Fake online 'friend' led to girl's suicide

[MLGTS08]

The woman who created the fake profile has not been charged with a crime. She allegedly told the St. Charles County Sheriff's Department she created Josh's profile because she wanted to gain Megan's confidence to know what Megan was saying about her own child online.

Parents say fake online 'friend' led to girl's suicide - CNN.com
...wow

 

[vraiblonde]

What a bunch of #######s.

That said, I don't think something like that can make a sane person suicidal. That girl was obviously predisposed. Most people would flake off insults from a stranger.

And the obvious lesson is, if your kid is ultra-sensitive and has emotional problems, don't let them correspond with strangers on the internet.

 

[vegmom]

I smell a civil wrongful death suit brewing.

If the girl was known to the folks who created the fake account they should have known she had mental issues.

Grown ups are supposed to know better either way.

 

[Wenchy]

I smell a civil wrongful death suit brewing.

Grown ups are supposed to know better either way.

I'm sure her family will get their money, which will "ease" their pain.

No sympathy here. Her parents let her add a "cute" "hot" boy to her myspace. Now, they will get rich for allowing their mentally unstable spawn to surf the net searching for friends.

Like Vrai said, she probably would have offed herself anyway.

 

[godsbutterfly]

I smell a civil wrongful death suit brewing.

If the girl was known to the folks who created the fake account they should have known she had mental issues.

Grown ups are supposed to know better either way.

A 13 year old girl with A.D.D. and depression is going to latch on easily to somebody acting as though they really care about her. I hope these cruel jerks get exactly what they deserve. Poor little girl. My sympathy is for her, not for her parents.

 

[huntr1]

I'm sure her family will get their money, which will "ease" their pain.

Nothin like bling to ease the pain of being a dumbass.

 

[David]

1) There is no mention what-so-ever in the article of a civil lawsuit. That is a pure projection on someone's part here.

2) I feel sorry for those few of you here who seek to blame the victim and her family. An impressionable 13-year-old girl, who suffered from depression, is intentionally made the target of a hoax--cruel or otherwise--by neighbors/friends, which ultimately results in her being made to feel a fool and called "fat" and a "slut" for all the world to see and ultimately ends in suicide -- and in your mind you make it up that the family wants to sue for money to make themselves feel better when you actually believe they are/she was little more than a "dumbass." You should be proud!

 

[godsbutterfly]

1) There is no mention what-so-ever in the article of a civil lawsuit. That is a pure projection on someone's part here.

2) I feel sorry for those few of you here who seek to blame the victim and her family. An impressionable 13-year-old girl, who suffered from depression, is intentionally made the target of a hoax--cruel or otherwise--by neighbors/friends, which ultimately results in her being made to feel a fool and called "fat" and a "slut" for all the world to see and ultimately ends in suicide -- and in your mind you make it up that the family wants to sue for money to make themselves feel better when you actually believe they are/she was little more than a "dumbass." You should be proud!

The only thing I am blaming her parents for is for not monitoring her My Space more carefully. She was only 13 and had problems with A.D.D. & Depression. Suddenly Prince Charming wants to be her friend? I would have been really suspicious of that and would have been on guard. I don't think a 13 year old needs a My Space anyway. We have a 12 year old and he doesn't have one. Neither does our 15 year old yet and when she does we will keep privacy tabs on it not because we don't trust her but because we know there are sick people out there and she is fine with that.

 

[vraiblonde]

2) I feel sorry for those few of you here who seek to blame the victim and her family. An impressionable 13-year-old girl, who suffered from depression, is intentionally made the target of a hoax--cruel or otherwise--by neighbors/friends, which ultimately results in her being made to feel a fool and called "fat" and a "slut" for all the world to see and ultimately ends in suicide -- and in your mind you make it up that the family wants to sue for money to make themselves feel better when you actually believe they are/she was little more than a "dumbass." You should be proud!

We didn't let our kids have online friends that they didn't know personally and we hadn't pre-approved. They had no internet privacy whatsoever until they were much older than 13. And they didn't even have existing emotional problems.

Online safety is no huge secret, and any parent that doesn't realize there are predators out there should have their computer taken away and burned. And their kids should be taken away and made wards of the state.

I feel terrible about the girl, but her parents should be charged with neglect and endangerment.

 

[Dougstermd]

Can we start a couple more freads about this.

Not sure that we have enough freads about the people who are a few genes short of a sammich.

 

[vraiblonde]

Also, if you read the whole story in that link, it becomes obvious we're not talking about solid citizens here, on either side of it.

 

[Nicole_in_somd]

No way. It cracks me up when I hear parents say that my kid does not do this or that or have a myspace account, only to discover Jr had an account and was accessing it away from home. This thread reminds me of so many others in here where people have got to place the blame on someone. Recently the Aly and Ryan threads got so tore up BUT when the aunt of those two kids posted on here not one person running their mouth pointing blame came in there as squeaked one word.

It is so easy to try and put the blame on someone that we do not know the whole story.

