Twitter allows for the creation of parody accounts, but this must be stated clearly in the account bio. Failure to do this can lead to the account being suspended. But there are more dire consequences that could befall the account operator as was recently witnessed in Illinois. Law enforcement officers in the state’s Peoria town raided a house following investigations into the @peoriamayor parody account. The account contained offensive entries with about 50 tweets posted by the time it was suspended. The bio included Mayor Jim Ardis’ photo and city email address. It was only changed to reflect its joke status 2 months into its existence.
Law enforcement officers swooped into Michelle Pratt’s residents siezing all internet connected devices in relation to the Twitter account. Reasons stated for the investigation included the impersonation of a public official which is legible to a $2500 fine and a year of jail time. According to investigation officers in Peoria, the account was not clearly satirical.