I subscribe to LinkedIn’s White Collar Criminal Defense Attorney Group. Someone posted on it a blog page from Expert Bail Bonds a nationwide network of bail agents listing groups of people who should not be on your Facebook friends list. The author points out that a juror was jailed for three days after sending a friendship request to a defendant in an automobile negligence case.

While the author is right that certain groups of people, such as (a)people you do not know, (b) the nosy police officer ¹, (c) the DA if you have a pending criminal matter, (d) your your bail bonds agent, and (e) a juror in your trial should not be friended the author is wrong in many respects. The author also lists your grandmother and your wife among others.

The issue is not who you friend, but what you say. In the Twenty-first century you cannot assume that anything you say on line, or most any other place will be confidential. You must assume that your grandmother as well as the nosy police officer ² will find out what you say. A friend of mine was diagnosed with cancer. One of his daughters posted it on facebook before her brothers and sisters knew about it–not cool.

Statements such “I got loaded last night and almost had an accident driving home” or “That was really good stuff at the party” should not be placed on Facebook. Likewise coded messages such as I have “two cars” (which every law enforcement officer knows that it means “two kilos of cocaine”) to sell should not be posted on facebook. These statements cannot only get you arrested but can be admitted at trial as a “party admission” exception to the hearsay rule.

Apologies–We’ve had some internet connection problems. They seem to be all over and we are back.

Thank you for your patience.

Zadik Shapiro