US Court puts temporary hold on releasing records related Gene Hackman death

New Mexico court grants restraining order to protect privacy of Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa's death investigation records.

A New Mexico court granted a temporary restraining order Monday (March 17, 2025) against the release of certain records related to the investigation into the recent deaths of actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa.

The order is in response to a request by Julia Peters, a representative for the couple's estate. She urged in a motion filed last week that the court seal records in the case to protect the family’s right to privacy in grief under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Ms. Peters emphasised the possibly shocking nature of photographs and video in the investigation and potential for their dissemination by media.

A hearing has been scheduled for later this month to argue the merits of the request. For now, the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office and the state Office of the Medical Investigator cannot release photographs and videos showing the couple’s bodies or the interior of their home, autopsy reports or death investigation reports.

Hackman and Arakawa were found dead in their Santa Fe home in late February. Authorities have confirmed that Hackman died of heart disease with complications from Alzheimer’s disease about a week after hantavirus pulmonary syndrome — a rare, rodent-borne disease — took the life of his wife.

The request to seal the records notes that the couple placed “a significant value on their privacy and took affirmative vigilant steps” to safeguard their privacy over their lifetime, including after they moved to Santa Fe and Hackman retired. The state capital is known as a refuge for celebrities, artists and authors.

“The personal representative seeks to continue to preserve the privacy of the Hackmans following their tragic death and support the family's constitutional right to remembrance and desire to grieve in peace,” the document states.