Hello all, those of you who have read my previous posts will be aware that some years ago I was accused , charged and eventually cleared of sexually assaulting a young girl.
Last night I recieved an email from this girls sister calling me all the usual stuff, I should be dead etc.. I chose to ignore it. This morning I arose to find a group had been started to get me off facebook,again I am being labelled a pedo (as opposed to paedo) Two comments from sisters of my accuser and six members in total comprising of other family members.

What are my options ? I cannot afford legal action. Any advice would be greatfully recieved. But please dont say get off facebook, I dont use it that much but its a matter of principal now.

Ignore them.

Bullies thrive on attention and they thrive on knowing that the person has been upset.

Set up another FACEBOOK account under a nickname and contact your real friends and put up a photo NOT of you.

Then just ignore what they are doing.

They will get bored because they are just plain and simple bullies.

Dont look at their group or site ( most other people will see that they are just being vindictive )

The more you fight them - the more they will harass you. That is the way these sorts of bullies work.

Taking legal action would be a gift to them - the only way for them to continue their harassment of you is to try and get you to fight back.

No fight back means no fun for them and they may just find another target. They sound as if they need to get out more and find themselves a life.

I actually HATE Facebook ( I have an account but dont use it ) - it seems to be a very horrible way of spending time and it seems to be dominated by people in offices who dont have real jobs and have all day to gossip and be nasty about others. It is not easy to use and both Twitter and My Space are much better places to network.

I will be glad to see the end of the FACEBOOK generation. It is the badge of honour for the Chavs as far as I can see - so your story sounds pretty typical of its use.

I'm helping a fiend through a libel case at present..mainly by putting them in touch with my lawyer who eats the opponents for lunch and eventually has them begging for mercy.

People have no idea how libelous the internet can be and seem to think they can say anything they want (even JK has sensibly censored me at times).

But the laws are really in place now and have been successfully used in many cases-the first being the very rich Aussie mining Joseph Gutnick who sued Dow Jones and won handsomely due to the fact the offending piece could be read worldwide.

It sounds like libel-I reckon it's worth the price of a few solicitor's letters to put them in their place but you can always complain to Facebook-afterall they are the publishers and can be equally at fault and they'd take down whatever offends you.

In fact libel is something I've studied closely for 30 years ever since I sued the NoTW in '84 which mistook me for a completely different person. It never went to court and I really enjoyed the brand new Mini I bought with the settlement.!

Im not sure what liability Facebook have for the publication of the offensive material, I`m sure I read somewhere that a site cannot be held responsible for the comments or actions of its members.

Which court would have jurisdiction over Facebook ?
I would definitely be interested in trying to sue them but the costs are prohibitive.

Since the allegations I have found it difficult to find work or get back to any sort of normal life. Being on state benefits you learn that the law is only for those who can afford it.

Being accused of such things is almost like a bereavement - especially if these people may have been your friends.

Though you should not forget - it is often better to move on with your life. Try to build a completely new life and realise not everyone in the World is like these people.

Learning to trust anyone again will be hard - but if you dont then they will have destroyed your life. I dont believe that is what you want - but taking legal action is fine if it is taken to protect your business against libel. But to drag these allegations back into the spotlight will just keep you in the same position that has undermined your life for the past few years.

The best way to put this behind you is to work hard at creating a new successful life for yourself. Maybe in 10 years time when you have a bank account full of money you will be able to afford to take some sort of action - but I doubt by then you will think that it is worth it.

Time will heal your wounds if you let it - and getting on with life and enjoying even small things to start with will help you. Free yourself from this and be positive about your future. You are a wonderful human being with loads of potential. Bad experiences happen to all of us at some point in our life and we can deal with them - and it can make us stronger and happier in the long run.

All the best.

you only need to sue in any country where a libel is published..and with the internet that's everywhere!

But many people deliberetely use the British courts..Americans etc-because winning a libel case is like winning the pools (yet the odds are better).

Outrageously-libel cases can't access legal aid which is unfair and favours the wealthy but a solicitor's letter doesn't cost much and could be enough to frighten them off.

And remember-under libel laws the person gets 28 days to apologise after the first letter-after that they are at your mercy if they ignore that letter-a couple of years down the track once they have been warned and you may come into cash you can have them.

I think it would do the same for Facebook as all those "we are not responsible for content" etc claims are baseless in the law. Otherwise the tabloids would have used that excuse all the time.

Any website from the smallest blogger to the biggest media site is a publication.

Who knows-pick your solicitor carefully and he may even take it on the basis of deferred payment and he would only ask one pertinent question-"do they have any assetts ?"

My friend at the moment who is suing a demented man who has accused her of fraud in endless emails sent to many people is 86! and put up her meagre shares for the costs but the lawyer says it's so winnable he doesn't even want them..even knowing she may pop off at ay time and as she herself knows.

In Thailand a business can sue for libel if their business is damaged and the accused can be jailed-and in one happy case a stringer for some of the UK's sleasiest tabloids , responsible for some of the tawdriest tales about ex-pats has been fighting a case for 3 years now when he published a story in a Scottish newspaper about some Scots who own a few bars in Thailand,but have a 'colorful' background. ( I normally would not be gleeful about anyone going to prison but this guy is a real creep and has hurt so many people with his stories)

They sued for libel and won and it's cost the hack plenty and he's now fighting the jail sentence that was part of the punishment but due to the snail pace of court cases there he has remained free for 2 years.

But his big problem-the tabloids look like cutting him loose soon with defense costs.

Look around and find a solicitor who will give you a free session.

Trust me-I'm not a lawyer !

you should read this article by a friend of mine who is also one of the best defamation layers in Oz where the laws closely follow UK libel laws-it particularly mentions the internet:

"Social media has made it easier for people to publish their views — but many users don't realise they are subject to the same laws as commercial publishers," writes defamation lawyer Terry Goldberg

newmatilda.com/2009/07/16/defamation-20