Editorial standards

Sourcing

A fact appears in a Max Crime story only if at least two independent outlets report it, or if it comes from a primary source such as a police or prosecutor's statement, a criminal complaint or a court record. Details carried by only one outlet are left out.

Attribution

Every claim names who said it. What police or prosecutors say an accused person did is reported as an allegation. Stories about criminal charges note that the allegations have not been proven in court.

Quotes

Quotations appear word for word as they were published by the source we cite.

Dates and developing stories

Every date includes its year. A status that can change, such as whether someone is in custody, is reported as of when it was true. Developing stories are covered as live updates with a timestamp on every entry.

Minors and victims

We do not identify minors accused of crimes where the law protects their identity, and we do not publish photos of child victims.

Images

We use photos we are licensed to publish, such as public-domain and Creative Commons images credited to their creators, or graphics we make ourselves. We do not republish other outlets' photos or graphics.

When police, a sheriff's office or prosecutors release a booking photo or an evidence photo, we may publish it, credited to that agency. A booking photo is not proof of guilt: when a case has not been decided, the caption says the allegations have not been proven in court. We never publish a photo of someone whose connection to the story has not been established.