Prosecutors need to communicate with the citizens regarding criminal activities. Prosecutors use social media to fulfill their responsibilities. The use of social websites attracts users to acknowledge about the case and provide their views and opinions on the case. Prosecutors prefer to use social media to provide a brief overview of the case to the general public. Social websites can put a positive or negative impact on the role of a prosecutor who has to coordinate with the citizens of his jurisdiction.
Social media can help in spreading the message quickly and shortly. Prosecutors need to convey a short story to the public. Youngsters may not take an interest in the whole story, and they just want to have a brief discussion of the case. Videos and highlights can do the task prominently. It is obvious that Prosecutors may receive some vague comments or fake videos on these websites. Prosecutor can respond to the negative or fictitious portrayal in the social media regarding criminal events. The false picture of the event should be countered by the prosecutors according to the legal requirements. Prosecutors may suffer due to the involvement of thousands of people on these sites. Every person may have different perception regarding each criminal case. Some people may direct target the jurisdiction regarding the decisions (Hoffmeister, 2014).
Social media can also be used to protect the victims of crime as prosecutors may highlight the issues and reasons of crimes. The use of social websites like Twitter and Facebook may result in a risk of securing an impartial jury. These sites allow everyone to respond that may create a negative perception in the public regarding the sentences of courts. Some influential personalities may be accused of the criminal activity, some citizens may oppose their fair trial. In such type of cases, prosecutors are not allowed to leak the information on social media as it may put negative effects on the court proceedings (McHale, 2012).
As social media gives a right to every person to share their opinions and view, it will not be easier for the prosecutors to stop the negative perceptions created in the society. A campaign can be made on the social websites for accused person that can affect the society badly. The Biblical worldview is also dominant in the criminal cases and prosecutors may share sufficient information with the public to receive their thoughts. Biblical worldview may be opposed to court sentences so the prosecutors should analyze the risk of using social media and avoid such type of misperception within the society. A prosecutor may file an appeal in the Supreme Court to challenge the sentence of the lower courts (Foth, Brynskov, & Ojala, 2015).
Prosecutors use social websites to interact with the general public. They also share ideas, opinions, and reviews with the citizens. However, it may result in negative perception regarding the sentences of courts. Prosecutors should analyze the situation while using social websites and spread the information that is relevant to the public. If anything restricts by the law in providing a rationale, it should be completely addressed by the prosecutor. A prosecutor is a responsible person to deal with the jurisdiction so he should consider ethical responsibilities. He should be well-known of the risks of using social media for his professional career and try to mitigate it.
References
Foth, M., Brynskov, M., & Ojala, T. (2015). Citizen’s Right to the Digital City: Urban Interfaces, Activism, and Placemaking. New York: Springer.
Hoffmeister, T. A. (2014). Social Media in the Courtroom: A New Era for Criminal Justice? Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO.
McHale, R. (2012). Navigating Social Media Legal Risks: Safeguarding Your Business. New York: Que Publishing.