 

[Pandora]

We didn't let our kids have online friends that they didn't know personally and we hadn't pre-approved. They had no internet privacy whatsoever until they were much older than 13. And they didn't even have existing emotional problems.

Online safety is no huge secret, and any parent that doesn't realize there are predators out there should have their computer taken away and burned. And their kids should be taken away and made wards of the state.

I feel terrible about the girl, but her parents should be charged with neglect and endangerment.

How in the hell can you say that? What this family did was unedited HATE and it wasn’t the first time. There was a prior issue involving harassment with this girl, and if the mother had an ounce integrity, she would have encouraged her daughter not to participate in such behavior, instead, she downright encouraged it. It became a family pass time. Not only is this girl Megan dead, but now, her parents have separated. And all the mother can say, “we didn’t expect her to kill herself.”

No, they just expected to inflict a whole lot of emotional pain. Nice of them. And we wonder why our world is in the sad ass shape it is in?

 

[vraiblonde]

How in the hell can you say that? What this family did was unedited HATE and it wasn’t the first time.

Roll back, hoss. I'm not excusing the neighbor tards for their ignorant behavior, but whose responsibility is it to keep their kid safe from online predators???

It's the freaking internet. You voluntarily access it, nobody forces you.

 

[Nicole_in_somd]

Roll back, hoss. I'm not excusing the neighbor tards for their ignorant behavior, but whose responsibility is it to keep their kid safe from online predators???

It's the freaking internet. You voluntarily access it, nobody forces you.

she was 13, most kids access the internet to chat with friends or what have you. Many parents block sites and moniter the best they can but kids can go to other kids homes, school or other places to access the internet.

Kids just do not think myspace is bad. In their minds it is a cool place to talk to other kids. No matter what we as adults tell them. Some kids listen, some don't but I would not hold the parents responsible. No one wants their kids to be exposed to something that will hurt them.

 

[Pandora]

Roll back, hoss.

Good lord... if I didn't know better, I would think you have been hanging w/my DH.

I'm not excusing the neighbor tards for their ignorant behavior, but whose responsibility is it to keep their kid safe from online predators???

It's the freaking internet. You voluntarily access it, nobody forces you.

Kids are kids and we all know they are going to do things with or without permission. I got my ass beat daily and still did things I know I shouldn't have done. Fear never stopped me over some things, and I think had we had computers when I was that age, I might have done things I shouldn't have done like sneak on and create a myspace.

But, if my parents found out I was being cruel to somebody, I wouldn't have been able to sit for the rest of my life.

 

[vraiblonde]

she was 13, most kids access the internet to chat with friends or what have you. Many parents block sites and moniter the best they can but kids can go to other kids homes, school or other places to access the internet.

Kids just do not think myspace is bad. In their minds it is a cool place to talk to other kids. No matter what we as adults tell them. Some kids listen, some don't but I would not hold the parents responsible. No one wants their kids to be exposed to something that will hurt them.

Did you read where this girl had a restricted MySpace and the parents allowed her to add this stranger to her friends list because he was "hot"?

St. Charles Journal - News -

His name was Josh Evans. He was 16 years old. And he was hot.

"Mom! Mom! Mom! Look at him!" Tina Meier recalls her daughter saying.

Josh had contacted Megan Meier through her MySpace page and wanted to be added as a friend.Yes, he's cute, Tina Meier told her daughter. "Do you know who he is?"

"No, but look at him! He's hot! Please, please, can I add him?"

Mom said yes. And for six weeks Megan and Josh - under Tina's watchful eye - became acquainted in the virtual world of MySpace.

 

[Nicole_in_somd]

Good lord... if I didn't know better, I would think you have been hanging w/my DH.




Kids are kids and we all know they are going to do things with or without permission. I got my ass beat daily and still did things I know I shouldn't have done. Fear never stopped me over some things, and I think had we had computers when I was that age, I might have done things I shouldn't have done like sneak on and create a myspace.

But, if my parents found out I was being cruel to somebody, I wouldn't have been able to sit for the rest of my life.

I am just floored that the mother would do such a thing. What the hell? Reminds me of that movie mean girls.."you know I'm the cool mom. Let me fix you a humpday drink."

Their actions lead to the girls death. How can they not be accountable for that?

 

[smcop]

1) There is no mention what-so-ever in the article of a civil lawsuit. That is a pure projection on someone's part here.

2) I feel sorry for those few of you here who seek to blame the victim and her family. An impressionable 13-year-old girl, who suffered from depression, is intentionally made the target of a hoax--cruel or otherwise--by neighbors/friends, which ultimately results in her being made to feel a fool and called "fat" and a "slut" for all the world to see and ultimately ends in suicide -- and in your mind you make it up that the family wants to sue for money to make themselves feel better when you actually believe they are/she was little more than a "dumbass." You should be proud!

If they don't want to sue, then why do they have lawyers?

 

[Kain99]

This story is sad for so many reasons.