Does social media keep our community safe???

On Saturday, the South Portland Police Department’s Facebook page posted a report of a single-vehicle accident a mere two hours following the incident. The operator of the vehicle and his 7-year-old son were thankfully unharmed and an investigation led to the operator’s arrest for operating under the influence of alcohol. Photos of the damaged vehicle and surrounding scene were provided along with a message to the community: Do not drink and drive. Unfortunately, this was not the only message suggested by this post and the comments that followed.

The words “Mr. Abullayof is presumed innocent under court of law and will have his day in court” were written, but the haste in publishing the post and the unfortunate addition of his booking photo implied the officer reporting the case presumed differently. By publishing this message on Facebook he encouraged the public to do the same.??

Social media is undoubtedly a powerful tool in our society and provides a mechanism for broadcasting a single message to thousands of people within seconds. This power, especially when in the hands of government organizations such as the South Portland Police Department, demands respect and forethought of the unintended consequences that may come from statements made. All too often posts on social media sites can morph into an uncensored collection of persuasive statements with questionable motives and intentions, many of which are not consistent with the message intended by the original post. I am concerned that the post reporting Mr. Abullayof’s arrest has triggered an emotional public discourse based partially on conjecture that may put his family and friends into harm’s way; this is not consistent with the mission of our police department to protect life and property, preserve peace, enforce laws and maintain civil rights.

??I wholeheartedly support our police department’s campaign to prevent driving under the influence of intoxicants, but I am certain that our dedicated officers can come up with more effective means to communicate this message and enforce the law. We do not need our police department’s Facebook page to relay breaking news; we have multiple broadcasting networks that work closely with the department to serve this purpose.

A Facebook page is also not an appropriate way to report matters of public record; those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty and this cannot be assumed when the record can be publicly altered by anyone who feels compelled to comment.

I expect our police department to stay focused on keeping all members of our community safe, and the way they are currently utilizing their social media presence does not support this mission.

Anne Cuttler Hicks

South Portland