COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A Cobb County man said he is very disturbed at what he found in a local library -- crime scene photos of his murdered sister in a book.
The man is starting an emotional campaign to get the books out of public facilities. He told his story to Channel 2 Action News reporter Linda Stouffer.
Robert Sterling said he was putting together a memorial for his sister when he found the author's name linked to his sister in a Google search.
The book is Ann Rule's "No Regrets" and Sterling said it yanked him back to 1979, when his Georgia-born sister was raped and murdered in Washington state.
Teresa Sterling was staying with her sister in Washington when she was killed. Sterling said his family lived there for a brief time in the 70's but they then moved back to Georgia.
Sterling said he found the book at the Kennesaw library branch. The first thing he saw was Teresa Sterling's yearbook photo. "She was looking back at me. And that's all I expected to see, but when I turned the pages, I thought, ‘Oh my God,'" said Sterling.
The book includes crime scene photos of Teresa's decomposing remains in the woods.
"And this book shouldn't even be in the libraries because of her picture, because of her age," said Sterling.
Cobb County officials said they would consider a request to remove the book and review the materials.
"She's 15 years old. She's not an adult," said Sterling. The book inaccurately lists Teresa's age as 16.
Sterling said he is also sending complaints to the author and the publisher.
Stouffer contacted both the author and publisher, but did not get a response.
An attorney told Stouffer that crime scene photos often become public record when they are used in a trial, but Sterling said he wants to see if there is a way to get legal protections when minors are involved.
"Somebody is making money off our family and it's wrong," said Sterling.
Sterling said he wants to make sure the book is not in any schools and he plans to expand his fight against the book online.
The man convicted in Teresa Sterling's murder served 12 years in prison and has since been released.