A state appellate court has ruled that a New Jersey mother's rights were not violated by a judge's decision that barred her from ranting about her children and ex-husband on Facebook, the Associated Press reported.
After the woman allegedly attempted to kidnap her two children and take them to Canada, she was ordered to a "special condition" of a probation sentence in 2011, the Courier News reported.
Claiming that her Facebook posts referenced the Book of Revelation, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, Satan and Adolf Hitler, the woman's ex-husband's family and Hunterdon County prosecutors said she should be restricted from making any more dangerous posts.
"You can talk about what you want to talk about, but don't reference (your husband) or the children," the judge told her. "That's off limits."
However, the mother returned to Facebook and began using a code word, "Camelot," to refer to her family in 2012. The judge found that the posting violated the probation she had been sentenced with.
"She appealed, claiming the order violated her rights of free speech and due process because it was too vague," the AP reported. "The appellate panel disagreed, finding the order was specific and didn't prevent her from making posts about other issues. The court said the special condition was imposed with the purpose of advancing her rehabilitation."
As the woman tried to take her children to Canada in violation of a custody order, she was arrested by police in 2011.
The woman, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, had the kidnapping charges dropped by prosecutors after she eventually pleaded guilty to interference with custody, according to the AP.
In order to protect the identities of her family members, the woman wasn't identified in court documents.
