Busted on Social Media - Police Video

Busted on Social Media

Gang busted on Social Media. According to police: The gangs were taunting on Facebook, bragging about shootings online. The gangs allegedly used social media to intimidate witnesses and others, calling them snitches and stating that if they cooperated with law enforcement  they would be "taken care of." Possible 25 year penalties for the 25 that were busted using social media. Social media led to their demise, as cops monitored and befriended the suspects.

Tom Julin: Not Everything an Attorney Says On a Website Is True!

Hi kids, it's Friday!

The above 15 minute "educational" video (i.e., kinda boring) stars a lot of old white men from Tally who are red-faced, wear bow-ties, and who seem to know something about the history of merit retention in this State.

Oh yeah, plus Justice Barkett.

If you want to skip the video, here's the takeaway:  vote NO on all the Constitutional Amendments and YES to retain our Justices.

In other news, Tom Julin says not everyone who claims to be an expert on social media actually is one:

"There is so much written about social media and technology these days that I see a lot of attorneys boast about being experts on the subject on their websites," Julin said. "It's not clear to me that they are legitimate experts in that field, but there is certainly money to be made in it."

Hmm, just what is Tom trying to say?

Finally, is it the anniversary of Kristallnacht yet?

Oh well, close enough.

Have a great weekend!

New Way to Represent Client: Send Tweet to Miami Herald!

All you social media quasi-lawyer types Tannebaum is always talking about, take note:  here is the intersection of law and Twitter, revealed:

An attorney representing the former University of Miami Hurricanes safety said Tuesday night that he plans to file an injunction later this week to reinstate Armstrong to the Hurricanes football team.

The Orlando-based attorney, Matt Morgan, sent a tweet to The Miami Herald on Tuesday, saying, "We do not agree with the way they have handled Ray Ray. A very talented athlete's career is at stake.'' 

Although my research is not yet complete, I'm pretty sure "Matt Morgan" is not the popular wrestler with a large Twitter following from Lake Mary, FL.

Actually, he is this guy -- hold on, Matt the Orlando lawyer has 2043 2044 followers!

(That may be more than the Herald nowadays).

Matt also has this great quote on his bio page:

The moral arc of the universe bends at the elbow of justice.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Not bad, but I prefer this:

 

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/08/08/2938965/attorney-ray-ray-armstrong-plans.html#storylink=cpy

Ferrer Shane Isn't Afraid of Your Negative Review.

These PI guys who like to hug themselves aren't afraid of your negative social media reviews.

How do I know?

Because they said so right here:

It's the age of social media, but most lawyers aren't into it. Why is that? Perhaps it's because they're afraid--afraid of tarnishing their image by having a Facebook page. Afraid of the time and effort it takes to be online. Afraid of a negative review.

We're not.

We're on Facebook. We're on Twitter. We're even on Instagram, posting pictures like nobody's business. (The truth is, we like this stuff.)

We don't get too worked up about image. 

Sheesh, that is a relief.

Ok, let's take a look at their Instagram photos:

 What beautiful files!

(BTW, I'm pretty sure they are both facebooking.)

You know what, I like these guys -- you are welcome to submit a guest post, fellas!

Criminal Defense and Social Media

Tampa Criminal Defense

Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney saw reports of a news article in the National Law Journal (NLJ) suggesting that people use information about clients on Facebook and MySpace as mitigating evidence. One Federal Defense Attorney suggested, "We should be asking every client if they have a social network account, and if so, to cease and desist using it immediately."

The defense attorney also suggested, "It is also a good idea, if they have one of these accounts, to get access to it, just as you would get school, psych and medical records. You may learn something about the client that he didn't tell you, which could give a good lead for other mitigation, or alert you to potentially damaging info that you may need to address."

Finally an experienced federal defense attorney noted, "The [NLJ] article's suggestion that defendants use Facebook as a "sentencing advocacy tool" by contacting all of their "friends" seems nothing short of reckless." The attorney continued, "[T]here is arguably little value to the positive comments posted by 1000 friends who don't really know the client either, and probably have gotten their facts from the client. Having a client post anything about his or her case anywhere is ill-advised as that information could be used against the client by the probation office or prosecutors if a friend provides it to them."

I agree with our source.