Watch What You Say on Facebook

Supreme Court to hear case on the credibility of threats made on Facebook.

FacebookConsidering the abundance of jokes, cat videos, and other memes on Facebook, it can be hard to take anything said on this social media platform seriously. But you might want to think twice before you splash your emotions all over Facebook, especially if you’re feeling angry. A threat posted on Facebook could very well form the basis of a criminal charge, especially if you mean it.

Many courts have issued rulings on threats recently, with some requiring proof of subjective intent to threaten for a conviction and others only requiring proof that a “reasonable person” would find the statement threatening. The Supreme Court now has a case on its docket that will hopefully help to resolve this discrepancy.

The case involves a Pennsylvania man who repeatedly threatened to kill his wife on Facebook. He also made various threats against law enforcement and against an elementary school. The defense argued that the threats were jokes. For example, one of the alleged threats was the reposting of a comedy routine tweaked to refer to his wife:

Did you know that it’s illegal for me to say I want to kill my wife?

It’s illegal.

It’s indirect criminal contempt.

It’s one of the only sentences that I’m not allowed to say.

Now it was okay for me to say it right then because I was just telling you that it’s illegal for me to say I want to kill my wife.

Of course, his wife did not find this funny. The court agreed with the prosecutor that the statements were objectively threatening to a reasonable person and sentenced the man to 44 months in prison. The case has now gone to the Supreme Court and we will have to wait and see what the outcome will be.

Fortunately for individuals accused of criminal threats in California, we have a stricter standard than was applied in Pennsylvania. In order to secure a conviction, the prosecution must prove that:

  • You willfully threatened to kill or seriously injure another person
  • You intended your statement to be received as a threat
  • The threat was “unequivocal, unconditional, immediate and specific”
  • The threatened individual reasonably feared for their safety

It is important to understand that statements made on Facebook or the internet, as well as direct communications via text, phone, letter, or in person, can all potentially be considered threats. So watch what you say on Facebook lest you get accused of an internet crime!

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