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Grand Juror Guilty of Disclosing Indictment

By William Vogeler, Esq. on June 27, 2018 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

What is it with people who post confidential information on Facebook?

Do they think that the information will only be seen by their "friends"? Or do they think they can erase errant disclosures by "unfriending" someone? Sorry, it doesn't work that way.

Leslie Lynn Heburn didn't get it, and now she faces up to 10 years in prison. That can happen when you post confidential information on social media.

Grand Juror

Heburn is a special case of grand-juror-gone wrong. She swore to keep grand jury proceedings confidential, but she apparently didn't take it seriously.

In 2017, she saw a familiar name on an indictment and told a girlfriend through Facebook that it was her boyfriend Rocky. He had been set up by a snitch, Heburn warned.

It was too late for Rocky, however, who was soon arrested and later sentenced to 15 years in prison on weapons charges. It was too late for Heburn, too.

She thought she could get away with the disclosure by using a fake Facebook account, but investigators figured it out. She was charged with impeding a federal investigation and disobeying a lawful order.

Obstruction of Justice

Not every disclosure on Facebook turns into a criminal charge. Usually, it's just embarrassment when everybody wishes you a happy birthday because an algorithm told them your age.

Then there are the social engineers, another name for scammers who take your social media information and use it for all kinds of wrong. Can you spell Cambridge Analytica?

Heburn, who pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, faces up to ten years in prison. That should give her enough time to ponder the question: "What was I thinking?"

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