“My Misdemeanor”: Should You Blog About Your Legal Issues?

Social media has become a common place for people to discuss what is on their minds. People are prone to discussing topics of the most personal nature on their social pages, simply because it seems like a safe place to do so. The question is, how safe is it? The answer is not what you may think, especially when it comes to legal issues.

Postings to social media sites are considered public domain. What this means is that anyone who makes a post on one of these sites does not expect any type of privacy to be attached to those postings. What is posted is in public view and for the public to read. So, if you are having legal issues, and you post incriminating remarks on your site, it can be used against you in a court of law.

Case Study

Imagine you are pulled over for a speeding ticket. You tell the police officer that you did not realize that you were speeding because your odometer is broken. The officer informs you that, because the speed was so excessive, you must appear in court and the broken odometer can be explained to the judge.

You hire an attorney and provide the same story. However, you go home and “tell” all your friends via your social page that you were so mad that you got caught speeding and now you have to bluff your way out of a ticket. This public information can now be used against you.

DUI Situations

The same situation can be applied to DUI convictions. Fighting a DUI charge under the guidelines that the roadside sobriety test was inaccurate will not help if you are posting comments on your site stating how drunk you were when you left a party on the night in question.

It has now become common practice for prosecuting attorneys to check the social pages of the person they are trying to convict to find additional information about the person in question that may help their case. Additionally, many law enforcement agencies now also turn to social media when they are trying to investigate a case or look for a suspect. In cities like Orlando where traffic penalties can include mandatory classes, for example, you’d probably consider getting a Florida traffic ticket lawyer involved.

What You Should Do

Of course, you should always obey traffic laws and refrain from drinking and driving. Aside from that, you should always give proper consideration to things that you post on your site. Once they are posted, they are there forever. A good thing to think about before making a post is to ask yourself what your mother would think if she read what you wrote. No one, no matter their age, wants their mother to be disappointed in their actions or words.

If your comments do not pass the “mother” test, chances are you should not post them to the site. If you have a lot of frustration to get off of your mind, or if you just feel like discussing an event that took place, you may be better off picking up the phone and calling a good friend.