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#ThinkBeforeYouPost

01 July 2021
Issue: 7939 / Categories: Legal News , In Court
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The Attorney General has warned against social media posts that prejudice trials, following a rash of incidents

One woman streamed more than an hour of her partner’s Crown court trial to Facebook. In February 2021, she received a four-month suspended sentence and a costs bill of £500.

Another woman posted information and photographs that she said were of Jon Venables (a court order forbidding identification of Venables has been in place since 2001), and got an eight-month suspended sentence and a £10,000 costs order for her troubles. Contempt proceedings for breaching the same court order have been brought against a further eight people.

Attorney General Michael Ellis QC this week launched a #ThinkBeforeYouPost campaign to highlight the dangers of posting prejudicial information online. Contempt attracts punishment of a fine or up to two years in prison.

Ellis said: ‘A mis-judged tweet or post could have grave repercussions and interfere with a trial.’

Issue: 7939 / Categories: Legal News , In Court
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