Social Media and Criminal Law

In the past few years, the way people share information and personal stories has radically changed. While altering the social landscape, online photo and video archives have also provided the criminal justice system with a new database for verifying locations of suspects and what events were occurring at that time. Whether placing a suspect at a certain party with a certain group of potential witnesses or proving an alibi true, social media evidence has become the digital equivalent of a private detective.

Contact Austin criminal defense lawyer Ian Inglis at 512-472-1950 to learn more about your legal rights during criminal proceedings and what you can do to protect your freedom.

Types of Social Media Evidence

It is a well-known fact of criminal justice that cases hinge on how the evidence relates to the major figures. Often a fiber or article of clothing can provide enough evidence to lead prosecutors to build a case against a particular suspect. Rarely is photographic evidence quite so present or comprehensive to solve a given case, but this may change with increased social media presence. Outlets such as Myspace or Facebook have the potential to provide the following types of evidence:

• Photographs
• Video clips
• Status updates and personal notes
• Posts and updates from site friends
• Audio clips

In the case of criminal defense, these pieces of evidence can be crucial to determining guilt or innocence. Especially considering that the legal ownership of these properties may rest with the website upon posting, cooperation between authorities and social media companies may grow to be a more common part of criminal cases.

Contact Us

If you are facing criminal charges, a strong legal defense can help prepare you for what comes next. Contact Austin criminal defense attorney Ian Inglis at 512-472-1950 for legal advice concerning your case today.