The Western News went too far in rape case article

To the editor:

I believe this newspaper has committed a terrible and callous crime against the 8-year-old girl featured on the front page of the Feb. 12 edition (“Libby man pleads not guilty in rape case”). There are details that should never have been made public; now they are internationally available for reading on the internet.

The details are unnecessarily graphic and borders on being salacious. The story is not constructive and does not protect this child or her future at all.

This is a small town. Are identities truly being withheld and protected? I’m writing this to urge you to be accountable for this wrongness and to ask you to be more careful in the future when it comes to stories about assaults, especially those against children.

Lere Busch

Libby