TOLEDO, Ohio — You're scrolling through Facebook and see a thread of people going back and forth.
Maybe someone is slamming someone's business, saying they kill puppies in their store. It's an outlandish claim and it might make you wonder if there are any consequences for keyboard warriors who make things a little too personal.
Let's VERIFY.
THE QUESTION
Whether it's true or false, can you take someone to court for defacing someone on social media?
THE SOURCE
- Attorney Ben Padanilam
THE ANSWER
Yes, slamming someone on social media can get you sued.
WHAT WE FOUND
Our source is attorney Ben Padanilam with Mayle LLC.
"Social media is becoming more prevalent so those cases are becoming more common because people have a lot more confidence nowadays, even just firing off their thoughts and feelings about people, true or false," Padanilam said.
Defamation cases can fall under different categories. Libel is typically written while slander is often spoken.
In a Sandusky County lawsuit from 2017, a man brought a defamation claim and evidence against a woman who posted on social media about him. The lawsuit states that she posted online that he was hooked on porn and watched dirty movies with teenage girls.
The claims primarily pertained to an ongoing court battle regarding a child the two had together.
He ended up winning the case.
"What that case teaches us is that the courts are recognizing that social media is pervasive," Padanilam said.
Advice from Padanilam is not to post things that simply aren't true.
And if someone is posting something about you with ill intentions: "If someone is saying you're killing puppies in the back of your business and that's obviously not true, you can take some actions, that even threatening action like a cease and desist letter or certain things to make them take those posts down or short of pouring all your resources into a lawsuit that you might win but might not be worth all the time and money you put into it," Padanilam said.
Now there is a difference in defamation between public and private people. The punishments can be more harsh for someone in a public position like an elected official versus someone who isn't in a public position.
It's also more likely someone in a public position or someone with a business will bring you to court.
The moral of the story: make sure you have all your facts straight before you post.
So yes, be careful what you post on social media because it can get you sued.