Lori Drew cleared of MySpace cyber-bullying [Archive]

lunchlady

11-25-2008, 08:18 AM

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/11/24/internet.suicide/index.html

(CNN) -- Jury deliberations are set for Tuesday in the trial of a Missouri woman accused in the case of a girl who committed suicide after she was criticized on the Web site MySpace.com, a U.S. Attorney spokesman said Monday.

I hope this case leads to clear penalties for cyberbullying and hoaxing. The anonymity of online life has its advantages, but using it to trick people can be a dangerous con game.

sofiesmom

11-25-2008, 08:34 AM

I think this is a very important case...precedent setting, obviously. I'm sort of torn about my wishes for sentencing.

Shells2

11-25-2008, 12:25 PM

Judge postpones ruling

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/11/judge-postpones.html

I sure hope this woman is held accountable for her actions. To behave the way she did prior to and immediately after this childs suicide is reprehensible to me.

BorderCollieMom

11-25-2008, 03:34 PM

I was hoping for a quick verdict.

still waiting.

aubrey04

11-25-2008, 04:24 PM

I think this is a very important case...precedent setting, obviously. I'm sort of torn about my wishes for sentencing.

Me too. I am conflicted on it.. :(

Chelle

11-26-2008, 02:03 PM

Report: MYSPACE suicide verdict to be read in next few minutes... Developing...

FrankieBones1

11-26-2008, 02:12 PM

She's been convicted on the three lesser counts but not on the single count of conspiracy.

Chelle

11-26-2008, 02:12 PM

NO JAIL: Missouri mother in MYSPACE cyber-bullying case convicted of lesser misdemeanor charges...

Details

11-26-2008, 02:45 PM

Yay, convicted! I'm fine with the lesser counts, at least they got her to some extent. It's a hard crime to prosecute, outside the normal realm of what we can prosecute - harassing someone into suicide.

Mosgranny

11-26-2008, 02:51 PM

NO JAIL: Missouri mother in MYSPACE cyber-bullying case convicted of lesser misdemeanor charges...

We must abide by the jurors decision. She got some form of punishment. At least she did not get off scot free.

Carol25

11-26-2008, 03:06 PM

I just read an article that said she could receive a year in jail and a $100,000 fine for each of three guilty counts. :shrug:

Jury convicts mom of lesser charges in online hoax

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081126/ap_on_re_us/internet_suicide (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081126/ap_on_re_us/internet_suicide)

I would like to see the the sentence of a year for each. With parole, she would get probably a year. But it would send a message to her daughter and others.

I was going to start a thread the other day. May do it today. Her daughter even perjured herself in court!

Details

11-26-2008, 03:08 PM

It's a start. Normally, if you harass someone into suicide, I don't think there are any charges. In this case, we had a situation where there could be charges because there was fraud of a type - misrepresenting herself as a teenage boy. So, it's something, and more than we could normally get for justice.

Carol25

11-26-2008, 03:13 PM

Her lawyer wants the case thrown out because she never saw the Myspace contract and never agreed to the TOS.
I don't care whether she ever saw the myspace contract or agreed to the TOS. She is a grown up woman who assisted in perpetrating a hoax to bully a child. What kind of person does that? What kind of mother is this? She has ruined her own family, but that is probably repairable. Nothing can repair the victims' family. Surely there is a stonger charge than conspiracy and some sort of "without authorization" computer charge

I assume there is alo a civil suit?
Although she clicked the box that said she read and agreed to to the terms of service....:rolleyes:

She's is was Casey A. would call, "what a waste!"

I was going to start a thread a week ago. I'll put up a Links thread. Some interesting articles. Her daughter even perjured herself in court! What a mother!

Carol25

11-26-2008, 03:15 PM

Missouri Woman Indicted in MySpace Cyber-Bullying Case That Ended in Teen's Suicide
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356056,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356056,00.html)

Dismissal Rejected in Federal MySpace Suicide Case
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,389922,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,389922,00.html)

Woman in MySpace Suicide Case Moving Away From Neighborhood
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,424481,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,424481,00.html)

Second Teenager May Be Tied to MySpace Suicide Case
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,438181,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,438181,00.html)

Dead Teen's Mom Testifies in MySpace Suicide Trial
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,454866,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,454866,00.html)

MySpace Victim's Web Activities Discussed At Trial
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,455664,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,455664,00.html)

Assistant of MySpace Hoax Mom: 'We Decided to Be Mean'
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,455724,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,455724,00.html)

Daughter Defends Mom in MySpace Suicide Trial

Carol25

11-26-2008, 03:17 PM

Sorry....

Daughter Defends Mom in MySpace Suicide Trial
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,456365,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,456365,00.html)

Jury Hints at Verdict in MySpace Hoax Case
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,457264,00.html (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,457264,00.html)

Hey Paula

11-26-2008, 03:20 PM

Does anyone know when she will be sentenced?

EXCERPT:

However, the jury found defendant Lori Drew guilty of three counts of the lesser offense of accessing a computer without authorization. Each count is punishable by up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gg5xCtQtLBF6vJqWXStItGEOsJfwD94MQND01

ALL RISE

11-26-2008, 03:25 PM

She'll be busy now having to get a job after jail to pay the fine...which if she had been busy b/4 this wouldn't have happened..obviously a woman with too much time on her hands.

RayStar

11-26-2008, 03:52 PM

Well I hope she has to serve her time in CA. That would be some extra justice. She'll probably do nine months in jail.
I think she made a wise decision in not taking the stand. Yes I hope we have a Meier law. Don't we have a Megan law now? I think for another crime. Just trying to make sure we don't duplicate.

taylor63

11-26-2008, 03:59 PM

Report: MYSPACE suicide verdict to be read in next few minutes... Developing...

