Six weeks ago, someone shot and killed Justin Dixon outside an apartment complex in Dallas’ Oak Lawn neighborhood during the early hours of the morning.
At that time, a photo of Dixon’s lifeless body somehow got publicized, ending up in the hands of several civilians in Oak Lawn. Now, Dallas Fire-Rescue has confirmed that a member of the department took that photo.
The department also said that they had fired the employee involved.
After the confirmation from Dallas Fire-Rescue, Dixon’s parents expressed outrage over the photo leak, which they believe is “horrifying.”
“That person was our son. My wife and I’s second child,” Dixon’s dad, David, said.
“To me, it’s just horrifying that somebody would go to that extreme to let somebody else see the horrific-ness of a crime scene. I wonder if he was gasping for air when they were there taking photos,” David complained further.
The Dixons said that learning that someone took a picture of their son at the scene where he died added to the family’s pain.
“It’s a hole in your heart. Every day you wake up wondering if you’re in a nightmare or not,” he said, speaking of the tragedy of losing a son.
David further said that there are no words to explain the pain he experiences as he misses his son every day.
David said that the matter needs to be dealt with, saying that taking the photo of someone dying is not acceptable as a first responder.
Dallas Fire-Rescue has not revealed the identity of the employee who took the photo. While the department said that it could not give much detail about the employee, it did confirm that the employee has been disciplined and remains unemployed.