... or the 'wow' factor... hence, your tolerance to human suffering goes up and unless there is danger of life [but not limb-you can loose a limb- it's only a limb] it's really not an emergency any more... sounds cold, but to people who see that crap every day, it's normal... upon retirement, you have to re-sensitize your self...
07/31/10 @ 12:44
Comment from: Old Navy Gunner [Visitor]
# 1. Why do you continue to allow ads to run?# 2. The rest is much ado about nothing.
08/02/10 @ 08:57
Comment from: Lisa [Visitor]
Hey James...If you love NY and NJ so much, move there.
08/04/10 @ 12:04
Comment from: Guest A [Visitor]
I could understand why you wouldn't want to publish/broadcast a lot of detail about that case. Now, don't you think you are being a little contradictory and being kind of obsessive about the Manchester shootings?
08/04/10 @ 18:19
Comment from: Wallace [Visitor]
I do have a suggestion for instances like this.First I would point out that I in no way would want details in a case like this released!In fact I believe any homocide documents should never be released to the media or the general public they should always stay a matter of law record as in law enforcement and jurors(court sealed)and the release of them should be a felony with or without the family consent.That said you yourself are guilty by responding to the outcry to release the or the outcry to keep them sealed in that I mean you by aswering either side have peaked interest in one direction or the other.. by actually telling us the details are horrific or to horrific to release..just be quiet! and if they ever are released you'll be able to report the released record.
08/09/10 @ 08:19
Comment from: EDITED TYPOS CORRECTED:Wallace [Visitor]
I do have a suggestion for instances like this.First I would point out that I in no way would want details in a case like this released!In fact I believe any homocide documents should never be released to the media or the general public they should always stay a matter of law record as in law enforcement and jurors(court sealed) etc.and the release of them should be a felony with or without the family consent.That said you yourself are guilty by responding to the outcry to release the records or the outcry to keep them sealed in that I mean you by aswering either side you have peaked interest in one direction or the other by actually telling us the details are horrific or to horrific to release..just be quiet! and if they ever are released you'll be able to report the released record.
08/09/10 @ 08:26
Comment from: Jen Martinez [Visitor]
This is a sad story. I agree, the complete details shouldn't be posted here. It would be too graphic especially for friends and family that come across it on the internet. I just feel bad for her family and friends.
08/17/10 @ 20:23
Comment from: Glenna MacDonald [Visitor]
In the Old testement of the Bible the Murders and Rapest were put to death, that was the penelty.Now we praise the Lord Jesus,John 3:16 For the wages of sin is death,but the gift of God is eternal life thru Jesus Christ our Lord.
I suggest we praise the Lord before the crime as a prevention method.
Start them young,Thank you Jesus,Thank you, thank you Jesus!
~Peace Glenna~
08/23/10 @ 08:45
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04/12/11 @ 01:11
Comment from: abbyrose [Visitor]
chloe was one of my best frnds and i think that u shuld post it up for respect of her pple should know what this monster did to her and why he is in jail i hope he dies chloe will be in my heart and soul forever she was an amazing girl and she didnt deserve what happened to her
05/25/11 @ 10:54
Comment from: Daniel Margolick [Visitor]
I think the man with the 5 year old said it best. The details of horrific crimes such as these are available to anyone interested enough to read further. i.e court documents,printed press,etc. They shouldn't be exposing young children to these things on a ready medium such as prime time television. Good call Kirk!
07/15/11 @ 18:06
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10/05/11 @ 06:32
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