This case and the suicide of that little girl is a very sore subject to me. My brother, the most nice, decent guy in the world, was severely harrassed by people he knew on the internet.

Several people hacked into his email. They sent him threatening and harrassing letters,and even sent his personal info all over the internet via email to his friends and acquaintances, and to messageboards he visited and one he moderated.

This was a horrible time for our family in the 1st place,we had just lost a close family member to cancer, and our mother was very ill in the hospital, all this stress and grief left my brother in a state of deep depression and caused his panic attacks to come back.

It's just ashame more is not done to halt, or at the very least regulate this kind of harrassment and abuse in cyberspace. If people did this in real life,they would be arrested and charged with stalking or some other crime.

But unfortunately, the anonymity of the internet allows people to get away with the worst forms of harrassment and abuse against other people.

Although,I am somewhat dissapointed this woman was not found guilty on all charges, and given the maximum penalty. I am glad she woman is being held accountable on at least some of these charges. She is nothing but an overgrown abusive bully in my opinion.

My heart goes out to the family of this little girl. Hopefully,this verdict will give them sort of peace and closure.

Details

11-26-2008, 04:10 PM

Yeah, try saying you didn't read the terms, when it comes to your credit card terms, mortgage, or anything else. It's no defense anywhere else, a defense of last resort when they've got you dead to rights.

Amy

11-26-2008, 06:14 PM

Her lawyer wants the case thrown out because she never saw the Myspace contract and never agreed to the TOS.
I don't care whether she ever saw the myspace contract or agreed to the TOS. She is a grown up woman who assisted in perpetrating a hoax to bully a child. What kind of person does that? What kind of mother is this? She has ruined her own family, but that is probably repairable. Nothing can repair the victims' family. Surely there is a stonger charge than conspiracy and some sort of "without authorization" computer charge

I assume there is alo a civil suit?

Well, she SHOULD have read the contract and the TOS. Just like you should read all terms of a lease, or a loan. Everytime you download something, there IS a terms of agreement, a TOS. Once you check you have read and agree, you have no recourse. YOU (and these are generic you's) have INDICATED that you read these. You don't get past the box until you do. And, her daughter was a KID, and mom should have read whatever it was her daughter was agreeing to, in order to get into MySpace.

nsm

11-26-2008, 06:36 PM

I hope she gets the maximum time allowed by the law. Its horrible what she did. What kind of a person does that to a child? she is a grown woman and a mother. How she could toy with a kid and lead her on like that is so wrong. In my view, I dont see any difference in what she did and what a child molester would do. I know its different but in many ways its the same. Shame on her.

Carol25

11-26-2008, 08:39 PM

I think what she did was wrong.....but at the same time most of the people commenting here never read a TOS.....and just because you click yes doesn't mean you are held to the terms.......as with many programs with spyware or malware.....if you click yes do you believe that the company has a right to access your computer? LOL I'd bet that more than half of you guys have that type software on your computer already. So why aren't we convicting bullies in schools when a teenager commits suicide? Why is it only wrong when the bullies are online and not inside the schools? I think the charges are a joke unless you protect kids that get bullied in schools (in person) and convict those responsible. At least online if someone picks on you, you can go somewhere else, whereas a student doesn't have that many options when it comes to having to go to school.
When she click the terms of the agreement , it clearly states I read and agree to the terms. And in the terms is states she cannot pose as another or harrass. Of course she can be held to that.

At the same time I do feel that those bullying in school should be held responsible as well. Parents should be be required to sign an agreement that if their child is called on bullying, they will come in for a conference and discuss the issue as well. At that time, the principal can explain the rights of the students and the school and any hearings that may come about if the problem continues.

Carol25

11-26-2008, 08:51 PM

This case and the suicide of that little girl is a very sore subject to me. My brother, the most nice, decent guy in the world, was severely harrassed by people he knew on the internet.

Several people hacked into his email. They sent him threatening and harrassing letters,and even sent his personal info all over the internet via email to his friends and acquaintances, and to messageboards he visited and one he moderated.

This was a horrible time for our family in the 1st place,we had just lost a close family member to cancer, and our mother was very ill in the hospital, all this stress and grief left my brother in a state of deep depression and caused his panic attacks to come back.

It's just ashame more is not done to halt, or at the very least regulate this kind of harrassment and abuse in cyberspace. If people did this in real life,they would be arrested and charged with stalking or some other crime.

But unfortunately, the anonymity of the internet allows people to get away with the worst forms of harrassment and abuse against other people.

Although,I am somewhat dissapointed this woman was not found guilty on all charges, and given the maximum penalty. I am glad she woman is being held accountable on at least some of these charges. She is nothing but an overgrown abusive bully in my opinion.

My heart goes out to the family of this little girl. Hopefully,this verdict will give them sort of peace and closure.

I too, am very sorry to hear about your brother's problems and all of the stress that came into his and your life.

It may help to realize that Lori Drew and her husband lost their business, was hated by their community and forced to move, not too mention expensive attorney fees. What a horrible life she has had since her disgraceful deed!

Her problems haven't ended yet. She has taught her daughter many things. Many of which were not very good. I wouldn't doubt for a minute that it will be thrown up to her in the very near future...and often.

Tell your brother what promise he has as a caring and loving parent. One with integrity, compassion and love. Those who have been hurt often teach their own children to be especially kind to others and make wondefully wise parents!~

Sturgeon_Moon

11-29-2008, 04:23 PM

LisaM22

11-29-2008, 04:52 PM

<snip>

I do wish she could have been charged with something

:rose:

she was, and she was found guilty, not only that she was humiliated in the media, I am happy with the outcome, we can't charge people with murder if someone commits suicide, that would just be crazy, many cheating spouses would be considered murderers if their partner killed themselves when they found out

kellabeck

11-29-2008, 07:17 PM

I hope the judge gives this woman the maximum. She is guilty of driving a little girl to suicide. She is despicable.

