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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Crime & justice fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about crime & justice. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

6,853 published reviews in this topic

Les SurligneursCrime & justice

Toutes les peines de moins de deux ans de prison ne sont pas exécutées

Publisher’s rating: Sur le plan juridique, il n’existe aucune dispense automatique d’emprisonnement pour les condamnés à deux ans et moins d’emprisonnement.

The review examines a statement by Nicolas Bay, made after the violent assault on a bus driver in Bayonne. On France Info on 13 July, Bay said that firm prison sentences of less than two years were not being carried out. The review says this is an inaccurate generalization: a person sentenced to two years or less may ask for an adjustment to their sentence, but there is no automatic entitlement to one. The decision is left to the criminal judge. (S1: “Selon Nicolas Bay donc, les peines de prison de moins de deux ans ferme ne sont pas exécutées. C’est une généralisation inexacte.”; “Un individu condamné à une peine d’emprisonnement ferme de deux ans ou moins peut solliciter un aménagement de peine mais sans aucune certitude de l’obtenir : ce sont des mesures dites « alternatives à l’enfermement ». Or, il n’y a aucun droit automatique à ces mesures alternatives pour les condamnés à deux ans d’emprisonnement ferme ou moins. Elles relèvent du pouvoir d’appréciation du juge pénal.”) The review supports its factual rebuttal with a Justice Ministry figure: as of 1 January 2020, 47% of people incarcerated were serving sentences of two years or less. That evidence contradicts the implication that such sentences are never served. (S1: “Or, au 1er janvier 2020, selon le ministère de la justice, 47% des personnes incarcérées étaient condamnées à des peines d’emprisonnement de deux ans et moins.”) The review distinguishes eligibility for an adjustment from a guarantee that the sentence will be served outside prison. It says the possibility of adjusting firm sentences up to two years (one year for repeat offenders) followed the 24 November 2009 prison law, whose stated objective was to reduce overcrowding. It also describes routes to custody: a trial court can order immediate detention, while a person released after sentencing without such an order is later summoned before a sentence-enforcement judge. (S1: “C’est depuis la loi pénitentiaire du 24 novembre 2009, dont l’objectif était de réduire la surpopulation carcérale, que les peines jusqu’à deux ans d’emprisonnement ferme (un an pour les récidivistes) peuvent être aménagées.”; “Lorsqu’une personne est condamnée à de l’emprisonnement ferme, le tribunal peut ordonner un mandat de dépôt durant l’audience, dans la foulée de la condamnation. La personne est alors incarcérée immédiatement.”; “En l’absence de mandat de dépôt, le condamné sort libre du tribunal, et il est convoqué ultérieurement par le juge d’application des peines (JAP).”)

Deutsche Presse-AgenturCrime & justice

Auf Facebook werden in einem Beitrag zwei Fotos von einem US-amerikanischen Schulbus geteilt, auf dem ein Plakat mit einem Bild des britischen Prinzen Andrew hängt. Auf dem Plakat wird dazu aufgefordert, dass wenn man diesen Mann sieht, man ihm sagen soll, dass er sich beim FBI melden und deren Fragen beantworten solle. Daneben schreibt ein Facebook-User: «Es wird öffentlich nach Prinz Andrew gefahndet!» Die Kombination aus Bild und Text suggeriert, als würde im Skandal um den verstorbenen Sexualstraftäter Jeffrey Epstein offiziell nach Prinz Andrew gefahndet.

Publisher’s rating: Das ist falsch. Es wird nicht nach Prinz Andrew gefahndet. US-Ermittler haben ihn lediglich zu einer freiwilligen Befragung gebeten. Das Plakat auf dem Autobus ist eine provokante Aktion der US-Anwältin Gloria Allred, die mehrere Opfer des Epstein-Falls vertritt.

BR24 FaktenfuchsCrime & justice

Polizeigewalt ist nur sehr selten bei uns in Deutschland und in Bayern.

Publisher’s rating: Dafür gibt es nicht ausreichend gute Zahlen. Forscher gehen davon aus, dass ein Großteil der polizeilichen Übergriffe nie zur Anzeige gebracht wird. Laut Staatsanwaltschaftsstatistik ermittelten die bayerischen Staatsanwälte im Jahr 2019 205 Mal gegen Polizeibedienstete in Bayern, weil diese Gewalt verübt oder zugelassen hatten. Viele Verfahren wurden allerdings eingestellt, weil kein Tatverdächtiger identifiziert werden konnte. Dunkelfeldstudien lassen zudem vermuten, dass die Anzahl der Übergriffe durch Polizeikräfte deutlich höher sein könnten - nämlich fünfmal so hoch wie offiziell angenommen.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturCrime & justice

Een facebookpost deelt het verhaal van een pitbull die de twee kinderen in zijn gezin redde van een pedofiel in de Amerikaanse staat Arkansas. De man probeerde volgens de post in te breken in de gezinswoning om de slapende kinderen aan te randen. De hond beet zijn penis en testikels af en slikte ze in, waarna de politie de dader kon arresteren. Tenslotte bevat het bericht ook nog een verklaring van een lokale politieagent, Daniel Dodson.

