'I think I got away with it': 'Stupid' ABH criminal convicted after bragging to friends on Facebook before jury began deliberations

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Michael Ruse changed his plea to guilty after his Facebook updates were printed off and delivered to court anonymously
He had been on trial for attacking his friend's father with a baseball bat and baton
Asked by a friend how the case was going, he wrote: 'Yeah I think I get away with it tbh x (sic)'
He described the judge as 'stuck up' in another update after he was convicted
But he escaped with a suspended prison sentence, a curfew and a fine
He has been back on Facebook since, complaining about having to stay indoors at night

By Claire Ellicott for the Daily Mail

Published: 05:48 EST, 6 June 2012 | Updated: 05:18 EST, 7 June 2012

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Foolish: Michael Ruse was convicted after bragging to friends on Facebook that he would get off

AS the jury prepared to consider their verdict in an assault trial, they received a helpful pointer from one of the defendants himself.

Michael Ruse, 21, had a Facebook conversation with a friend saying of his crime that he thought he would ‘get away with it’.

Unfortunately for the bragging attacker, one of his online followers took exception to the comment and printed it out before handing it in at Portsmouth Crown Court.

Confronted with the evidence, Ruse was forced to change his plea to guilty and was given a suspended prison sentence and a curfew.

Judge Ian Pearson told him: ‘You were stupid enough to put on Facebook what amounted to a full confession. Your stupidity really is not much mitigation.’

And Russell Pyne, defending, conceded: ‘He needs help with regard to thinking skills.’

Ruse, from Leigh Park, was on trial with his friend Terry Reeve accused of attacking Reeve’s father, Gareth, with a baseball bat and baton.

During the two-week trial, the court heard that Reeve, 20, had thrown a brick at his father’s car in March last year.

Reeve and Ruse then armed themselves with weapons and attacked the 45-year-old lorry driver in a street in Leigh Park.

Mr Reeve was left with a cut to his head and bruises all over his body.

Ruse denied the charge and, just before the jury went out to consider their verdict, he posted an update on the social networking site saying: ‘Another week at court.’ Asked by a friend about the case he added: ‘Yeah I think I get away with it tbh x’, adding it was ‘looking good’.

Guilty: Ruse, using the pseudonym Michael Miles, changed his plea after his Facebook updates were noticed

Stupid: Ruse described the judge as 'stuck up' on Facebook

Stupid: Ruse described the judge as 'stuck up' in a Facebook update posted before he was sentenced

Confronted with the details of the conversation, Ruse, who had denied assault causing actual bodily harm, changed his plea to guilty.

Having still not learned his lesson, Ruse, who has previous convictions for assault and criminal damage, went back online to describe the judge as ‘stuck-up’ hours before his sentencing.

He was given a 46-week suspended jail term and an evening curfew was imposed.

Even then, he was not finished. Ruse, who was also ordered to pay £250 court costs, could not resist posting an update.

Under his online alias of ‘Michael Miles’, he wrote on Facebook: ‘Boom! Im coming home best start sorting myself out. Tag for 6 months...and got to stay out of trouble for 2 years.’

Keeping others informed: Ruse promised to let his friends know if he was sent to jail

Running commentary: Ruse promised to let his friends know if he was sent to prison for the assault

Updates: Ruse kept his Facebook friends informed of the case's progress with a series of postings

Updates: Ruse wrote on his Facebook page daily to keep friends informed of his case's progress

Reeve, also of Leigh Park, was found guilty of the assault and criminal damage. He was jailed for a year and 55 days.

Michael Ruse is far from the first criminal to regret his Facebook use.

A paramedic who boasted on Facebook that he groped a patient’s breasts whilst resuscitating her was found guilty of misconduct after his comments were reported.

Mark Small, from Bristol, posted: ‘Saved someone’s life and managed to cop a feel of some cracking jubblies.’ A complaint was made and he was found guilty of misconduct by the Health Professions Council.

And two East London teenagers who raped a girl of 11 in a McDonald’s toilet were convicted after police discovered a Facebook conversation between the pair.

One wrote: ‘I think the girl we rapped (sic) went to police.’ A friend wrote: ‘What girl?’ The reply came: ‘The girl we bang at my house.’

I'm free: Ruse informs his friends that he has been spared jail