LisaM22

11-29-2008, 09:23 PM

I hope the judge gives this woman the maximum. She is guilty of driving a little girl to suicide. She is despicable.

maybe she kept the girl alive a bit longer, we will never really know - all we know is what she did was mean - the thing that scares me about these charges is it makes it a crime to not read the eula's - can you imagine every time someone gets banned, by this standard it would be a crime equal to what this women was found guilty of, and people can put anything in those eula's, anything at all, if you just click through it, you are legal bound to what you did not read - a precedent is being set because some want to make a crime of something for which there was no law on the books

lunchlady

12-02-2008, 11:15 PM

Bullying/deceiving someone who then commits suicide is sort of like forcing animals to run over a cliff. You didn't stick a spear in them but you caused them to die by cornering them and frightening them, plus you knew how distressed they were before they ran off the cliff.
Lori Drew deserves the censure she is getting in her old community.

There are mean people living in lots of communities and they sometimes do nasty things for years without getting caught. A neighborhood I used to live in had a whole family who were all sociopaths, superficially charming and secretly grifters and general creeps. They moved in and soon had people arguing about their character, but within a few years everyone had caught on to what they were all about. The number of dirty tricks they used was huge- threatening letters, angry phone calls, legal threats, bogus lawsuits, vandalism, setting fires, starting malicious gossip, standing across the street and smoking cigarette after cigarette, giving the creepy son a pellet gun, and so on. This was in addition to abusing neighborliness to keep all borrowed tools and other items, taking advantage of neighbors for child care and meals and anything else they could get, always asking for free professional advice from anyone they could, etc. The kind of family that inspires neighbors to have a party when they leave, except that last I heard they still haven't completely left.

Anyway, I am still hoping that this case leads to some needed legislation about online behavior.

Details

12-03-2008, 03:19 PM

Megan's mother did everything right. She was well aware of Megan's MySpace usage, had the parental controls on, Megan did not have the password, and could not talk to anyone other than her school friends that her mother had approved and checked out. Megan wasn't allowed to use the computer when no one was home. She approved the new contact because she thought it was what it seemed to be, and monitored everything.

Megan's mother did it all right, would be seen as overly strict, if anything.

The only failing was a very unfortunate coincidence of timing. She had a dentist's appointment (IIRC - might have been a different errand), told Megan to shut the computer down as she walked out - but Megan couldn't resist opening her latest message from the fake guy. Reading that inflamatory stuff, she got caught up into replying, defending herself, and by the time Megan's mom got home, the damage was done. She told Megan to log off immediately and go to her room, for disobeying - went up shortly after to talk to her - but it was too late.

They did everything right. So there's no need to pretend there's some fake moral equivalence, that we can point fingers at everyone. There isn't. There's the people who knowingly pushed a fragile girl to suicide, and there's the ones who loved her and tried to protect her, but didn't know what she was dealling with.

Details

12-04-2008, 12:45 AM

You think wrong. There was not harassment for days and days. They decided to end it, and ended it harshly, and it did not take long. There were weeks and weeks of them working on her, setting her up, getting her to fall for this guy, depend on him, value his opinion, tell him her secrets and fears so they could destroy her by spreading them throughout the school.

Harassment, telling her she should kill herself - that was relatively short, and very unfortunately, during the time when her mother was out of the house.

I've followed this story since day one - what I wrote is accurate. It's been in the media, and isn't that hard to find. No doubt it's in the court records now too.

It's always so comforting to have that moral equivalence, to think our kids are safe, our friends kids are safe, because we'll be careful enough, to be able to blame the parents for being lazy. Sorry - it's just not true. Not for this one.

Details

12-04-2008, 12:57 AM

A weird source - but here's a nice little timeline:

http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/686259/The_Girl_Who_Will_Change_The_Internet.html

You'll note that the mother has to log in for Megan - she doesn't have the password herself - and that she checks up on Megan while she's out, that the harassment itself took very little time - more than a month of setting her up, getting embarassing little details - then spreading those details to all her classmates, mocking her, and telling her to kill herself.

Before that - there's nothing for the parents to catch, nothing they could have seen was wrong. Just their daughter, and a young teen boy she liked to talk to.

lunchlady

12-08-2008, 06:48 PM

Its pretty hard to know exactly what your kids are doing online. I try to check on this but the only way to have full control is sit with them the whole time they're online, or just say no online stuff at all. That's tough to do because more and and more of their homework is online (study guides, test corrections, etc) and the research they do is online.

I look at their social networking stuff regularly but they could change it all inbetween and I wouldn't know.

JD1974

01-03-2009, 04:21 PM

This is actually scary to me. Everyday we sit on here and call people murderers and POS etc. what if one of those people were reading here and weren't guilty and committed suicide because of stuff we said..will there come a day when we could be prosecuted into harrassing someone into suicide?

tv4me

01-05-2009, 01:01 AM

The thing that bothers me the most is that Lori knew the girl she was "pranking" was mentally unstable and had been taking medication for depression. In fact, before it became public that Lori was the one behind the emails, wasn't she friends with Megan's mother? They had known each other for a long time and even asked Megan's parents to hide a Christmas present in their garage...which Megan's mom smashed on their front lawn when the truth came out? Lori knew Megan. She knew her parents. She knew that Megan was troubled but didn't care because she wanted to get back at Megan for supposedly hurting her own daughter. You can agure that she didn't know that Megan would commit suicide, but what she think would happen? A teen might not realize the impact of cruel words, but an adult (one who has a daughter the same age, no less) should.

