Supreme Court Ruling on Openness Element in Social Media Insults

The 4th Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court ruled that in legal assessments regarding insulting posts made on social media platforms, it must be investigated in detail whether the account is public and whether the posts can be seen by everyone.

Examination of the Openness Element

The 4th Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court addressed the element of openness in social media posts within the scope of a case brought to court between former fiancés in the Ödemiş district of İzmir.

The chamber decided that the mere fact that insulting words were shared on social media is not sufficient, and it must be investigated whether the account was open to everyone and whether there was an opportunity for the words to be seen by everyone.

Trial Process and Reversal of the Decision

The defendant, who sent insulting messages to his former fiancé in the Ödemiş district of İzmir, had been sentenced to prison by the local court, and after the appellate court upheld the decision, the case was moved to the Supreme Court.

While finding the evidence sufficient, the Supreme Court pointed out that the visibility level of the social media post had not been investigated and reversed the local conviction decision.

Issues to Be Re-evaluated

In the reversal decision issued by the high court, the determination of account privacy and visibility status was requested.

Additionally, it was emphasized that the issues of whether the prison sentence given to the defendant could be suspended and whether the simple trial procedure could be applied must be reconsidered.