TECH LOCAL: Residents Say Facebook Platform of Choice for Monitoring Communities

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A number of residents have detailed acts of vandalism perpetuated by local youth on local community Facebook pages this summer.

Specifically, residents have seen reports of broken windshields and windows, a broken mason jar glass thrown in a community pool and signage defaced with graffiti.

Following the controversy over a citizen publishing on Facebook the photo of two Bristow boys who allegedly threw rocks at moving cars on Sudley Manor Drive in July, the discussion moved from criminal law to first amendment rights.

Residents have mixed feelings about the appropriateness of having used social media to expose these two boys. However, the prevailing opinion is that this platform will ultimately help parents keep an eye on their children.

“If my kids were involved in that kind of nonsense and Facebook outed their behavior, so be it. Hopefully they would think twice about doing said nonsense EVER again for fear of massive social embarrassment, hitting them where it hurts,” Hillary Pippen Boswell said. “You reap what you sow.”

Other parents agree that this public exhibition would serve as deterrents for fear that children’s parents would discover their negative behavior.

“If anything, word of mouth could prevent other kids from similar crimes,” Diandra Copening Munoz said. “Fear is a huge motivator, and the fear of mom and dad finding out via Facebook just might work as a great deterrent.”

The discussion also turned to personal privacy in light of the age of the two boys.

“Whether those particular kids were responsible or not, unsupervised minors need to be aware that there is no expectation of privacy in a public place—no matter their actual age,” Trudi Dixon said. “It's simply the state of the world we live in today.”

However, some expressed concern that the inherent risk targeting minors on Facebook in this way could lead to harmful false accusations.

“However, all of these comments seem to presume that the person reporting these incidents did their due diligence or the offenders were caught in the act. What if you're wrong?” Matthew Cioletti said.

The Prince William County Police do not actively monitor private group Facebook pages; they caution residents from posting images of juveniles and instead ask them to report suspicious activity.

“As a government agency, I know I cannot release identifying information on juvenile arrestees, but I’m not sure there is anything preventing other non-affiliated community members from doing so,” police spokesman Jonathan Perok said. “Obviously I see the concerns on both sides and would generally say that posting public information, especially on juveniles, should be discouraged to a certain degree.”

While posting about crime on neighborhood websites decreases the levels of privacy for individuals in those neighborhoods, most seem to be willing to trade privacy for safety.

If posting information about crime in their neighborhoods makes those neighborhoods safer, many Bristow residents are willing to sacrifice their privacy for security.

“Social media is a very good way to make people aware of what is going on in their communities, especially when it comes to crimes—juvenile or other,” Veronica L. Cowan said. “I feel it makes people more aware of their surroundings.”

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