I can't help thinking that part of "prank" was brought on because, from the photographs, Megan appeared to be quite pretty and thin. Lori's daughter unfortunately took after her. She appears to be extremely overweight in the photos. Perhaps there was jealousy on Lori's part; Megan was thinner than her daugher. If her own daughter was being rejected by boys, by gosh, Megan would get rejected too.
It's just hard for me to understand how one mother could be so cruel to another child, a child of a neighbor and friend. It goes way beyond pranking, way beyond being petty.

In my opinion, this case is more that just Internet laws. There weren't any current bullying/cyber laws that the lawyers could charge Lori with so they got creative. It's like getting O.J. on gun charges when they really wanted to get him on murder. What Lori did is so horrible that I believe law enforcement is trying to find a way to make her pay for her crime. It's like getting Al Capone on tax evasion.

I'm hoping she gets a huge fine. I'd like her to get some jail time as well.

tv4me

01-06-2009, 01:54 AM

I'm still hoping that sentence against Lori isn't thrown out and since To Catch a Criminal was brought up, isn't this show currently being sued (for millions) because someone they were about to profile on their show DID commit suicide? I was under the impression, that that show was going to have to undergo a complete overhaul before anymore episodes could be filmed. In fact, is the show even in production anymore, since the death and following lawsuit have occured?

Details

01-06-2009, 05:15 AM

Lori Drew's crime wasn't harassment, wasn't being mean, wasn't saying nasty things - it was a type of fraud - pretending to be someone else. That's not the case for the suicide in To catch a predator, not true when people on these forums say unpleasant things about others. None of us are pretending to be any of those people's best friends, pretending to be a teenager, posting fake photos to create a fake persona. And it was against the rules of the site she was posting on. That's what got her in trouble.

Being mean, even trying to harass someone into suicide - hard to prosecute, probably impossible. But fraud - representing yourself as someone you are not, for an evil purpose - that's much easier to work with.

Details

01-07-2009, 02:02 AM

Yes, there is a difference between good and evil - and it matters. Posing as a child tofind out if someone is sending children porn is one thing, posing as a teen boy to destroy a life is completely different.

It's like cutting a throat - doing so to kill someone is wrong, doing so to perform a tracheotomy is right.

Motive does matter.

JD1974

01-09-2009, 08:43 PM

JD1974

01-09-2009, 08:51 PM

No she was prosecuted for unauthorized access.....

so you are saying the folks that do great work at Perverted-Justice are criminals....because they make up fake profiles of children to catch sicko perverts.

Adding...LOL I noticed you said for evil purposes......to use stories such as Robin Hood and Zorro.....it's okay to rob people because it's not evil, of course the people they robbed might feel it was evil. That's why we have laws, you break the law, you break the law........if I rob someone it's still against the law, doesn't matter if it's for good or evil.......

you people try to stretch so much it's absurd.

I have to agree. If based on this case it will become against the law to pretend to be something other than you are online, a lot of people will be prosecuted. How many 100 year olds do you know that are on myspace? I have seen LOTS. How many people that live on Mars are on myspace...quite a few.

What she did was morally wrong, legally I just don't think so.

starling

01-10-2009, 04:49 PM

Judge defers decision on dismissing Lori Drew cyber-bullying convictions
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/4EE818B8839615C186257539001498C6?OpenDocument

Details

01-10-2009, 07:25 PM

If she couldn't even log in on her own, wouldn't it stand to reason the parents would be watching what she was writing and what someone else was writing to her? I mean they go through all of these motions to protect her yet they never read anything she sends or recieves?They did read what she sent and received. Until the last day, until that last bit, there was nothing out of the ordinary for them to find. Just her talking to this boy who seems normal.

Like I said - it was one bad bit of happenstance - that it just so happened that as her mom was off to the doctors appointment, she got the first bad email, broke the rules and didn't log off.

And they did read, when her mom got back, she read what was being sent and received- and that was what got Megan sent to her room. It's all out there, all in the descriptions of what happened that final day. Her parents were so cautious, if this had happened at any other time, or if it had taken a few days to go down, they would have known what was going on.

Details

01-10-2009, 07:28 PM

Sorry, that is not the case, just do a google search of "Good Samaritan faces charges"

I'm sure you've even heard recently where a person is being sued for pulling a person from a car. The claim being the result of the good deed ended up paralyzing the person that was pulled from the car.

So it's not as simple as you'd like to make it out......people doing things for the right reason do get sued and prosecuted when they break laws.And if you Google, Good Samaritan Laws, you'll find that you are generally exempt from prosecution, when you do these things for good motives, with reasonable caution.

It is indeed the case that a murderer cutting a throat with the intent to kill and a doctor, or even a good sam who has some knowledge cutting a throat to save someone choking to death will indeed be treated entirely differently. The Good Sam won't be charged with murder, for the first difference, if they had reason to think that was the only way to save the life, they likely won't be charged nor civilly liable for anything at all, even if they fail.

Motives matter. Good and evil are not the same thing, nor are they treated as the same thing by the law, nor by most people.

lunchlady

01-11-2009, 09:31 AM

I don't think Lori intended for the girl to commit suicide, but she intended to cause emotional distress. The girl's parents apparently knew how fragile the girl was, but did Lori? Probably not, so I suppose the girl's suicide is then just an unexpected result for Lori. She probably sees it as bad luck.
What's the takeaway message here? I'm not sure. Doing mean devious things might cause more damage than you consciously intend? Emotionally vulnerable kids shouldn't have any online time because they have no judgment?

penguin01

05-05-2009, 11:58 AM

the length of probabation because it hasn't been announced yet. Are there civil suits to follow - does anyone know? By the victim's family or by MySpace? This was certainly a very stupid, immature and unkind woman. Not that that is what she is charged with - but that is clearly what she is as a person.

I hate to think of what kind of values she has been raising her daughter with. I wonder if she gets it yet.

