Unbound Edition - Suicide Grim Reminder of Just How Serious Teens Take Their Virtual Lives

Megan Meier, a 14-year-old girl from an exurban area of St. Louis, recently committed suicide over an online MySpace prank instigated by her adult neighbors. Her crush on a boy that never existed in the real world pushed a troubled girl over the edge.

There’s the adage “children are cruel,” but they’re less experienced and often don’t fully appreciate consequences of their actions. These adults should have known better.

Outrage...
written by E.R., November 20, 2007 01:39 PM

I hope this isn't the last we hear of this.

The fundamental danger isn't one particular type of offender-- i.e. pedophiles, phishers, scammers... it's the completely unhinged identity online. Parents, please understand that you are as easily duped as your kids are. Anonymity has rich, wonderful aspects, but its dangers are equally scaled.

Man, this is sad.

E.

...and the parents did everything right
written by Damp Duvet, November 20, 2007 02:10 PM

I work with high schoolers every day, and as typical as I expected this type of behavior to be, when I brought this case up in class, my kids were shocked. One girl actually started crying. You know you've hit a nerve when everyone gets quiet and attentive. Even the asshole kid in the class stared wide-eyed and asked concerned questions. Apparently this kind of thing (the impersonation, not the suicide) doesn't happen like you'd think. I just assumed teens were creating fake profiles all the time...

I will say, there's no way the kid and her mom thought this girl would have reacted so seriously. Irresponsible and tragic, yes, but I wouldn't say criminal.

blur
written by Kristin, November 20, 2007 02:46 PM

I'm just sick over this. The more time spent online, the more the line between "real" and "virtual" is blurred. And for those impressionable kids who are desperate to find acceptance somewhere, the risk of what they might find online is terrifying.

Legal issue
written by bkostl, November 21, 2007 11:13 AM

Yeah, I'm not sure they could have predicted she would hang herself. But since they knew about her emotional issues and that she was on medication for them, it seems that it was not only cruel, but negligent to do such a terrible, twisted thing. If they can't bring criminal charges, I'm sure civil litigators will be foaming at the mouth.

That being said, FOX2 news has done some terrible reporting on the case (no surprise), saying things like hopefully the prosecutor will "agree with everyone" that files should be charged. When the reporter said that in her live hit, I couldn't believe it. It seemed more like Nancy Grace than a supposedly objective news report.

criminal
written by pinhead, November 22, 2007 06:02 AM

Yesterday, the board of alderman of the town this happened in passed a law making online harassment a crime. Up to $500 and 90 days in jail. Here's the story:

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stcharles/story/A2D43DB6B8184B718625739B00130514?OpenDocument

Disgusting
written by Mindy, November 24, 2007 12:46 PM

What kind of sad, pathetic losers have nothing better to do with their lives than spend time creating a fake profile and harrassing their daughters former friend?! I hope they get what's coming to them in one way or another.

Protest held outside home of family that some blame in suicide
written by Margarita, November 25, 2007 10:22 AM

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stcharles/story/D57AC45239714D188625739E00140AF0?OpenDocument