MySpace hoax ends in death
2007-12-04 07:28
St Charles, Missouri - A prosecutor said on Monday he will not file criminal charges in the case of the teenage girl who committed suicide after being bullied on the internet because no charges could be applied under current law.
The parents of 13-year-old Megan Meier, who hanged herself last year, said her suicide was the result of harassment after she created a profile on the MySpace social networking site.
They have said an adult neighbour fabricated a teenage boy online who pretended to be interested in Megan before he began bullying her. The mother is quoted in a police report as saying she and an 18-year-old employee created the boy's account.
St Charles County Prosecutor Jack Banas said the fake MySpace page was not created by the mother of one of Megan's friends, as has been reported. He said the page was created by an 18-year-old employee of that mother, though the mother knew about the page.
The messages were being sent by the 18-year-old and by the neighbour's daughter.
The prosecutor's office had been investigating whether any laws were broken or charges could be filed.
- SAPA