Carol25

05-18-2009, 07:40 AM

Prosecutors Seek Prison for Mom in MySpace Hoax
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,520481,00.html?test=latestnews (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,520481,00.html?test=latestnews)

I hope she gets prison!

Carol25

05-18-2009, 07:44 AM

I think that prank of pretending to be a boy who was interested in Megan Meier and then being mean to her was just so immature and as dirty as a person could get.

Perhaps Mrs. Drew would mature in prison and her daught er would learn a lesson through her mother that way. Her mother wasn't being a very good role mother any other way.

God Bless Megan and her family. What torture that woman caused. Three years in prison is appropriate.

sofiesmom

05-18-2009, 07:53 AM

I think that misdemeaner crimes will be re-thought due to this case. However, under the existing laws, I doubt she will get three years. But I certainly hope she doesn't get just probation.

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 08:19 AM

while I do think this was a really sick joke gone really bad, I think this should of been a civil case rather then a criminal one, they really had to reach to come up with a law they could say she broke - this child was suicidal, anything could of set her off, it just happened to be this mean joke - I think she should just get probation, they have made a big enough example out of her already

iluvmua

05-18-2009, 08:33 AM

Hope people give Lori Drew hell for the rest of her life. :angry:

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 08:51 AM

Hope people give Lori Drew hell for the rest of her life. :angry:

you can't punish people because someone kills themselves, suicide is a sign of mental illness, sure she feels bad enough as it is, she will have to live with it for the rest of her life, I am sure she never intended what happened to happen, was she in the wrong, of course she was, but enough is enough, this has gone way too far

she was convicted of accessing computers without authorization, because she set up a account with a fake name, something millions of Americans do - yet because they had nothing else, this is what they charged her with? how many here that are baned time and time again use their real names? seems they would be committing the same crimes she did to me - so really what this case has done is set up a precedent unless it is overturned that if you register for a free account, you better use your real name or risk being charged, possibly in another state then your own as a criminal

Carol25

05-18-2009, 09:28 AM

you can't punish people because someone kills themselves, suicide is a sign of mental illness, sure she feels bad enough as it is, she will have to live with it for the rest of her life, I am sure she never intended what happened to happen, was she in the wrong, of course she was, but enough is enough, this has gone way too far

she was convicted of accessing computers without authorization, because she set up a account with a fake name, something millions of Americans do - yet because they had nothing else, this is what they charged her with? how many here that are baned time and time again use their real names? seems they would be committing the same crimes she did to me - so really what this case has done is set up a precedent unless it is overturned that if you register for a free account, you better use your real name or risk being charged, possibly in another state then your own as a criminal
I guess I feel differently because she didn't have trouble living with it when Megan's parents found out what she had done, the brought the pool table they had been storing for a Christmas gift for one of their children, dropped on their lawn and stomped on it. Broke it to pieces.

Lori Drew had the gall to call the police on the Meiers! After all that had happened and they lost their daughter due to this incredibly mean woman and they were angry, she called the police on them for the pool table! I'd say she was living with the guilt very well!

Then she had her daughter lie on the stand. Argh! Going to find a link for that unless someone can back me up on it.

Carol25

05-18-2009, 09:48 AM

Link for statements in court that go against Ashley Grills, who had immunity.
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2008/11/defendants-daug/

Ashley had no horse in this race. She would not have set this up!

Megan had told Sarah on two occassions she had wanted to kill herself and went to the doctor with her to be treated for depression. But never told her mother about it?

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 10:08 AM

I guess I feel differently because she didn't have trouble living with it when Megan's parents found out what she had done, the brought the pool table they had been storing for a Christmas gift for one of their children, dropped on their lawn and stomped on it. Broke it to pieces.

Lori Drew had the gall to call the police on the Meiers! After all that had happened and they lost their daughter due to this incredibly mean woman and they were angry, she called the police on them for the pool table! I'd say she was living with the guilt very well!

Then she had her daughter lie on the stand. Argh! Going to find a link for that unless someone can back me up on it.

yes, she was wrong, but it is also wrong to twist laws into meaning something they do not just so you can charge someone, these laws were meant for hackers, not people setting up a myspace account under a fictitious name, she was in the wrong, but she was also the victim of an abuse of the system imo - the daughter killed herself, no one else, it's sad, but that is the reality of the situation

Carol25

05-18-2009, 10:31 AM

yes, she was wrong, but it is also wrong to twist laws into meaning something they do not just so you can charge someone, these laws were meant for hackers, not people setting up a myspace account under a fictitious name, she was in the wrong, but she was also the victim of an abuse of the system imo - the daughter killed herself, no one else, it's sad, but that is the reality of the situation
What would cover this. Someone you know is depressed, you pull a prank like this on such a vulnerable young person and at the end, you say, "The world would be better off without you."

That really is mental abuse, harrassment to the point of involuntary manslaughter or something, negligent homicide. I don't believe Sarah (drew's daughter) when she says she didn't tell her mother that Megan talked about suicide. And what if she admitted she knew she talked about it? Wouldn't there be some moral responsibility of an adult not to do this sort of mayhem?

There just seems that there should be some sort of responsibility put on this woman for what she did. A person cannot yell fire in a theater for harm that it can cause. What about doing this to a girl you know that is fragile? It seems that we are missing a law here.

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 10:36 AM

What would cover this. Someone you know is depressed, you pull a prank like this on such a vulnerable young person and at the end, you say, "The world would be better off without you."

That really is mental abuse, harrassment to the point of involuntary manslaughter or something, negligent homicide. I don't believe Sarah (drew's daughter) when she says she didn't tell her mother that Megan talked about suicide. And what if she admitted she knew she talked about it? Wouldn't there be some moral responsibility of an adult not to do this sort of mayhem?

