Did Brenda Leyland Have the Right to Due Process ?

[Erngath]

Brenda WAS an online bully, kindly make the case that she was not and we can discuss further.  Bullying is reprehensible and should be stopped.  Kindly make the case that it should be allowed to continue and we can discuss.

She was.
Much like the teenage bullies who subject their victims to online bullying and much of this online bullying has to be dealt with by support staff in schools.
It will be interesting to read the posts of those who  support the case for this type of bullying..

[John]

If you went to the police after an altercation with a neighbour, do you think they would be satisfied with a record of just what the neighbour said or would they want to know what you said too. IMO most of these tweets should be taken in context of the rough and tumble of debate on twitter and not as a set of statements made in cold blood.

That is an excellent point. Much of the abuse on twitter results from other abusive comments in a continuous series of tit for tat tweets.  Taking isolated posts out of context is a misrepresentation of what was really going on.  The #McCann tag is used to get tweets seen, in most cases the tweet itself is not aimed at Madeleine's parents.  One has to use twitter to properly understand how it works.

Out of interest, did the dossier contain the tweet responses to @sweepyface and others?

How could @sweepyface abuse someone if they weren't even on twitter?  Surely abuse has to be received to constitute abuse?  It could be argued that the abusive comments were retaliatory and aimed at those twitter users who she saw as the opposition.  It is a game after all which thousands play every day.

[John]

Just because the police took no action does not mean a crime wasn't committed...

I'm sure you have the support of many sceptics on that one.

[Brietta]

Sky News reporter was just doing his job
In view of the public interest in the so-called “trolling” of the McCanns by Twitter users, the news organisation appears to have behaved perfectly properly
By Telegraph View6:25AM BST 07 Oct 2014

The apparent suicide of Brenda Leyland following her unmasking as an alleged abuser on Twitter of the McCann family is a tragedy all round. For her family, the circumstances of her death will compound the loss they must feel. For Mr and Mrs McCann, who have suffered so much since the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine, it is another ghastly consequence of her disappearance.

Now, though, an attempt is being made to force the dismissal of the Sky News reporter Martin Brunt, who confronted Mrs Leyland about a series of comments made on her anonymous Twitter account. A campaign has begun on the social media site Facebook demanding his sacking. This is unfair. Mr Brunt was just doing his job and, by all accounts, scrupulously followed guidelines for handling such stories. The Sky report did not identify the village where Mrs Leyland lived and she was referred to only by her Twitter name. Moreover, registration plates on nearby cars were pixelated.

Sky News’s guidelines state: “Any grounds for an investigation that involves significant intrusion into any individual’s privacy must be very strong.” In view of the public interest in the so-called “trolling” of the McCanns by Twitter users, the news organisation appears to have behaved perfectly properly. While the exchanges may turn out to have been a tipping point for Mrs Leyland, no direct link has yet been made between the incident and her sad death.

Mrs Leyland was said to be one of dozens of people – and by no means the worst – to have attacked Kate and Gerry McCann over the internet and often under the cover of anonymity. The police spend huge amounts of time investigating this abuse. In the end, the perpetrators must take responsibility for their own actions.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/11143889/Sky-News-reporter-was-just-doing-his-job.html

[Venturi Swirl]

That is an excellent point. Much of the abuse on twitter results from other abusive comments in a continuous series of tit for tat tweets.  Taking isolated posts out of context is a misrepresentation of what was really going on.  The #McCann tag is used to get tweets seen, in most cases the tweet itself is not aimed at Madeleine's parents.  One has to use twitter to properly understand how it works.

Out of interest, did the dossier contain the tweet responses to @sweepyface and others?

How could @sweepyface abuse someone if they weren't even on twitter?  Surely abuse has to be received to constitute abuse?  It could be argued that the abusive comments were retaliatory and aimed at those twitter users who she saw as the opposition.  It is a game after all which thousands play every day.

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it does it make a sound?  IMO yes, IMO abuse is abuse whether the intended recipient sees it or not.  It’s about intent.  Brenda intended to abuse A.. I T......, supported her outing and hoped she’d be in trouble with her employers, even though the person on the receiving end was not AT, she thought it was.  I have no doubt Brena hoped her abuse of the McCanns would get through to them somehow.  It did, and only then IMO did she realise how shameful her actions would seem to the wider public.  If it was all a game and she didn’t really mean it she could have explained this to Brunt when he interviewed her privately but then she would have lost face with her twitter buddies, had he reported this.  I agree she got caught up and swept along in something very unsavoury indeed, but as a grown woman of certain years, it’s a shame she hadn’t developed the wisdom to realise it before it got out of hand.  IMO.

[Eleanor]

It seems to be a bit of a roller coaster.  Once on, you can't get off.

[slartibartfast]

Brenda WAS an online bully, kindly make the case that she was not and we can discuss further.  Bullying is reprehensible and should be stopped.  Kindly make the case that it should be allowed to continue and we can discuss.

“Bully - a person who hurts, persecutes, or intimidates weaker people”

Now point out the weaker people. The supporters she interacted with on twitter? The McCanns who weren’t on twitter?

