Drunk Driver Busted Via Facebook Post

I’ve heard of some stupid Facebook posts, but they don’t get much dumber than this. A drunk driver bragged about his crime on the social networking site, and got arrested for it.

An Oregon teenager has landed himself in the county jail for posting about his drunk-driving hit-and-run escapade. Says the Daily Astorian, the early-morning post that quickly led to the at-home arrest of Jacob Cox-Brown in Astoria was:

“Drivin drunk… classsic ? but to whoever’s vehicle i hit i am sorry. :P”

Upon reading Cox-Brown’s post, two of the 18-year-old’s Facebook friends messaged the Astoria Police Department to report it. It had become vital information after two officers responded to a 1am report of a hit-and-run, which left a white Scion and another vehicle damaged where they parked.

After collecting the remains of the Scion’s taillight and bumper cover, the police received tips about the Facebook post and headed over to the home of Cox-Brown. They arrested the young man, charging him with two counts of failing to perform the duties of a driver (like, say, leaving the scene of an accident). He was held in the Clatsop County Jail and released on his own recognizance, and is scheduled to appear in Astoria Municipal Court on January 23.

According to Yahoo News, Astoria Police said in a press release:

“Astoria Police have an active social media presence. It was a private Facebook message to one of our officers that got this case moving, though. When you post… on Facebook, you have to figure that it is not going to stay private long.”

The moral of the story is, if you’re going to do something illegal, don’t tell everybody about it on the internet. You never know who’s reading it.

Or better yet, just don’t do it at all.