There just seems that there should be some sort of responsibility put on this woman for what she did. A person cannot yell fire in a theater for harm that it can cause. What about doing this to a girl you know that is fragile? It seems that we are missing a law here.

who was responsible for her, for making sure she did not kill herself after they knew? could anyone be? I do agree harassment would probably make the most sense, but that was not the charge, she was not even charged with being responsible in any way at all, she was convicted of accessing computers without authorization, nothing to do with the case at all imo

it would be no different then harassing someone offline, calling then a name or something and they run off and kill themselves.... the victim in this case was calling the other girl names too, had she killed herself would it be the other girls fault? what if instead of going suicidal she went homicidal? would we still say it was not her that did the killing? what these people did was mean, no excuse for it, but they are not legally responsible for the suicide nor should they be or people may kill themselves in hopes of getting back at someone else and suicidal people do not need an addl excuse to kill themselves

penguin01

05-18-2009, 11:05 AM

What would cover this. Someone you know is depressed, you pull a prank like this on such a vulnerable young person and at the end, you say, "The world would be better off without you."

That really is mental abuse, harassment to the point of involuntary manslaughter or something, negligent homicide. I don't believe Sarah (drew's daughter) when she says she didn't tell her mother that Megan talked about suicide. And what if she admitted she knew she talked about it? Wouldn't there be some moral responsibility of an adult not to do this sort of mayhem?

There just seems that there should be some sort of responsibility put on this woman for what she did. A person cannot yell fire in a theater for harm that it can cause. What about doing this to a girl you know that is fragile? It seems that we are missing a law here.
Its so clear that this woman's - (and her daughter's) actions are morally reprehensible, but apparently it is difficult to find the correct laws to be able to charge them. These are really creepy, immature people, aren't they? Its not just the actions on the computer - its also their behaviour since the child died.
But I think she will get probation. Their lives are ruined - they would need to move away (if they haven't done so already) and change their names to be able to pick up the pieces. I wonder what new laws might come into being to cover this sort of thing. Wouldn't an amendment of some kind to a stalker law do it? They set this up precisely for the purpose of stalking this child - or rather stalking this child for a purpose. I wonder if all states even have stalker laws at this point.

I have to say that Lori Drew has certainly served a purpose in this life - getting this issue out in the open to show the need for additional or changed laws. And she has made a name for herself. I wonder if a new law could be called the LorI Drew Law?

Carol25

05-18-2009, 12:14 PM

Its so clear that this woman's - (and her daughter's) actions are morally reprehensible, but apparently it is difficult to find the correct laws to be able to charge them. These are really creepy, immature people, aren't they? Its not just the actions on the computer - its also their behaviour since the child died.
But I think she will get probation. Their lives are ruined - they would need to move away (if they haven't done so already) and change their names to be able to pick up the pieces. I wonder what new laws might come into being to cover this sort of thing. Wouldn't an amendment of some kind to a stalker law do it? They set this up precisely for the purpose of stalking this child - or rather stalking this child for a purpose. I wonder if all states even have stalker laws at this point.

I have to say that Lori Drew has certainly served a purpose in this life - getting this issue out in the open to show the need for additional or changed laws. And she has made a name for herself. I wonder if a new law could be called the LorI Drew Law?

There does seem there should be some sort of law to charge harassment an fragile girl like that. They both, mother and daughter knew she was emotionally fragile and intentionally impacted emotional harm upon her, ending in Megan's death. And the mothers were best friends as were the kids at one time. That just doesn't get more vile to me.

The torture of the Meier's. Their whole life has disappeared. Their daughter has died, the parents divorced, just after that stupid vile prank by an immature evil woman. What the Drew's have experienced was brought on by Lori and I feel very badly for the husband. Have they divorced yet? I haven't heard. He's probably waiting to hear about what happens today.

Maybe some how Tina can recover and her life can begin again with what she has left. After the sentence today, or probation whatever happens, let's hope it closes the door and anew one opens for Tina and her family.

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 01:46 PM

Its so clear that this woman's - (and her daughter's) actions are morally reprehensible, but apparently it is difficult to find the correct laws to be able to charge them. These are really creepy, immature people, aren't they? Its not just the actions on the computer - its also their behaviour since the child died.
But I think she will get probation. Their lives are ruined - they would need to move away (if they haven't done so already) and change their names to be able to pick up the pieces. I wonder what new laws might come into being to cover this sort of thing. Wouldn't an amendment of some kind to a stalker law do it? They set this up precisely for the purpose of stalking this child - or rather stalking this child for a purpose. I wonder if all states even have stalker laws at this point.

I have to say that Lori Drew has certainly served a purpose in this life - getting this issue out in the open to show the need for additional or changed laws. And she has made a name for herself. I wonder if a new law could be called the LorI Drew Law?

they did not stalk her though, it would be no different that having a voice changer and calling her on the phone, she voluntarily talked back, stalking is where you follow someone around where ever they go, not when you trick them into thinking your someone else - not sure why they could not charge her with harassment, i think that law needs to be expanded, we do not need a new law, just update the old one

penguin01

05-18-2009, 01:53 PM

they did not stalk her though, it would be no different that having a voice changer and calling her on the phone, she voluntarily talked back, stalking is where you follow someone around where ever they go, not when you trick them into thinking your someone else - not sure why they could not charge her with harassment, i think that law needs to be expanded, we do not need a new law, just update the old one Well you are right, of course. So can we call the update the Lori Drew amendment?

iluvmua

05-18-2009, 02:06 PM

I guess I feel differently because she didn't have trouble living with it when Megan's parents found out what she had done, the brought the pool table they had been storing for a Christmas gift for one of their children, dropped on their lawn and stomped on it. Broke it to pieces.

Lori Drew had the gall to call the police on the Meiers! After all that had happened and they lost their daughter due to this incredibly mean woman and they were angry, she called the police on them for the pool table! I'd say she was living with the guilt very well!

