Conversations from Facebook Admissible in Child Pornography Case

“Facebook Chat” messages are admissible in court when they are properly authenticated using extrinsic evidence

United States v. Browne, 2016 BL 276680, 3d Cir., No. 14-1798, 8/25/16.

   The Third Circuit held that messages from “Facebook Chat” are admissible in court when they are authenticated using extrinsic evidence. The government at trial argued that the evidence was self-authenticating under the “business records” rule under the Federal Rules of Evidence 902(11). Although the messages were later certified by a “Facebook records custodian,” the business records exception could not apply because Facebook did not “purport to verify or rely on the substantive contents of the communications in the course of its business.” Instead, the records expert could only testify to the accuracy of the Facebook accounts at a particular time, not to the content of the messages.

   Although the business records exception did not apply, extrinsic evidence presented in court was “more than sufficient extrinsic evidence to link” the defendant to the explicit messages.

http://www.bloomberglaw.com/public/document/United_States_v_Browne_No_141798_2016_BL_276680_3d_Cir_Aug_25_201.