Social media crimes: technology continues to morph justice system in Franklin County
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(Franklin County) — With today’s smartphone technology, one minute a teen can be taking and sharing pictures with multiple friends — and just as simply find themselves facing multiple criminal charges.
Particularly once the clothes come off for pictures, children and teens can run afoul of sexting laws — both by accepting photos and sharing them electronically. Although it is rare to prosecute, Franklin County District Attorney Matt Fogal said it’s even technically illegal for a juvenile to have a nude photo of him or herself.
Waynesboro Police reports showed that there were also a slew of sexting charges over the last year around the Waynesboro area, specifically involving juveniles.
“We certainly see it,” Fogal said of the sexting and social media related crimes in juvenile court. “There was a time earlier on when we saw a spike.”
In the last week, the Franklin County Courthouse saw two cases disposed of, involving the use of social media for sex-related offenses. One of those cases involved three Waynesboro Area Senior High School students who created a Twitter page called “Waynesboro Nudes,” which depicted teen girls either nude or in various forms of undress.
Fogul said in the last few years, laws were changed significantly to prevent younger people from being charged with severe child pornography charges when sharing intimate photos with each other. He now goes around to middle schools to discuss sexting and the laws to help students understand what they’re doing can not only be illegal, but also have serious personal ramifications.
Though far from an overwhelming part of the county’s criminal case load, there have been adjustments made around the county as new media has both helped and complicated crimes.
Changing times, and technology
From the investigative standpoint, Waynesboro Police Chief James Sourbier said his department has seen a distinct increase in crimes involving social media.
“We all know, since the beginning of law enforcement, that we have had to modify and adapt our methodologies to keep pace with the developments with technology,” Sourbier said. “The use of social media is a natural extension of a cascading process.”
Sgt. Matthew Cody of the Chambersburg Police Department noted that it began years ago, when the drug trade predominantly used mobile devices as a part of their dealings. Now, Cody said, social media is used for all sorts of things.
Sourbier and Fogal also acknowledged that it is rarely just social media but also the use of various devices that increase the complexity of investigations.
Fogal’s office often assists police departments with contacting social media networks and phone companies to gather information.
“Serving a search warrant on a company can be difficult,” Cody said. Sourbeir added that often each of the companies have different processes for how law enforcement is expected to obtain information.
“Each and every one of the organizations that manage them seem to have separate rules that they play by,” Sourbier said. “They require separate types of documents, court orders or subpoenas.”
As an example, Fogal said Facebook has a specific form that law enforcement has to fill out to access information, while Sourbier mentioned sometimes companies have designated employees to work with law enforcement.
One of the issues, Fogal said, comes from the ability to access phones and how sometimes, without the person’s cooperation, they can’t look at a phone’s contents.
Sourbier said sometimes it comes from companies seeking to protect a right to free speech, which creates a hurdle that is valid, but troubling.
Fogal said that while there are issues related to that, there are also prosecutors across the country championing legislation in attempts to adjust for these social media practices.
While social media has also become a useful investigative tool, according to Sourbier and Cody, Sourbier noted that it has required special training for his officers.
“As with any new technology, people find ways to use it for good and other people find ways to use it for evil.,” Cody said. “The hard part is keeping training for law enforcement officers up to date. The law needs to be updated with technology. It’s hard to catch.”
Staff writer Becky Metrick can be reached at 717-262-4762
This article comes to us through a partnership between Public Opinion Online and WITF.
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