Decaturish strives to balance fairness and accountability when reporting stories about crime and other controversial topics. We acknowledge that people learn from their mistakes and that those mistakes should not always follow them throughout their lives. We also acknowledge that people accused of crimes who are exonerated or have their records expunged should be allowed an opportunity to request the removal of their names from Decaturish. 

Effective Jan. 10, Decaturish will begin accepting requests for removing certain information from articles as part of our new “right to be forgotten” policy. 

Articles eligible for this consideration are articles two years old or older that have appeared on Decaturish.com. When we approve a request, we will remove the subject’s name from an article and submit a request to have the article de-indexed in Google search results, which will prevent the article from appearing in Google searches. 

Please note: We do not have control over content we did not produce that has been republished on our website. Likewise, we do not have control over content on other websites that link to our reporting or websites that republish our stories. Also, search engines have no obligation to honor requests to de-index content. This process is also not available to public figures, like elected members of local governments or high-level employees of local governments or companies. 

Applications may be sent to [email protected] with “right to be forgotten” and should include: 

– A link to the article or articles in question

– A three to five-sentence explanation about why you are requesting removal. 

– Any documentation in support of your request, like a court record

All removal requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Decaturish team. We will consider the nature of the request, the age of the persons involved and the impact these stories had on the community at large. When appropriate, we will consult with other media ethics experts to guide our decisions. 

We will amend this policy if needed. A copy of this policy will be added to the About page of Decaturish.com