Publisher’s rating: Het verhaal in de facebookpost is fout. Het gaat om een fictief verhaal dat drie jaar geleden al op verschillende nieuwswebsites circuleerde. Het werd destijds ook ontkracht, onder andere door de factcheckingwebsite snopes.com.

The Facebook post described a pit bull in Arkansas that supposedly protected two children from a man who entered their home, and said local police officer Daniel Dodson had commented on the incident. The DPA review reports that Dodson, who worked for the Saline County police in Arkansas, told its fact-checking team by email that he had made no statement about the alleged event. That directly undermines the post’s attribution to him; the review also identifies the images accompanying the story as material taken from unrelated sources. The review traces the image presented as the alleged intruder to a May 2017 episode of BBC Scotland’s Scotland’s Superhospital. It says the image was a screenshot showing a 50-year-old patient called Neil, who was treated in hospital for a broken ankle and given ketamine for pain. The image showed his reaction to the medication, not a suspect connected to the alleged attack. The second image, presented as an X-ray of a dog with human anatomy in its stomach, was first shared on Imgur in January 2013, according to the review. DPA says it shows a dog suffering from intestinal gas. The review also notes that Snopes had debunked the story in November 2017. Together, the officer’s denial and the documented origins of both images contradict key elements used to make the Facebook story appear real.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturCrime & justice

In einem Facebook-Post werden mehrere Bilder als vermeintliche Beweise für eine Verschwörungserzählung angeführt. Zu sehen sind zum Beispiel mehrere Kinder, ein Fass mit der Aufschrift «Adrenochrome» sowie ein Objekt aus Rohren und einem Beutel mit roter Flüssigkeit. Im Text dazu heißt es: «Kinderhandel zur Herstellung von Adrenochrom und Verkauf von Babyfleisch ‼»

Publisher’s rating: Bei den gezeigten Objekten handelt es sich um eine Kunstinstallation. Auch die Fotos der Kinder werden in falschem Kontext verbreitet.

FACTLYCrime & justice

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan’s name is on the tattooed on the hand of Kerala gold smuggling case accused Swapna Suresh

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerned a photo shared on social media that purported to show the name of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a tattoo on the hand of Swapna Suresh, an accused in the Kerala gold-smuggling case. The review identifies the image as an edited one and concludes that the tattoo does not show Vijayan’s name. It also notes that it could not determine whose name the tattoo actually showed. To check the image, the review says it used reverse image search and found a similar photo in an article published by Times Now. Comparing the tattoo in that image, the reviewers said it was clearer and did not contain Vijayan’s name. Their conclusion was limited: they could rule out the claimed name, but could not specifically identify the name in the tattoo. The review therefore finds the specific claim false, while distinguishing that finding from identifying what the tattoo actually says. Its stated basis is comparison with the clearer image found through reverse image search, alongside its finding that the social-media photo was edited.

NewtralCrime & justice

Están cometiendo robos en coches mediante esponjas impregnadas de droga que te dejan inconsciente al tocarlas

Publisher’s rating: Falso

The claim concerns a warning that a sponge left on a car’s rear-view mirror is drugged, can cause someone to lose consciousness through skin contact, and is part of a robbery method. Newtral says the warning accompanied an image of a small sponge attached to a car mirror and describes the alleged technique as placing a drug-impregnated sponge there. The review’s account therefore addresses the specific warning and image, rather than a different kind of robbery or drug exposure. To check whether robberies using that method had been reported, Newtral says it contacted the Spanish Civil Guard’s press office. The agency told the outlet the message had circulated for some time and that, up to the review’s publication, it had no record of complaints about robberies as described in the warning. Newtral also reports that the National Police had no notification of complaints involving this technique by that time. The review thus supports its conclusion with responses about reported incidents; the excerpt does not describe laboratory testing of a sponge or an independent chemical analysis. The warning was not limited to Spain: Newtral reports that it had circulated in Venezuela too, where the Venezuelan Observatory of Fake News addressed it with help from the National Anti-Drug Office. The review does not provide further details of that organization’s findings in the supplied text.

Fact CrescendoCrime & justice

Claim: Fake news card being circulated in DMK MLA shoot out case

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

Fact Crescendo investigated a news card circulating on Facebook and WhatsApp that claimed the DMK MLA had not fired a shot, and instead blamed his “illegal gun.” The review says readers raised doubts about the card and that the outlet found it being widely shared. It identifies the setting as a July 11, 2020, clash in Tiruporur, Chengalpattu district, arising from a land dispute between AIADMK and DMK supporters. The report says allegations arose that DMK Tiruporur MLA Idhayavarman fired a gun toward the opposing side and that some people were injured. The review’s conclusion was that the circulating card was fake, not an authentic News7 Tamil card. It reports that some people had made and shared the card as satire, while others were passing it on as genuine. To check its provenance, Fact Crescendo says it showed the card to an administrator in News7’s online division, who identified it as fake. The review also says News7 Tamil had published a different card. On that basis, it concluded that the viral card was fabricated and falsely presented as genuine; this finding concerns the card’s authenticity, not an independent determination of what happened in the shooting.