Østre Landsret has convicted TV 2 and journalist Michael Bech of violating the privacy of nursing home resident Else Marie Larsen. The court ordered the hidden camera footage of her deleted, and her family calls the outcome catastrophic.
The widely seen clips of Else Marie Larsen hanging in a lift at the Kongsgården nursing home in Aarhus may no longer be shown to the public. Avisen Danmark reports that Østre Landsret has found TV 2 and Bech guilty of violating her privacy in the documentary “Plejehjemmene bag facaden”. They avoid a fine, but must delete the recordings.
Else Marie Larsen’s granddaughter, Charlotte Ahm, describes the ruling as catastrophic and incomprehensible. Per Avisen Danmark, she says the family and Else herself agreed to the hidden camera in her room, and that the violation came from the municipality and the nursing home. Ahm became her grandmother’s legal guardian only after the recordings were completed.
According to DR, the judgment was delivered on August 20, 2026, and covers TV 2 chief executive Anne Engdal Stig Christensen and the journalist. The court found the publication of intimate scenes and health information about the 90 year old dementia patient unlawful under section 264d of the Danish Penal Code. DR notes that the fines sought by the prosecution lapsed because of the case’s length, leaving the deletion order as the sanction.
DR also reports that a separate count involving a second elderly resident at a nursing home in Randers was time barred, leading to acquittal on that point. Ekstra Bladet states that the court found the residents’ dementia meant they could not give valid consent. Approval from Else’s children and later her guardian did not change that assessment.
TV 2 removes the documentary
TV 2 Nyheder reports that the broadcaster has temporarily pulled the entire documentary from TV 2 Play while it studies the ruling. MediaWatch adds that management is considering whether to seek permission from Procesbevillingsnævnet to bring the case before Højesteret.
The documentary was broadcast on TV 2 in July 2020, after Aarhus City Council first obtained an injunction against it and later supported publication. It has since been used to train staff in elder care. Then finance minister Nicolai Wammen set aside an extra 1.9 billion kroner and 1,000 new employees in the 2021 budget agreement, referring directly to the footage of Else.
The current judgment follows an appeal. Østjyllands Politi stated in April 2025 that a district court had acquitted the journalist and editor, finding the public interest justified the broadcast. Statsadvokaten i Viborg, cited by Netavisen, says the appeals court reversed that acquittal without imposing a penalty due to the case’s age.
Journalisten reports that the documentary must now be recut, and that media organizations and Ældre Sagen warn the ruling makes it harder to document neglect with hidden cameras.
