Peoria reacted swiftly to fake Twitter account

PEORIA - A published report shows a flurry of messages between Peoria city officials and authorities over how to handle a fake Twitter account mocking the city's mayor.

Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis filed a criminal complaint, which led to police raiding a home last month. That move sparked criticism that Ardis had abused his powers and violated free speech rights. Ardis has defended the move, saying he felt his identity was stolen and comments posted were "absolute filth."

The Peoria Journal Star cites emails, including some showing revealing conflicting statements about if Ardis knew about pursuing warrants.

The Twitter account included a photo of Ardis, his city email address and a bio. Only later did it explicitly state it was a parody account, something Twitter requires under its terms of service.