New York – A judge says an Occupy Wall Street protester can’t stop prosecutors from getting his tweets as part of a case surrounding his arrest at a demonstration.
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A Manhattan criminal court judge ruled Friday there are reasonable grounds to believe the information is relevant. The judge also says Malcolm Harris can’t legally challenge the subpoena sent to Twitter Inc., not him.
Harris was among more than 700 demonstrators arrested Oct. 1 on the Brooklyn Bridge.
Harris’ lawyer, Martin Stolar, says he strongly disagrees with the ruling. He argues that although the tweets were sent publicly, some of the information sought violates Harris’ privacy and free association rights.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office has said it’s fair to pursue messages Harris sent worldwide. Prosecutors say the tweets may contradict his defense.
He I come, give me your Google searches, Tweets, Emails etc.
We really lost it all to the Government. Founding fathers are turning in their graves.
I think it’s quite common for a defendant’s writings to be used as evidence against him at trial. Just because it’s sent electronically doesn’t mean it’s protected.
This was not a privileged communication with his attorney or “spiritual advisor.” This was an electronic message sent out to the world (as noted in the article).