“Cyberbullying Isn't Just for Teens”
Legal Basics To Know
Andrea Weckerle, JD
Founder, CiviliNation
BlogHer’11 August 2011
Civil Law
Criminal Law
Disputes between individuals, organizations, or a Act committed by perpetrator/defendant against a
combination of the two
victim with society as a whole considered injured
Parties are the plaintiff and defendant
Parties are the government or defendant
Case is filed by a private party
Case is filed by the government
Responsibility &
Plaintiff must prove guilt of defendant /defendant The government must prove
the defendant is
Resolution
Accountability
must refute the evidence
guilty
Burden of proof is “preponderance of the
evidence”
Burden of proof is “beyond a reasonable doubt”
Type of punishments can include fines,
requirement to do/not do something, and other
redress of the wrong
Type of punishment can include fine,
imprisonment, or death
Crimes are divided into two broad classes,
misdemeanors and felonies
The goal of a civil suit is to redress the wrong by
requiring compensation or restitution
The goal of a criminal case is to protect society
and punish the perpetrator
Either party may appeal the court’s decision
Only the defendant may appeal the decision (but
sometimes the prosecutor can retry a case)
Sample Remedies & Laws
Civil
Defamation - Libel & Slander
Criminal
Federal and State Anti-Stalking Laws
18 U.S.C. § 875 Interstate
Responsibility
&
Intentional Infliction of Emotional
communications
Resolution
Distress
Accountability
Public Disclosure of Private Facts
Identity Theft and Assumption
Deterrance Act of 1998
False Light
Other computer-related crimes, such as
hacking and denial-of-service attacks
Appropriation
Filing a Complaint & Next Steps
• Review your state’s anti-stalking & anti-cyberstalking law
• Examine the language of the law and the “elements” required
to prove your case
• Collect your supporting
information &(printouts, electronic files,
Responsibility
Resolution
screenshots, IMs, photos,
etc.) in electronic and physical
form
Accountability
• Create a written detailed timeline of the events
• Create a detailed explanation of each communication and
item
• Do not communicate with suspect(s) or if you’ve already do
so, stop
• Go to police department and file initial complaint