The lawyer for families of Jeffrey Dahmer's victims says Emmy nominations 'glorify' Milwaukee serial killer

Thomas M. Jacobson, the attorney who represented eight of the families of Jeffrey Dahmer’s victims, blasted the Television Academy for giving the Netflix series "Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story" 13 Emmy nominations Wednesday.

In a statement sent to entertainment industry news site The Wrap, Jacobson said that the nominations for shows like Ryan Murphy's series contributed "to glamorizing or desensitizing violence and crime in society."

"The choice to award actors for their performances in roles like Jeffrey Dahmer, a real-life serial killer …, could be seen as a form of sensationalism exploiting the suffering of victims and their families for entertainment," Jacobson wrote. "The 13 Emmy Nominations and continued pomp and circumstance surrounding the Dahmer series glorify and romanticizes the monster’s actions and motivations resulting in further trauma for the victims’ families."

Jacobson reiterated a complaint raised by family members of some of Dahmer's victims last year when "Dahmer" first streamed on Netflix that the producers of the show did not contact or involve the families about the series. (Murphy has said that he had reached out to "around 20" of the family members before the show aired but claimed he got no response.)

"Failure to notify or involve victims’ families in producing such shows demonstrates a lack of empathy and sensitivity towards those directly affected by the crimes," Jacobson wrote Wednesday.

He added that in the future, Netflix and Murphy should prioritize "ethical considerations" in such true-crime projects, and suggested more "collaboration with victim families, compensation, providing a platform to share their experiences and perspectives, and prior notice."

"Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story's" 13 Emmy nominations included outstanding limited or anthology series; lead actor in a limited series, anthology or TV movie for Evan Peters, who played Dahmer; and supporting actress and actor in a limited or anthology series for Niecy Nash-Betts and Richard Jenkins, respectively.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Lawyer for Dahmer's victims' families: Emmy attention 'glorify' killer