The August issue of Rolling Stone will feature a picture of the suspected Boston Marathon bomber, Dzokhar Tsarnaev, on the cover. This decision by the magazine set off a firestorm of controversy as the cover page is typically a prestigious place where popular figures are glamorized for their work in the music or entertainment industry. Many are arguing that Rolling Stone is making terrorism look like a glamorous road to fame. Meanwhile, others believe that, to show a suspected terrorist in that light is an act of good journalism because it shows that the face of terror isn't always ugly. In response to the outrage, officer Sgt. Sean Murphy, a tactical photographer for the Massachusetts State Police, released some pictures of the alleged bomber that he feels paint a more realistic picture of terrorism.
Murphy was present during the final arrest of Tsarnaev and released some of the pictures he took of the manhunt and subsequent take down to Boston Magazine.
"Murphy wants the world to know that the Tsarnaev in the photos he took that night-defeated and barely alive, with the red dots of sniper rifles lighting up his forehead-is the real face of terrorism, not the handsome, confident young man shown on the magazine cover," Boston Magazine writes in its article.
Murphy also shared his thoughts on the Rolling Stone cover and stressed that he was speaking strictly for himself and not as a representative of the Massachusetts State Police.
"As a professional law-enforcement officer of 25 years, I believe that the image that was portrayed by Rolling Stone magazine was an insult to any person who has every worn a uniform of any color or any police organization or military branch, and the family members who have ever lost a loved one serving in the line of duty. The truth is that glamorizing the face of terror is not just insulting to the family members of those killed in the line of duty, it also could be an incentive to those who may be unstable to do something to get their face on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine," Murphy went on to describe the reality of the situation that day. "This may have played out as a television show, but this was not a television show. Officer Dick Donohue almost gave his life. Officer Sean Collier did give his life. These were real people, with real lives, with real families."
The images can be found HERE via Boston Magazine. Tsarnaev's condition in the photos is not good and the images are therefore slightly graphic. Please be warned.
