Member Avatar for MktgRob

http://mashable.com/2009/10/10/facebook-poke-arrest/

In a society that has become as litigious as ours, this was inevitable. If you read the link above you will find out that a woman has been charged with violating an order of protection for poking someone on Facebook. If found guilty, the woman could get a month in jail and a $2,500 fine. Based on the court order the logic behind the charge is solid but this is sad from the point of a view that we have become so sensitive that we will sue for anything at the drop of a hat. While I am on facebook I am not an expert but I thought that if you blocked someone they could not contact you. Am I wrong on this?

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Short answer for and : the legal risk here isn’t the mechanic of a “poke” — it’s the wording and scope of the protective/no‑contact order. Courts and prosecutors increasingly treat social‑media actions (pokes, likes, tags, comments) as forms of “contact” when an order broadly forbids communication; blocking can reduce what the protected person sees, but it doesn’t retroactively change whether someone attempted contact. (findlaw.com)

This is not just theory. Law enforcement has used screen grabs and platform records to allege violations, and defense attorneys have sought Facebook records to determine who actually made a post or poke and when. Those examples show both how evidence is gathered and why platform logs can matter in court. (abcnews.go.com)

Practical takeaways: if you obtained a protective order, document every unwanted contact (screenshots, printouts with visible timestamps), report the item to the platform, give copies to law enforcement, and ask the court to include explicit social‑media language in the order so enforcement is clear. If you’re subject to an order, stop all direct and indirect contact (comments, likes, tags, friend requests, or using third parties) and consult an attorney before interacting online — judges will usually enforce broadly written “no contact” terms. (findlaw.com)

If accused, preserve your own account data (login times, IPs, devices) and get counsel quickly; platforms can be asked for logs that confirm or refute who acted. This is general information, not legal advice — for case‑specific guidance contact a local attorney. (abcnews.go.com)

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Member Avatar for InsightsDigital

Wow - this is scary. I really thought that on Facebook, only friends could poke you. Thus, this lawsuit represents a new realm of legal liability cases - liability for online behavior. I am afraid this type of lawsuits will cause a slippery slope. What do you think? What's next - being sued for sending a virtual gift?

Member Avatar for MktgRob

Wow - this is scary. I really thought that on Facebook, only friends could poke you. Thus, this lawsuit represents a new realm of legal liability cases - liability for online behavior. I am afraid this type of lawsuits will cause a slippery slope. What do you think? What's next - being sued for sending a virtual gift?

How about being sued for sexual harrasment for sending a winking emoticon. Sounds idiotic and ridiculous but we are living in an age where inmates are suing prisons because they are getting oatmeal cookies as a snack when they wanted chocolate chip (and yes, this did happen!)

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