Facebook tag coupled with an abusive message ruled to breach US restraining order
A New York judge has ruled that tagging another person in a Facebook post is enough to breach a restraining order, marking a strong precedent for online communications in the country.
As legal minds deliberate some of the repercussions of features on social media websites on privacy and common law, this latest case has deemed that the notification generated by a Facebook tag was enough to constitute a break a protection order.
The New York Law Journal reported that Maria Gonzalez was banned from contacting her sister-in-law Maribel Calderon under a restraining order.
In a legal precedent, she was found to breach this order by posting the message which dubbed Maribel as “stupid” and her family “sad”.
It added: “You guys have to come stronger than that!! I'm way over you guys but I guess not in ya agenda."
By tagging the individual in the post, acting Westchester County supreme court justice Susan Capeci said the communication counted as a restricted contact.
The breach could land Ms Gonzalez with as much as a year in prison.