How Your Mobile Phone Can Save You From a Conviction

It would be nice to think that law and order was a black and white affair: this action is illegal and deserving of a prison sentence, while that action is legal and undeserving of censure. The truth is much murkier, especially when it comes to situations where it is one person’s word against another. Fortunately, modern technology comes to our rescue here too, as in so many areas of life, with digital forensic investigation.

Text and Call Information:

Situations can get out of hand and what starts out as a friendly date can turn into an awkward encounter. In worst-case scenarios, it can end with an accusation of rape or sexual assault.

Age fib:

Sometimes people can lie about their age and it can be hard to tell the difference between a legal eighteen-year-old and a mature fifteen-year-old. This is often a highly sensitive situation, as children are, rightly, deserving of the full protection of the law, but it can happen where the other party is innocent of any wrong intention and completely unaware that they have been deceived. Taking someone’s word for their age should not be a crime, but it can happen that a charge of statutory rape is laid. Having a private investigation service uncover text and email proof that the age given was legal, and being able to show a reasonable assumption of a legal and consensual relationship, will give you a better chance of earning leniency from a judge or the prosecution service.

Cheat:

Being caught cheating can sometimes lead people to lie. It is easier to say ‘they forced me’ than to own up to a moment of lust, but if the cheated upon partner then insists on a police case being opened, you might be forced into making a defense. Having proof that the meeting and the sex were consensual can get you off the hook, leaving the cheat with some questions to answer to his or her partner!

Regret:

Rarely, people can regret the impulsion to a one-night stand. Sometimes this is, as above, because they have a partner already, at other times it could be because they have religious beliefs or other moral concerns over their own behavior which they alleviate by putting the blame on the other person concerned: unfair and illogical, but humans are messy and emotional sometimes! Again, proof positive of their consent can be found on a mobile phone through cell phone forensic investigation.

GPS Data:

GPS data pinpoints where the phone user is at any point in time and accurately reading this can help to confirm your story or show holes in an accusation.

It is this last point where mobile phones can really help in a situation where actions can be ambiguous or open to several interpretations. If a narrative does not line up with text and GPS data it is easier for a defence lawyer to unpick that narrative, providing doubt about the accusation and leading to a (deserved) acquittal and dismissal of charges.

Blog Resource: https://www.icfeci.com/how-your-mobile-phone-can-save-you-from-a-conviction/