A local newspaper in Minnesota took down the online version of a nasty obituary yesterday (June 5th), amid questions about whether it should have been published in the first place. The twice-weekly Redwood Falls Gazette published the paid obituary online and in its print edition on Monday for 80-year-old Kathleen Dehmlow, who died last Thursday. The obit starts normally by laying out Dehmlow's birth and 1957 marriage details and the birth of her two children, Gina and Jay. But then it says that Dehmlow became pregnant by her husband's brother and moved with him to California and states: "She abandoned her children, Gina and Jay, who were then raised by her parents." The obituary continues by saying that Dehmlow, quote, "will now face judgement," and ends with: "She will not be missed by Gina and Jay, and they understand that this world is a better place without her." The general manager of the Gazette said the family had paid for the obituary. Although there was nothing illegal about the obit, it does raise ethical issues. The chief marketing officer of the Minnesota Star Tribune said that they never would have run a similar obituary, and noted that obits are in fact sometimes rejected or sent back for changes. One relative, Dwight Dehmlow, who didn't want to share his relationship to Kathleen, told the Star Tribune, "The sad thing about this is there is no rebuttal. There is more to it than this. It’s not simple. She made a mistake 60 years ago, but who hasn’t? Has she regretted it over the years? Yes." He said the obituary writer, quote, "decided to go out with hate." (StarTribune)