An unknown person surprised influencer Jade Anna van Vliet outside her home and sprayed her with a water pistol. On social media, the person in question speaks of a personal mission: "A calling. We're going to spray influencers with a water pistol." The action, which might seem harmless to some people, raises a legal question: where is the line between a joke and criminal behaviour?
Joost Nan, professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure at Erasmus School of Law, classifies the incident as "borderline". “This incident seems just a bit too minor for criminal qualification,” Nan states. However, in the presence of aggravating factors, it could potentially fall under insult, threat, or assault.
The grey area between 'prank' and criminal offence
For an act to be legally classified as a threat, there must be at least a reasonable fear of serious bodily harm. "Suppose this had happened in the dark, making the water pistol appear to be a serious weapon, then that could come across as threatening", Nan explains. "When it comes to insult or assault, one might think of someone being sprayed with a water pistol filled with urine. Such behaviour is intended to undermine someone's dignity or to make them feel disgusted — otherwise, you wouldn’t do it."
The location of the incident also carries legal relevance. “If someone is approached at home, it can be experienced as more threatening than in public spaces,” Nan points out. “It implies that someone has made efforts to obtain the person’s private address.” Recording the incident for social media is unlikely to affect a prosecution decision, but it may serve as supporting evidence by clearly showing what took place.
From viral to court?
In the case of Jade Anna, she chose not to file a police report. The North Holland police stated via their spokesperson to RTL Nieuws that no intervention will follow. The Public Prosecution Service does have the authority to initiate prosecution without a formal complaint, but available capacity is a key consideration in this decision. “If this incident does indeed constitute a criminal offence, it is nonetheless understandable that the police are not pursuing the matter at this time,” Nan explains.
If these or similar incidents escalate and end up in court, it remains uncertain whether the “it was just a joke” defence will hold up legally. “Although it is often claimed that certain actions were intended as a joke, the courts generally do not accept this argument. Only in cases where the act was demonstrably playful or humorous may the criminal intent be absent or the act no longer punishable,” Nan concludes.
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Read the RTL nieuws article (Dutch) 'Influencer Jade Anna opgewacht met waterpistool: 'Op het randje van strafbaar'
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