Probationers Being Forced To Hand Over Social Network Passwords

June 14 2011 KRIS TV 10 Corpus Christi Texas Nueces County Court #2 is fourcing some probationers to give them all their social media passwords to probation officers. Judge Lisa Gonzales is pionering the new option for the county,allowing probation officers the ability to look up accounts on social networks for inappropriate activity.I do not know how to bring the video and news article here can someone help? This seems to be another case of Judges makeing the law as they see it !

Hmm... I don't see that lasting very long, it is a complete violation of personal privacy.

When you are on probation, you still have rights as a citizen. Your probation officer can't come in to your house if you aren't there, so it's not any different than your personal space online. If they have access to someone's social media, they potentially have access to personal and very private information.

If I were living there, I would immediately challenge it in the courts all the way up to the Supreme Court if necessary.

~Namaste

reply to post by granpabobby

It took some digging but I found it for ya'! Source

Copy url--->ATS posting page--->Click link--->Name your link--->Paste url--->Voila!

reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne


What if the probation officer dosent like you ? He could simply go to a wi fi spot type in something incriminateing...and bust the probationer for it.

reply to post by loveguy


THANK YOU I hope to be able to add media in the future..I personaly feel the Judge has far overstepped her office I bet sombodys going to sue !!

reply to post by granpabobby


Correct me if I'm wrong;
Is it not the probation officer's responsibility to keep his probationers from obtaining gainful employment and locked-up for the duration of their sentence?

I say it like it is in reference to the experience of a relative. If he obtains employment before his dead-line, he still gets locked-up for some "justification."

Do these officers have the right to open and read the probationers mail?

I don't see how they can enforce this.

How do they know someone has an account or not? Are they monitoring everything people on probation do on the internet? Would this be legal for people on Probation? It seems they would have to specifically stipulate in the probation agreement that all of your internet traffic will be monitored, if not, they can't look at it.

So, what if someone creates a fake account about you? Probation officer demands password, you don't give it to him because it's not your account, do you go back to jail?

Couldn't an arse hole probation officer (all of them) create a fake profile for someone, with the sole purpose of sending the person back to jail when they don't hand over the password, once again because it isn't their account? Yes they could.

Years ago some enemies I had at the time created a fake myspace profile about me. I got in some trouble with my job because of it, and lost a girlfriend I had. If I was on probation, how do I prove it isn't my account?

This just seems far too easy to abuse, not to mention the privacy issues. I shouldn't be surprised though, this country wont be happy until you cant take a poo without asking for permission, and getting a written poo card that entitles you to 2 poos per day, or else you go to jail.

reply to post by James1982


This happened to my girlfriend .She was on probation and had to report.Every other time the officer was out of the office .So my girlfriend had a secretary sign a notebook date and time.Sure enough the head of the probation office called telling her that her probation was to be canceled due to not showing up.After showing the officer her signed notebook papers she was kept on probation and the parole officer was fired. Useing social media is just another way to remove what few rights a person on parole has . Hey Judge !!..Who will watch all of the computers ?Who will pay for it ? Sounds like another tax burden !!

"And your gonna have to give me your facebook password" "By the way, Add me."

Hilarious... Thats just ridiculous.

"Hmm, these pictures of the sleepover have been getting alot of views lately"

In the case of monitoring a pedophile I would think giveing the court your passwords would be a good thing .
Pedophiles are predators and need watched .

A very dear friend of mine is on probation for a misdemeanor. The probation department has ruined his life on multiple occasions.
He has lost several jobs due to the probation officer demanding he show up on days the officer knew he was scheduled to work. Then the officer violated his probation for losing his job. He even has letters from two previous employers that say they will rehire him only once he is oFF probation and won't miss work just to go check in with his po.
I have seen them simply walk into his house at all hours un invited and checked everyone's id for warrants and such before searching his house and leaving it in shambles. Once this was during a dinner party for his job and we all stayed to clean up afterwards.

as for cases like pedophiles and gangs I believe such force may be necessary. But for small crimes like possession of pot once 3 years ago I think they have a ridiculous amount of power to ruin peoples lives.
I have even seen the probation dept stop the bart train and id everyone on it in order to catch probation runners. It's gone too far when they hold up public transportation simply for one person who didn't keep their appointment on tuesday or something stupid like that.

We should do away with probabtion. Either you serve your punishment in jail or you're free to go. All probation is, is a method to make you pay probation fees, while the state does it's best to make you mess up. Once you mess up you goto jail, serve your full sentence, and you're out the probation free.

Under probation you are more likely to relapse, your freedoms are reduced to less than a prisoners, and if you mess up at any point (and statistically, you will) you go back to jail. The end effect is you pay more money, waste more time, and serve a longer sentence.

It should be a violation of cruel and unusual punishment.

Lol. that's a no brainer, just don't have any,or if you do, never use those and create new ones under an alias from a different IP

Judges are so out of touch with reality

Probation sucks.

That is all I have to say about that.

originally posted by: SPECULUM
Lol. that's a no brainer, just don't have any,or if you do, never use those and create new ones under an alias from a different IP

Judges are so out of touch with reality

This doesn't actually work because of a concept that's known as linkable data. Assuming of course that the person is competent at being a stalker (atleast competent enough to use the LEO tools) the name on the account is irrelevant. What they're looking for is photos of you at events with various people. Facial recognition software can take it from there. Your associates posting pictures of what they're doing, if it includes you will tell LEO's what you're doing. If you comment from there, either under your name or another name they can pinpoint what account is yours.

originally posted by: SonOfTheLawOfOne
Hmm... I don't see that lasting very long, it is a complete violation of personal privacy.

When you are on probation, you still have rights as a citizen.

Considering the feds excuse their warantless surveilence as being an integral part of "national defense" (cue groans and boos at this overused and abused concept), America has raped and murdered the concept of personal privacy... she ain't coming back, folks.

Actually people on probation do not have the same rights as other citizens, they sign away those rights voluntarily when they enter into the legal contract of probation with the state.

Let's look at some of the rights people give away when they enter into probation.

The right to free assembly.

People on probation are no longer able to visit with nor communicate with people involved in past criminal activities, nor people involved in current criminal activities

The right to privacy.

People on probation can and will have to submit to drug testing and even scrutiny of legal activities such as drinking.

The right to the freedom of movement.

People on probation have to notify their probation officers and get permission before leaving the state for any extended period of time. Some people on modified forms of probation even have to wear ankle monitors that monitor their location.

No people on probation do not have the same rights as other citizens, they don't even have the same rights as paroles who have served their full time in jail. They have waved many of their rights by entering into a legal contract with the state and yes in America you are perfectly free to sign away and waive rights to government entities and corporations through signing contracts to that effect.

Maybe the decision will be overturned, maybe not, but in the end people on probation do not have the rights of free citizens.