Then she had her daughter lie on the stand. Argh! Going to find a link for that unless someone can back me up on it.

As far as I know Lori Drew has NOT apologized to Megan's family either. She does not care that this girl killed herself. :angry:

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 02:39 PM

Well you are right, of course. So can we call the update the Lori Drew amendment?

I would go with the myspace amendment, but they usually name it after a victim so it will be more likely to pass, though I am not sure an amendment has ever been named after someone that killed themselves

Carol25

05-18-2009, 02:40 PM

The sentencing is supposed to take place today at 2:00 CST. In 20 minutes.

penguin01

05-18-2009, 03:40 PM

I've had MSNBC on - and I MO is the same time zone as AL. Its well after 2 pm here now.....(tapping foot)

Carol25

05-18-2009, 04:00 PM

I went to the AP Press website. Nothing since 5 am this morning. :confused:

Been lookin' everywhere.... Ah, she's probably beltin' down beers somewhere...with her daughter in tow.

RayStar

05-18-2009, 04:14 PM

Carol25

05-18-2009, 04:19 PM

Wow, I thought I had followed this case pretty closely. I don't recall hearing Drew saying she was sorry. This is a cold woman in my mind. I do feel she had no idea that Megan would take her own life but now she must know now how fragile CHILDREN are.
I'd like to see her serve some jail time.
Maybe she'll have some thoughts on what she's exposed her daughter to.

If I don't stop ending my sentences with prepositions, I give any of you permission to come over and slam me in the head!

RayStar

05-18-2009, 04:22 PM

Maybe she'll have some thoughts on what she's exposed her daughter to.

If I don't stop ending my sentences with prepositions, I give any of you permission to come over and slam me in the head!Carol25 I have truly enjoying your posts here today.

Sorry if I made some grammatical errors. OK I just edited my previous post that was filled with errors. The mind is quicker than the fingers.

Carol25

05-18-2009, 04:30 PM

Carol25 I have truly enjoying your posts here today.

Sorry if I made some grammatical errors. OK I just edited my previous post that was filled with errors. The mind is quicker than the fingers.
Thank you, RayStar, lol! And honey, don't you worry about your grammatical errors, I'm trying to catch up on mine! :chicken:

RayStar

05-18-2009, 04:45 PM

Doesn't it seem like everything pertaining to trials is slow in CA?
Perhaps before 5:30 EST we will know her fate.

Carol25

05-18-2009, 05:25 PM

I would like to see Lori Drew serve 1 1/2 years in prison and 1 1/2 years working with the emotionally disturbed 8 hours a day.

If only there was a way the judge could force her daughter to tutor at risk students, she might find that helping and encouraging someone is so much more rewarding than bringing them down.

That is the only possible good I could see coming out of this. I worry more about the daughter than Lori.

RayStar

05-18-2009, 06:56 PM

From www.ktla.com the case has been postponed until July 2.
This is just awful.:sad:

Details

05-18-2009, 06:59 PM

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 07:06 PM

this is truly sickening to me..... honestly, physically sickening...

I won't even share my reactions to the pictures of Drew Slob and Slob Daughter.....

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2008/12/jurors-wanted-t/

the article states that the jury wanted to find a more severe conviction with more severe punishment. I don't recall the details, but apparently the prosecution did not ASK FOR the more severe conviction and chose to leave out portions of the evidence.
Surely they did not make that choice because they thought the public and potential jurors would be hesitant to be too harsh toward the defendant????

well sounds like a honest jury, they wanted to, but could not in good conscience do so because that was not what the evidence showed, the evidence showed she was only guilty of a misdemeanor so that is what the jury went with - as the jury said IF the evidence had shown she was guilty of a felony, they would of convicted her of a felony

Details

05-18-2009, 07:08 PM

well sounds like a honest jury, they wanted to, but could not in good conscience do so because that was not what the evidence showed, the evidence showed she was only guilty of a misdemeanor so that is what the jury went with - as the jury said IF the evidence had shown she was guilty of a felony, they would of convicted her of a felonyAnd she said if they'd seen all the evidence - rather than the restricted bit they did see, then they could have gone for 3 felonies.

An honest jury, and that's good. Too bad the prosecutor didn't decide to put all the cards on the table for them.

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 07:18 PM

And she said if they'd seen all the evidence - rather than the restricted bit they did see, then they could have gone for 3 felonies.

An honest jury, and that's good. Too bad the prosecutor didn't decide to put all the cards on the table for them.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2008/12/jurors-wanted-t/

they would of charged her with

"three felony counts for unauthorized access to MySpace’s computer system if they had been given the evidence from prosecutors"

what evidence? what unauthorized access?

LisaM22

05-18-2009, 07:23 PM

ahhhh

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2008/12/jurors-wanted-t/

"Kunasz said despite all the debate outside the courtroom about the prosecution’s use of an anti-hacking statute to charge Drew for violating a website’s terms of service, jurors never considered whether the statute was appropriate. However, she said she agrees with the idea that users who violate a website’s terms of service should be prosecuted."

so this is about nothing more the the TOS of myspace, this jury is scary, people should be "prosecuted" for violating a TOS - better start reading that fine print of the next TOS you click through

from the sounds of it, this case will be overturned on appeals anyways...

Carol25

05-18-2009, 07:53 PM

From www.ktla.com (http://www.ktla.com) the case has been postponed until July 2.
This is just awful.:sad:
So why is this being postponed? What is the deal? This has been going on way too long.

I wonder if there is any way they can get her for criminal harassment.

What would it be to intentional try to emotional hurt a child? Emotional abuse of a child? Why didn't they go for that?

penguin01

05-18-2009, 09:22 PM

So why is this being postponed? What is the deal? This has been going on way too long.

