Facebook Postings Can Lead to Huge Damage Awards – Even Loss of House
The hypothetical situation: A local Facebook Group makes egregious false statements suggesting falsely that individuals have committed crimes, even repeating similar false statements over a period of months in an attempt to make false claims sound legit. When confronted, it doubles down on the postings which only provides further evidence of actionable malice.
HUGE Awards for damages: The law does not look fondly on actions like this. The offense is Facebook defamation and it can lead to some huge jury awards or large settlements. A post made about a woman got her a settlement of $500,000. Details here: In another case, “venting” on Facebook led to a $65,000 defamation judgment and liability for 3rd party comments. Details Here: A $75,000 defamation award for false allegations against a female prison officer: Details Here. Many more examples are out there. It is not an amusing situation at all as unfortunately there are some who believe false accusations. However, it is clear, in the end it could cost a Facebook Admin his/her house and those who chime in might have to shell out thousands.
Bottom Line: Unless someone has actually been arrested for a crime and you have an official law enforcement Press Release to prove it, it’s never a good idea to use Facebook to accuse anyone of anything illegal. Gardner Magazine, for example, does not customarily publish the names of those arrested, the names of crime victims, or the names of accident victims. That way, for example, an innocent person is not victimized by an internet article which never goes away and a family does not have to relive a tragedy which keeps coming up with an internet search. We will publish an official Press Release as appropriate. Maintaining the dignity of individuals is important. Unfortunately today, many people are victimized by those getting a thrill out of getting the reactions of others by simply making things up. Fortunately, that thrill eventually costs them – big time!