Hicks: Of course Charleston Sheriff’s Office monitors social media. All cops do. | Columnists

Some of Kristin Graziano’s earliest supporters apparently have decided to, uh, unfriend the new Charleston County sheriff.

And, yes, that’s as ridiculous as it sounds.

The county recently released more documents related to Jamal Sutherland’s death in January at the jail, as part of a Freedom of Information Act request from WCSC-TV.

One of those documents was an email from mid-May, when community demand to release footage of Sutherland’s death was spiking.

The email was a compilation of news stories, public statements from the sheriff and the solicitor … and social media comments from some local activists and elected officials. It was a synopsis of publicity surrounding the case.

As the sheriff said Friday, none of the people whose online comments were included were ever part of any investigation. Still, manufactured outrage ensued.

One local social justice group held a news conference outside the jail last week to claim it had been under unfair surveillance. The state’s Legislative Black Caucus demanded an investigation into this unwarranted assault on people’s rights. Basically, some folks believe the sheriff was spying on them, or infringing on their civil rights.

Graziano is doing no such thing; she’s just doing her job. And everyone needs to chill, because here’s some breaking news: Law enforcement outfits across the country monitor their local social media.

It’s standard 21st century police practice, and it’s also entirely appropriate, because — and this is not a newsflash — there are some nuts out there. Some of whom are even dumb enough to post all their loony thoughts and plans on a public social media platform.

A platform, mind you, where every post begins with the unstated, but understood, opening of “Hey, everybody look at me.” Has no one noticed exactly how they found all those insurrectionists who attacked the Capitol?

Of course, this story is a little more complicated than that.

The folks upset with Graziano feel like they were targeted for their political beliefs, and feel betrayed because they thought she was one of them. That’s the wrong way to look at this.

The sheriff may share some ideological beliefs with these folks, but she’s also a cop. And cops need to know what’s going on in the community.

Yes, in this instance most of the people publicly opining were liberal, progressive or Democrats … like the sheriff. But that’s not discrimination; it’s just a reflection of who was interested in that particular tragedy.

Truth is, law enforcement constantly watches the social media posts of people from across the political spectrum — especially right-wing activists. Which is prudent, because they’re the ones with the most guns.

Graziano makes no apologies for this, and she shouldn’t.

“It would be negligent or irresponsible if we didn’t do it,” the sheriff says.

She’s absolutely right. Most police officers will tell you exactly the same thing. Keeping a community safe means knowing what’s going on in it. And these days a large part of that community is online.

For instance, often “spontaneous” demonstrations or protests aren’t permitted … they’re just announced on Facebook, and people show up. The police monitor such announcements, in part to make sure they have sufficient officers in place to protect everyone, and to make sure nothing bad happens.

They also look at the comments — where you can often find threats and the like, which may have nothing to do with the person who made the original post.

Yes, that’s surprising given how courteous and polite everyone is on the Facebook.

None of that is remotely like spying; it’s just paying attention. Deputies are just watching local reaction in real time. A lot of news organizations cover the community much the same way nowadays.

Of course, police departments do sometimes use social media for detecting, because some people are insane enough to post online videos of themselves breaking laws.

Local law enforcement has also found instances of people posting private information about public officials on social media, which is cause for concern.

But then, the internet is surprisingly fertile ground for ferreting out crime. In fact, one new guest of the government — recently convicted for his part in the May 2020 Charleston riot — got himself arrested by bragging on social media about his extralegal activities.

Genius, right?

We see folks regularly cause themselves untold amounts of trouble — from getting fired to getting publicly shamed — for posting every thought in their head on social media.

In this instance, no one was in trouble. They weren’t doing anything wrong. Basically, they’re complaining because the cops looked at comments intended for public consumption.

Here’s a suggestion: If you don’t want the police to know what you’re up to, maybe don’t plaster it across the internet.