Posting pictures on the internet is far different from lynching someone.
The court system and government should treat people as innocent until proven guilty. Private citizens have a lower responsibility.
At no point did the original poster claim that man stole his laptop - he merely stated that his laptop was stolen and posted pictures of the man currently possessing the stolen laptop. Other people assumed this man stole the laptop, which may or may not be accurate.
The man is in possession of stolen property. At some point we need to balance the owner's rights to retrieve stolen property against the right's of a man possessing stolen property to retain complete anonymity.
Posting pictures on the internet is a great way to get a lynch mob going. Those people assuming this man stole the laptop can cause real harm as a result, and I'm not convinced that a smug "I never actually said that this man stole my laptop" should be an acceptable defense for the provocateur.
A lynch mob is appropriate if the police refuse to act.
If elected officials do not enforce the law, the burden falls onto private citizens to do so. This is the common law with thousands of years of precedent.
The court system and government should treat people as innocent until proven guilty. Private citizens have a lower responsibility.
At no point did the original poster claim that man stole his laptop - he merely stated that his laptop was stolen and posted pictures of the man currently possessing the stolen laptop. Other people assumed this man stole the laptop, which may or may not be accurate.
The man is in possession of stolen property. At some point we need to balance the owner's rights to retrieve stolen property against the right's of a man possessing stolen property to retain complete anonymity.