Apple gives grieving dad the runaround

Apple has told the father of a murdered aspiring musician to get a court order if he wants to access songs written by his son that are stored on his computer.

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London - The father of an aspiring musician stabbed to death last Halloween has been told by Apple to get a court order if he wants to access songs written by the 20-year-old that are stored on his computer.

Colin Hehir, whose son Morgan was attacked and killed in the street while on a night out in Nuneaton in Warwickshire, wants to access the music, memories and pictures on the computer.

But he said Apple will not help him open the laptop, which is protected by a password.

“He sent snapshots of his music and him messing around to his friends, he would send them little skits, so we know there is music on there as well as his photos, it's all on this Macbook,” he told The Telegraph.

“We're only asking for our data, that these companies are protecting for us. Morgan owns the computer, Morgan owns the data, but Apple owns the access. It's so frustrating.

“It essentially means if you store everything on your computer, you lose your history and memories.”

An Apple spokesman said in a statement given to the BBC: “In the absence of permission for third-party access to an account, it is impossible to be certain what access the user would have wanted and we do not consider it is appropriate that Apple make the decision.

“However, in such cases, we can assist subject to appropriate court order. We understand this kind of situation is extremely difficult and will continue to do everything possible to help.” Mr Hehir is now deciding whether or not to go to court to force the multinational company to open up the computer.

“I believe we are on this planet to help one another, common decency would be for Apple to help us,” he said.

“All we want is to preserve his memories and legacy. We don't want to lose anything that Morgan did.”

Three men were jailed over Morgan Hehir's death, with one sentenced for murder and the other two for manslaughter.

The Independent