Instagram is used for witness intimidation: Philly DA

Instagram is the latest platform for witness intimidation, according to a pair of city assistant district attorneys, Newsworks reported.

People will take cell phone photos of witnesses testifying in court and use the social network to spread the word about it, according to the Newsworks report. So, Newsworks wondered, why not ban cell phones in court?

Common Pleas Court President Judge Pamela Dembe said she’s looking into it, but even if her office decides it’s the right move, it won’t be easy.

From Newsworks:

Even if the data suggest the problem is as prevalent and damaging as the DA’s office says it is, Dembe says the logistics of implementing a ban are daunting.

Should the ban be applied to everyone in the courtroom? Even lawyers? Cops? Witnesses? Journalists?

“And then [the question becomes], how at the door to the courthouse does somebody enforce ‘this one can have it, that one can’t have it’ without having lines that go on and on and on?” said Dembe.

Read or listen to the whole Newsworks story here.

It’s not the first time the District Attorney’s Office has had issues with social media being used for witness intimidation. Earlier this year, D.A. Seth Williams sent Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg a letter urging him to take down the Facebook page of a user who he said was using the social network to intimidate a witness.