Neighbor Indicted In MySpace Suicide Case:
In case you haven’t heard by now Lori Drew has been federally indicted in the suicide death of Megan Meier. For those of you that have been living under the proverbial rock for the past year Drew created a fake MySpace of a teenage boy in order to humiliate the 16-year-old Meier. Drew had someone create the fake profile of a ‘Josh Evans’ in which the non-existent Evans took a liking to Megan. When Evans revealed himself to be a fake and told Megan that the world would be better off without her Megan Meier committed suicide. It was later revealed that the whole plot was masterminded by the 49-year-old Lori Drew whose daughter Megan Meier was allegedly feuding with.
Originally Missouri prosecutors had said that no charges could be filed against Drew. However federal prosecutors in California, where MySpace is headquartered, handed down an indictment against Drew on charges of fraud and conspiracy.
When Drew is arraigned in June she will be transported from Missouri to L.A.
Drew is looking at 20 years behind bars.
Thanks to Angie, Bay, and Gage for the tips.
The other day, I received an e-mail from a woman who was being harassed on craigslist. For several months, someone was posting ads in the personal ads sections advertising for things like no strings attached sex and lesbian affairs. The ads would contain her pictures and personal information. She is very busy in her profession and didn’t have the time to flag every ad that popped up. Both her local police and craigslist were not exactly helpful. She came to me asking for assistance.
I thought about trying what little media contacts I have, but even then, craigslist doesn’t always respond. So I did some research and I found out that if you’re being harassed on craigslist like this, there is someplace you can file a complaint. My research took me to The Internet Crime Complaint Center.
The site itself talks mostly about fraud, but I e-mailed them directly, and they assured me that IC3 is the place to file complaints about craigslist harassment of this type. They also recommended filing a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.
So even if craigslist is no help, there are places you can turn to.
I’ll keep you posted on the status of the complaint.
L.A. grand jury issues subpoenas in Web suicide case:
A federal grand jury in Los Angeles has issued subpoenas in the suicide death of Megan Meier from Missouri. For those of you living under a rock, Megan Meier, at the age of 13-committed suicide when a boy she met on MySpace rejected her and demeaned her. Except the MySpace boy wasn’t a boy at all but adult neighbor Lori Drew. Drew wanted to see if Megan was talking about Drew’s daughter behind her back.
Authorities in Missouri could not find anything to charge Lori Drew with, but the U.S. prosecutors in L.A. have taken a different approach. They’re thinking of charging Lori Drew with fraud for creating the fake MySpace. And why is this happening in L.A. you ask.
The prosecutors believe they have jurisdiction because MySpace — the would-be victim — is based in Beverly Hills, the sources said.
The subpoenas were issued to MySpace and what the article says are “witnesses in the case.”
Here’s hoping that there can be some modicum of justice for Megan Meier.
I’m usually not one to say I told you so….ah who the hell am I kidding? Thanks to Mondoreb, from DBKP we now know that ‘Megan Had It Coming’ was a hoax like I’ve been telling you all along. So if you’ll allow me…
*AHEM*
I told you so.
But someone was even more right than me, and that would be Pat from Belchspeak. Early on he told me that it was probably someone from Encyclopedia Dramatica, and it turns out he was dead on. For those of you who don’t know, ED is a bizarro world version of Wikipedia that keeps track of all the drama on the internet. ED’s admission to it can be found here, where they also refer to yours truly as an internet genius. Yes, I know they’re being sarcastic.
However, as crass and tasteless as this stunt was on ED’s part (as in I hope the hoaxter gets a kick in the balls by karma) the hoaxter has a point. Some assclown posts a blog claiming to be Lori Drew and a lot of you fell for it hook line and sinker, further perpetuating the sad realization that even today some people will believe anything they see on the internet.
Remember Trench’s Internet Law #1 kids. Be skeptical and don’t trust anyone.
MySpace Mom Linked to Missouri Teen’s Suicide Being Cyber-Bullied Herself:
Lori Drew is denying any connection to ‘MHIC’ through her attorney…
Drew’s attorney, Jim Briscoe, denied that Drew had any involvement with the “Megan Had It Coming” blog.
“I can categorically say that she did not write it,” Briscoe told FOXNews.com. “She has not said anything on the Internet, on any blogs, on any Internet sites.”
Briscoe said that Drew, a neighbor of the Meiers, has purposely remained silent in the media and online during the investigation and since.
“That’s part of why she’s remained silent, so there’s no confusion about that,” Briscoe said. “Anything that’s on the Web is not true. She hasn’t done anything. She doesn’t know anybody who’s done it — anybody who’s doing it or has done it.”
I would think that if Lori Drew is smart enough to obtain the services of an attorney, that she wouldn’t be that stupid to make this blog. Especially since the Meiers will more than likely pursue civil action.
However, prosecutor Jack Banas is investigating MHIC to see if any harassment laws were broken.
If I were the person behind MHIC I’d be worried about a knock on my door from investigators.