Meet 22 y/o Eddie Smith of Mineral Wells, TX (yes, that;’s him below)…
Eddie is not the brightest bulb on the tree, but he has just made the top 5…
Why? Forgetting that he managed to rack up sixteen (16) arrest warrants Eddie highlighted the fact by posting on his Facebook page “So I have 16 warrants out right now. Lol they know where I’m at so, it must not be TOO bad”…
Naturally one of Eddie’s Facebook “friends” saw the post and promptly forwarded the post to the local Police Department’s own Facebook page. Detectives looked and found that Eddie wasn’t far off. He actually had 14 outstanding warrants that dated back three (3) years. All but one (1) were traffic related, the other was for theft. Per Detective Nick Wells of the Mineral Springs, TX PD: “We got to digging, came up with a good address and we went out and paid him a visit… It’s one of those things where you can poke fun at a lot of things. Don’t poke fun at us. We’ll take care of it”; and in Eddie’s case they did.
Eddie owed some $1,200.00 in fines and as he could neither pay them not make bail he agreed to close all matters in exchange for serving fifty-one (51) days in jail. Sadly, apparently Eddie failed to learn a lesson, allegedly subsequently posting his booking photo on Facebook with the caption “2000 shares. There aint that much of me to go around”. Per Mineral Springs PD Chief Dean Sullivan: “The NFL calls it ‘unsportsmanlike conduct – excessive celebration’, a 15 yard penalty. We’ll just call it ‘genius’ and leave it at that”. Here’s a few other Eddie Smith quality genii….
Memo to Eddie: Unless you are extremely selective, not every “friend” on Facebook is a “true friend” and, even if they were, A) some “friends”, even “true” ones, will rat you out and B) your posts are likely available to your friend’s “friends; the point being that you should become familiar with “Haber’s Social Media Rules 1 – 5“, to wit:
Social Media Rule #1: Once posted always posted.
Social Media Rule #2: Think BEFORE you post.
Social Media Rule #3: Don’t post anything that you would not want your mother to read / see.
Social Media Rule #4: Cops troll the internet looking for folks who go to, look in, download from or upload to targeted (and usually, but not always “deviant”) sites.
Social Media Rule #5: If even remotely relevant to a pending charge then prosecutors will cram your social media posts, and history (sites visited, searches made, etc) down your throat in court.
As an aside, clouds, “i” or otherwise, cell towers and GPS signals all leave traces and can be used for both identification and evidentiary purposes.
Forewarned is forearmed.
Social Media: It’s all fun and nice until it’s introduced into evidence against you in Court.
Watch HaberPA’s VideoFAQ / YouTube Webisode on “Social Media and the Law”
Michael A. Haber, P.A. has provided personalized and boutique legal services to both individuals and entities, primarily in the South Florida area, since 1991. With no history of professional discipline whatsoever, Michael A. Haber, Esq. zealously advocates his client’s interests and custom tailors his services to meet each client’s particular situation, needs and desires.
At Michael A. Haber, P.A. “Its all about reasonable doubt”!
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THIS BLOG POST (AS ARE ALL OF HABERPA BLOG POSTS) IS A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT WHICH IS PRIMARILY DESIGNED, BY WAY OF REAL WORLD EXAMPLE, TO ASSIST THE GENERAL PUBLIC IN AVOIDING CONDUCT WHICH COULD FORESEEABLY RESULT IN ARREST AND PROSECUTION!
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