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Social media warning

Police have warned social media users' comments posted regarding ongoing investigations could jeopardise court cases or lead to criminal and civil charges.

Inspector Dom Wood said Facebook and other social media websites had become a useful resource for police but people needed to be wary of the consequences of their comments.

Kalgoorlie-Boulder has numerous Facebook pages dedicated to "naming and shaming" convicted or alleged criminals within the city.

The content of these pages came under the microscope in the Kalgoorlie Magistrate's Court recently after a Goldfields man was the subject of defamatory comments on Facebook.

Magistrate Andrew Maughan granted a suppression order for the alleged offender due to concerns the jury pool could be contaminated by these comments.

Insp. Wood said the best outcome for the community was if the right person was convicted in court.

Brazen comments on social media could be a hindrance rather than a help, he said.

"If in any way you're going to prejudice a successful court outcome for the community and everybody, it's not going to help," he said.

"An individual might have a view about a person but it's going to run the risk of them possibly not even being successfully convicted if they are the guilty parties.

"I guess the message is just keep your information to the minimum, be careful what you say, you're liable to be prosecuted either civilly or through the criminal courts."

Insp. Wood said people could also land themselves in a feud with the victims of abusive or defamatory comments.

"If you want to start accusing or pointing the finger at people or making unreasonable comments about a person on Facebook then they run the risk of reprisal from that party or other people known to them," he said.

"Their family members or friends might seek out the person that's (criticising) somebody on Facebook and then the police are now tied up with possibly more serious consequences.

"The advice is think before you post or comment on something and think about reprisals against you.

"We're finding that the public want to be involved and they want to help police.

"That's why we're saying let's be the ones that provide the more appropriate Facebook page where we can take responsibility for it, monitor it and deal with those local issues."