What police do must be legally justified

On Jan 10, a young man in Shishi, Fujian province, posted the headline, "A family of 34 all died", on his social network page with a photo of 34 dead mice and an explanation "Relax; it's a joke". The person was later detained by local police for "spreading rumors". Comments:

Sensationalists who use such misleading headlines break journalistic and social ethics and should be held responsible for any possible harm. However, the law empowers the police to only punish those who seriously disturb social order. Anybody with any sense would realize Wu was making a joke. The local police might need to review their actions.

Beijing News, Jan 19