Post by Angel on Nov 21, 2010 14:57:06 GMT -5
Thirteen year old Megan Meier committed suicide after being intentionally befriended and then dumped by someone she believed to be a new online friend named Josh Evans. In reality, Josh Evans - who said he was new to the neighborhood - turned out to be a MySpace account created by the mother of a schoolmate of Megan’s. Megan and the child had once been friends.
“Josh” told Megan, who was known to have ADD and suffer from depression, that he was new to the area, and didn’t yet have a phone number, and that he was homeschooled. Then, after gaining Megan’s confidence, “Josh” ended the friendship, telling Megan that he “had heard that she was cruel.”
Messages had also started turning up on the MySpace bulletin area, saying that “Megan Meier is a slut,” and “Megan Meier is fat.”
Josh had also sent a message to Megan saying that she was a bad person, and that the world would be better off without her.
After reading the hurtful messages, Megan ran upstairs to her bedroom, and hung herself. Her father found her twenty minutes later. She died the following day.
If only Megan had known that what to her seemed a painful dumping by a new friend was actually an intentional emotional attack orchestrated by her classmate’s mother.
The mother who created the profile said that she did so “because she wanted to gain Megan’s confidence to know what Megan was saying about her own child online,” and she told police that “she, her daughter and another person all typed and monitored the communication between the fictitious boy and Megan.”
Megan’s parents didn’t learn that Josh was a hoax, and that the other family was behind it, until six weeks after Megan’s death, when another classmate told her own parents about the ruse.
Megan’s mother, Tina Meier, says that she doesn’t think that the family behind “Josh” wanted Megan to commit suicide, but, she adds, “when adults are involved and continue to screw with a 13-year-old, with or without mental problems, it is absolutely vile.”
Equally vile, the acts by these adults do not squarely violate any criminal law, and so local law enforcement is hard pressed to make any arrests or prosecute. (It should be noted however that it is quite likely that they can be sued for both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Of course, none of this will bring Megan back.)
While MySpace has refused to comment, Megan’s mother is hoping that changes in the law and protection of children on the Internet will come out of this situation.
“Josh” told Megan, who was known to have ADD and suffer from depression, that he was new to the area, and didn’t yet have a phone number, and that he was homeschooled. Then, after gaining Megan’s confidence, “Josh” ended the friendship, telling Megan that he “had heard that she was cruel.”
Messages had also started turning up on the MySpace bulletin area, saying that “Megan Meier is a slut,” and “Megan Meier is fat.”
Josh had also sent a message to Megan saying that she was a bad person, and that the world would be better off without her.
After reading the hurtful messages, Megan ran upstairs to her bedroom, and hung herself. Her father found her twenty minutes later. She died the following day.
If only Megan had known that what to her seemed a painful dumping by a new friend was actually an intentional emotional attack orchestrated by her classmate’s mother.
The mother who created the profile said that she did so “because she wanted to gain Megan’s confidence to know what Megan was saying about her own child online,” and she told police that “she, her daughter and another person all typed and monitored the communication between the fictitious boy and Megan.”
Megan’s parents didn’t learn that Josh was a hoax, and that the other family was behind it, until six weeks after Megan’s death, when another classmate told her own parents about the ruse.
Megan’s mother, Tina Meier, says that she doesn’t think that the family behind “Josh” wanted Megan to commit suicide, but, she adds, “when adults are involved and continue to screw with a 13-year-old, with or without mental problems, it is absolutely vile.”
Equally vile, the acts by these adults do not squarely violate any criminal law, and so local law enforcement is hard pressed to make any arrests or prosecute. (It should be noted however that it is quite likely that they can be sued for both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Of course, none of this will bring Megan back.)
While MySpace has refused to comment, Megan’s mother is hoping that changes in the law and protection of children on the Internet will come out of this situation.