Back in 2010, a man named Paul Chambers was arrested by anti-terror police for posting a bomb threat on Twitter. The tweet that convicted him? “Crap! Robin Hood Airport is closed. You’ve got a week and a bit to get your shit together, otherwise I’m blowing the airport sky high!!” – this was back in January 2010 when he joked about the airport not reopening in time for him to travel to Northern Ireland to visit a friend.
Well, it’s been more than two years since he was found guilty, and according to reports online he’s finally been acquitted of the charges. In the judgment document, the high court said, “the appeal against conviction will be allowed on the basis that this tweet did not constitute or include a message of a menacing character; we cannot usefully take this aspect of the appeal further.”
Though he managed to win this case, it’s a bit too late since he was fined and lost his job when he previously convicted. I wonder if he’ll be able to get his old job back. However, it’s good to know that the high court can tell the difference between a joke and a real threat. And for all you tweeters out there, take this story as a lesson and be careful of what you say on the microblogging network – it can get you in trouble.
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