It is far easier said than done, but if you’ve recently been charged with criminal wrongdoing, you need to stay off of social media until your case is fully resolved. If you’re like most American adults, you spend a relatively significant amount of your time on at least one social media platform. Prosecutors understand this phenomenon and work hard to utilize it to their advantage.
Even if your settings have been tailored for maximum privacy, you need to assume that everything you write on social media, every picture you post and every piece of content that you click on or “like” or otherwise engage with cannot be used to mitigate the strength of your defense.
Assume that everything you do on social media will be seen by the court
Although it is wholly unrealistic to assume that you can get by without making calls, sending emails and firing off text messages until your case resolves, it’s going to be important that you act as if every word you type or say is being spoken directly to the prosecutor assigned to your case. You may have no idea how little your privacy will be respected during this process, so assume that you have none.
By learning about the ways in which your actions can affect the effectiveness of your criminal defense strategy, you’ll be better positioned to safeguard your own interests. Don’t hesitate to get legal guidance about engaging in certain activities and whether that will make it more likely that your case will be resolved favorably or unfavorably. When the stakes of your situation are this high, it is far better to be safe than sorry.