Social Media Law Enforcement
Law Enforcement and Social Media Social media is new tool for law enforcement that has proven instrumental in community oriented policing. As times and technology advance, police need to keep up to maintain the edge against criminals. The internet, social media in particular, is a relatively new occurrence, and how to most effectively utilize it as a crime fighting tool has probably not even been realized yet. Criminals are not known to be the brightest bunch, and there are new stories every day of some knucklehead posting incriminating evidence online and getting arrested for it. If information is made public via social media, then there is no expectation of privacy and it can be used against you. Social media is allowing law enforcement to connect with their communities in new and exciting ways, giving officers a face and bringing them closer to the community.
Uses for …show more content…
Social Media
The use of Social Media by law enforcement has been a tremendous step forward for community policing and outreach. Using social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook helps humanize police departments, showing that officers are people that live in the community (Roufa, 2017). Police being involved and active in the community is the bedrock of community-oriented policing, and access to social media is a fantastic tool to have. Anthony Posey, a professional photographer, had his camera stolen when he was visiting Seattle (Johnson, 2015). The camera was picked up by police in a street-buy sting operation, and thanks to the Seattle Police Department’s community outreach program, Sgt. Whitcomb of the SPD was able post a few pictures online and find Mr. Posey through various messaging boards. All this was possible because of social media, and the camera was returned to Mr. Posey, who was home in Louisiana (Johnson, 2015).
Social media sites are also helping law enforcement catch some of the dumber criminals. Pictures posted on sites such as Facebook can be used as evidence in court, and criminals can incriminate themselves if they are not careful. However, anything not posted publicly will still require a warrant for access. Darrin Anderson of Minnesota was under suspicion of using a fake Facebook profile to solicit underage girls for sex. When provided with a warrant, Facebook turned over 800 chat messages between Anderson and underage girls, leading to his arrest and eventual sentence of 12 years in prison (Kelly, 2012).
Social media is allowing the police to connect with the community faster than ever, such as getting information out about dangerous situations and finding wanted persons. Justin Kuijer of Ontario, Canada was on the run from police after leaving his stepson in critical condition at their home and latter attempting to stab a woman in a grocery store robbery (Justin Kuijer quickly, 2017). This guy was a menace and a danger to the local population, and the Ontario police department needed to find him sooner rather than later. After releasing his photo on social media sites and informing the public, Kuijer was identified 2,000 miles from home by a civilian who saw his face online, who then promptly called the police. Social media is helping law enforcement inform the public and catch bad guys.
Right to Privacy If something is posted on a public forum, such as Facebook or twitter, there is no expectation of privacy.
There are multiple ways that this can affect us, the most obvious being posting something incriminating online, but there are a few others as well. Police departments are checking possible candidate’s social media accounts in order screen for possible disqualifiers and to ensure they will not discredit the department (Roufa, 2017). Anything private will still require law enforcement going through the proper channels, usually requiring a warrant (Kelly, 2012). There has been multiple cases where someone has tried to argue that information found on social media is personal, but the courts have stood by the ruling that anything posted publicly does not have a legitimate expectation of privacy (Bianca, 2015). The Fourth District Court of Florida recently ruled that “…generally, the photographs posted on a social networking site are neither privileged nor protected by any right of privacy, regardless of any privacy settings that the user may have established” (Nucci v. Target Corp,
2015).
Conclusion The use of social media by law enforcement is allowing them to connect and interact with the community in ways that would not be possible in the past. Everyone is connected through the internet and various social media sights; it makes sense that law enforcement would follow suite and use it to their advantage. Weather it is catching a pedophile trying to prey on children using a fake Facebook account, or checking Craigslist for a lost camera, police are learning all kinds of new skills in the digital age. I am looking forward to see how these skills evolve over the years.
Uses for …show more content…
Social Media
The use of Social Media by law enforcement has been a tremendous step forward for community policing and outreach. Using social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook helps humanize police departments, showing that officers are people that live in the community (Roufa, 2017). Police being involved and active in the community is the bedrock of community-oriented policing, and access to social media is a fantastic tool to have. Anthony Posey, a professional photographer, had his camera stolen when he was visiting Seattle (Johnson, 2015). The camera was picked up by police in a street-buy sting operation, and thanks to the Seattle Police Department’s community outreach program, Sgt. Whitcomb of the SPD was able post a few pictures online and find Mr. Posey through various messaging boards. All this was possible because of social media, and the camera was returned to Mr. Posey, who was home in Louisiana (Johnson, 2015).
Social media sites are also helping law enforcement catch some of the dumber criminals. Pictures posted on sites such as Facebook can be used as evidence in court, and criminals can incriminate themselves if they are not careful. However, anything not posted publicly will still require a warrant for access. Darrin Anderson of Minnesota was under suspicion of using a fake Facebook profile to solicit underage girls for sex. When provided with a warrant, Facebook turned over 800 chat messages between Anderson and underage girls, leading to his arrest and eventual sentence of 12 years in prison (Kelly, 2012).
Social media is allowing the police to connect with the community faster than ever, such as getting information out about dangerous situations and finding wanted persons. Justin Kuijer of Ontario, Canada was on the run from police after leaving his stepson in critical condition at their home and latter attempting to stab a woman in a grocery store robbery (Justin Kuijer quickly, 2017). This guy was a menace and a danger to the local population, and the Ontario police department needed to find him sooner rather than later. After releasing his photo on social media sites and informing the public, Kuijer was identified 2,000 miles from home by a civilian who saw his face online, who then promptly called the police. Social media is helping law enforcement inform the public and catch bad guys.
Right to Privacy If something is posted on a public forum, such as Facebook or twitter, there is no expectation of privacy.
There are multiple ways that this can affect us, the most obvious being posting something incriminating online, but there are a few others as well. Police departments are checking possible candidate’s social media accounts in order screen for possible disqualifiers and to ensure they will not discredit the department (Roufa, 2017). Anything private will still require law enforcement going through the proper channels, usually requiring a warrant (Kelly, 2012). There has been multiple cases where someone has tried to argue that information found on social media is personal, but the courts have stood by the ruling that anything posted publicly does not have a legitimate expectation of privacy (Bianca, 2015). The Fourth District Court of Florida recently ruled that “…generally, the photographs posted on a social networking site are neither privileged nor protected by any right of privacy, regardless of any privacy settings that the user may have established” (Nucci v. Target Corp,
2015).
Conclusion The use of social media by law enforcement is allowing them to connect and interact with the community in ways that would not be possible in the past. Everyone is connected through the internet and various social media sights; it makes sense that law enforcement would follow suite and use it to their advantage. Weather it is catching a pedophile trying to prey on children using a fake Facebook account, or checking Craigslist for a lost camera, police are learning all kinds of new skills in the digital age. I am looking forward to see how these skills evolve over the years.