As lawyers we often find ourselves having to advise clients to be careful of the use of social networking sites such as facebook. However it now appears that some couples are taking matters into their own hands and intentionally using facebook as a tool against their partner. In a recent case, a couple have gone to extreme lengths in order to prove some wrongdoing. Angela Voelkert created a profile on the site for “Jessica” a 17 year old teenager living in the area close to her estranged Husband, David. Once “Jessica” and David had become friends on the site an exchange of emails followed that culminated in David confirming he had fixed a tracking device to his Wife’s car and planned to have her killed. Ms. Voelkert reported these messages to the police, who promptly charged Mr. Voelkert. However the twist in the tale comes four days later when David produces an affidavit stating that he was aware “Jessica” was in fact his wife and that he had “no plans” to harm anyone. He went on to state that he played along with the scam and created the false murder plot “to gain positive proof that it is indeed my ex-wife trying to again tamper in my life.” He appears to have signed the affidavit some six days before the discussions with “Jessica.” This case just goes to show the lengths that some people will go to when involved within acrimonious divorce proceedings. Whilst the steps taken in this case would never be advocated by lawyers it is important to be aware of your online presence at all times, especially when going through legal proceedings.