[Mr Gray]

“Bully - a person who hurts, persecutes, or intimidates weaker people”

Now point out the weaker people. The supporters she interacted with on twitter? The McCanns who weren’t on twitter?

IMO Brenda persecuted and abused the McCanns... You sem to want to deny reality

[Mr Gray]

That is an excellent point. Much of the abuse on twitter results from other abusive comments in a continuous series of tit for tat tweets.  Taking isolated posts out of context is a misrepresentation of what was really going on.  The #McCann tag is used to get tweets seen, in most cases the tweet itself is not aimed at Madeleine's parents.  One has to use twitter to properly understand how it works.

Out of interest, did the dossier contain the tweet responses to @sweepyface and others?

How could @sweepyface abuse someone if they weren't even on twitter?  Surely abuse has to be received to constitute abuse?  It could be argued that the abusive comments were retaliatory and aimed at those twitter users who she saw as the opposition.  It is a game after all which thousands play every day.

So having said abuse is wrong you now, want to justify the abuse by brenda... That is somewhat inconsistent

[Mr Gray]

Sky News reporter was just doing his job
In view of the public interest in the so-called “trolling” of the McCanns by Twitter users, the news organisation appears to have behaved perfectly properly
By Telegraph View6:25AM BST 07 Oct 2014

The apparent suicide of Brenda Leyland following her unmasking as an alleged abuser on Twitter of the McCann family is a tragedy all round. For her family, the circumstances of her death will compound the loss they must feel. For Mr and Mrs McCann, who have suffered so much since the disappearance of their daughter Madeleine, it is another ghastly consequence of her disappearance.

Now, though, an attempt is being made to force the dismissal of the Sky News reporter Martin Brunt, who confronted Mrs Leyland about a series of comments made on her anonymous Twitter account. A campaign has begun on the social media site Facebook demanding his sacking. This is unfair. Mr Brunt was just doing his job and, by all accounts, scrupulously followed guidelines for handling such stories. The Sky report did not identify the village where Mrs Leyland lived and she was referred to only by her Twitter name. Moreover, registration plates on nearby cars were pixelated.

Sky News’s guidelines state: “Any grounds for an investigation that involves significant intrusion into any individual’s privacy must be very strong.” In view of the public interest in the so-called “trolling” of the McCanns by Twitter users, the news organisation appears to have behaved perfectly properly. While the exchanges may turn out to have been a tipping point for Mrs Leyland, no direct link has yet been made between the incident and her sad death.

Mrs Leyland was said to be one of dozens of people – and by no means the worst – to have attacked Kate and Gerry McCann over the internet and often under the cover of anonymity. The police spend huge amounts of time investigating this abuse. In the end, the perpetrators must take responsibility for their own actions.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/11143889/Sky-News-reporter-was-just-doing-his-job.html

So Brunt was just doing his job.... No criticism  if him at all

[G-Unit]

At the time that Sky News visited Mrs Leyland her activities were being examined by the police. At the time the BBC filmed the Cliff Richard story he was being investigated by the police. Neither of them had committed an offense. In both cases the message was the same. The public's attention was being drawn to a police investigation into people who, it transpired, had committed no offense. If the public had the right to know about one of them it had the right to know about the other, and vice versa in my opinion.

[Mr Gray]

At the time that Sky News visited Mrs Leyland her activities were being examined by the police. At the time the BBC filmed the Cliff Richard story he was being investigated by the police. Neither of them had committed an offense. In both cases the message was the same. The public's attention was being drawn to a police investigation into people who, it transpired, had committed no offense. If the public had the right to know about one of them it had the right to know about the other, and vice versa in my opinion.

Brenda had done what she was accused of... Making abusive tweets.....the sort of abuse brenda, was involved in nneds ti be condemned... Not made excuses for

[Venturi Swirl]

“Bully - a person who hurts, persecutes, or intimidates weaker people”

Now point out the weaker people. The supporters she interacted with on twitter? The McCanns who weren’t on twitter?

Well for a start, the McCann supporters she interacted with on twitter were vastly outnumbered by the pack who abuse them on a regular basis.  Finding out the personal details of, including employment details and physical appearance of your opponent puts hem in a weaker position straight away, so undoubtedly Brenda used both these aspects to bully the twitter user she believed was A.. T.......  Abusing people online who you know cannot respond directly is cowardly and bullying too IMO.  If for example Kate McCannwere on twitter she would be one person being constantly attacked by hundreds.  Are you now attempting to clain Brenda’s behaviour was NOT bullying?

[Mr Gray]

Well for a start, the McCann supporters she interacted with on twitter were vastly outnumbered by the pack who abuse them on a regular basis.  Finding out the personal details of, including employment details and physical appearance of your opponent puts hem in a weaker position straight away, so undoubtedly Brenda used both these aspects to bully the twitter user she believed was A.. T........  Abusing people online who you know cannot respond directly is cowardly and bullying too IMO.  If for example Kate McCannwere on twitter she would be one person being constantly attacked by hundreds.  Are you now attempting to clain Brenda’s behaviour was NOT bullying?

Some posters want to show Brenda, did absolutely  nothing wrong... That's not what the police said.

[Eleanor]

As it wasn't A.. T....... does that make the abuse okay?