Social Media in Legal Processes
Social media has changed the courts of law and the rules about what is considered substantial and what is not. The relevant evidence has changed dramatically with the growth of Internet programs such as Facebook and Twitter.
Today, social media evidence is admissible in a court of law and social media accounts are very important considerations in which lawyers and private investigators look for evidence when building cases.
Lawyers specifically use evidence from social sites to construct prepared statements about a person’s state of mind, as well as to test communication, time and place, or actions.
For example, someone could post on their Facebook status: “I have to. There’s no going back, sorry.” If this was posted by a defendant twenty minutes before the alleged crime was committed, it could certainly have a huge impact with a jury.
Also remember that it’s not just about the words used, but these sites can often offer some incriminating location details as well. A pole could put someone near the crime scene at any given time. Additionally, evidence from social media can accumulate over time and show the growth of relationships and extra-martial affairs that could be used as evidence in divorce proceedings.
Divorce proceedings
It is important to be aware of the role that social sites can play in legal proceedings today so that you can protect yourself from self-incrimination through evidence collected in social media contexts.
Did you know
66% of online divorce proofs come from Facebook,
14% comes from MySpace,
5% comes from Twitter,
· 15% comes from other sources.
Additionally, lawyers and private investigators can collect information from Instagram, SnapChat, LinkedIn, blogs, dating websites, and any other site you frequent online. Depending on the type of case brought against you, they will use different types of sites to build a case with social media, an important piece of evidence.
Problems with social media
There are some issues that have come up when dealing with the evidence from social media. First, Western courts have recognized that there are many ways to modify or edit incriminating photos and that anyone has the ability to create a fake account. The process of properly verifying the source of information, especially written information, can be very difficult and obtaining evidence can take time that the court may not have. Also, lawyers must be careful how they acquire evidence and cannot obtain information from victims or others by acting as a fake friend online. Evidence can be discarded immediately if the methods of acquiring the information are inappropriate.
Facebook is also not incredibly cooperative in providing information for court proceedings and will not provide expert testimony.