Judges have issued plenty of gag orders in criminal cases, but are tweet orders the next legal trend? That’s what the Detroit Free Press asks after federal judge Avern Cohn told political consultant Sam Riddle on Monday to stop posting Twitter updates about his bribery cases.
Riddle had made clear on his Twitter account he would not be pleading guilty: “Going To Fed Court Today. Drop Dead Date For Me To Say. “No Deal” & Go To Trial. Hate This Crap But Gotta Deal With It.” The judge told Riddle’s attorneys to advise Riddle to “keep is fingers off the keyboard as well as his mouth closed.” Riddle has remained outspoken before and after being charged with felony bribery.