I wonder if there is any way they can get her for criminal harassment.

What would it be to intentional try to emotional hurt a child? Emotional abuse of a child? Why didn't they go for that?
Well I didn't hear you holler for me so I figured something didn't happen. This is ridiculous isn't it? Criminal harassment sounds perfect to me. I just want to figure how to name something after this person so her name will live in infamy. I've really never heard of anyone quite like her!

penguin01

05-18-2009, 09:27 PM

The crime she cannot be sentenced for is what she's taught her daughter. The mere thought that a former friend should be destroyed utterly after a little tiff, that mommy will step in as the big guns to help you psychololgically destroy someone you know to be an insecure teenager, even harass the grieving family after you are caught - I sure hope she's got some other role models.

Exactly, I've never heard it described more perfectly. Perhaps the more we describe it the easier it will become for them to figure out how to amend laws to cover this. Along with harassment isn't it child abuse and endangerment? And her guidance and support in this evil process should be considered abuse of her own child, shouldn't it?

RayStar

05-18-2009, 09:32 PM

Posting blindly here. Don't you think Lori must be having a terrible time sleeping now? I think I would want to know my destiny and get it over with. Now perhaps, I will read up later the reason for the delay. Must be the CA air.

Carol25

05-19-2009, 09:18 AM

Carol25

05-19-2009, 09:41 AM

Lori Drews sentencing delayed...

IMO the judge would be wise to dismiss the case.....and that is why he hasn't made a decision yet.

Delayed again (http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/laworder/story/9DF3FCF79F3DD791862575BB0009EF5C?OpenDocument)
I just wrote a comment after the article you linked under the name of Gracie. Don't know if it will stay, depends on the politics of the newspaper, I guess.

Carol25

05-19-2009, 12:48 PM

I read your post on the other forum, it's still there if you had a 61 after Gracie.....

Anyway, that is the problem, these charges have nothing to do with Megan, or her death.....

The charges brought against her have to do with "hacking" (illegal access) into Myspace which did not occur in this case. It's a sham in my opinion, and should be dismissed.

Missouri prosecutors and the attorney general did look into charging her with a crime, but they didn't try to manipulate the law to bring charges, unlike the federal prosecutor in this case. Sadly she did not break any laws on the books.
I guess that is the case. You know, however, if a parent had done this, it would have been abuse. Emotional abuse and the child had probably been taken away. If it would have been abuse if a parent had done this, wouldn't have been emotional abuse if an adult neighbor had done it? She intentional inflicted emotional harm on this girl who was in a depressive state. JMO.

Carol25

05-19-2009, 12:53 PM

I really don't understand the legality of this case, at all.

Lori Drews appears to be one of those mothers who acts the age of her daughter and is WAY too meddlesome in the issue of the day - and wanted to help her daughter learn what this other girl was saying on the internet about her - which by the way, was ugly and purposely hurtful to Lori Drew's daughter.

So as I understand it, what she did is try to find out by creating a handsome boy to befriend her, and it worked. She was able to set up the account and her daughter and employee then took over pretending to be the boy. They were able to find out what the girl was saying and doing on the net that was hurting Lori Drew's daughter. Then, in the end, the 18 year old employee who has not been charged with ANYTHING sent her the really ugly messages, possibly the one that says the world will be better off without you.

How is Lori Drews criminally liable for any of this? This is a too-meddlesome-mother, for sure, but is she ANY more liable than if she, for example, set up a 3-way conference telephone call where one girl gets the other girl to bad-mouth and say gossipy stuff about the one girl who is silently on the other line listening? I don't think what Lori Drews did is worse than that, honestly.

What the employee did is way worse. But I don't even think that rises to criminal, either. It's just ugly and callous.

Nobody has warm fuzzies for Lori Drews - but I am really disturbed when the law is bent to cover something it clearly doesn't cover, just because everyone doesn't like her.
I understand where you are coming from and agree. However think about the intent.

Lori's idea was to confront her at a mall so all of them could laugh and humiliate her with the hard copy of the banter from myspace pages. Wow, what cruelty she had in mind!

Intent is considered in so many crimes, I think that it should have been considered in a malicious charges for Mrs. Drew against the knowingly depressed (and possibly knowingly suicidal) Megan. Not trumped up charges about computer access. JMO

lonetraveler

05-19-2009, 12:54 PM

you can't punish people because someone kills themselves, suicide is a sign of mental illness, sure she feels bad enough as it is, she will have to live with it for the rest of her life, I am sure she never intended what happened to happen, was she in the wrong, of course she was, but enough is enough, this has gone way too far

she was convicted of accessing computers without authorization, because she set up a account with a fake name, something millions of Americans do - yet because they had nothing else, this is what they charged her with? how many here that are baned time and time again use their real names? seems they would be committing the same crimes she did to me - so really what this case has done is set up a precedent unless it is overturned that if you register for a free account, you better use your real name or risk being charged, possibly in another state then your own as a criminal
--------

I think it is a shame that Lori Drew can’t be charged with intentionally causing mental anguish and psychologically abusing a minor child. There should be laws written to prevent bullies from torturing other people, especially innocent children. I have not seen her act as if she cares at all for the death of the young girl. Nor, have I seen her accept any responsibility for her actions. IMO, she will be getting off way too lightly.

LisaM22

05-19-2009, 09:17 PM

--------

I think it is a shame that Lori Drew can’t be charged with intentionally causing mental anguish and psychologically abusing a minor child. There should be laws written to prevent bullies from torturing other people, especially innocent children. I have not seen her act as if she cares at all for the death of the young girl. Nor, have I seen her accept any responsibility for her actions. IMO, she will be getting off way too lightly.

well as the original goal was to help her daughter find out what kinda bad things the other girl was saying about her I do not think the goal was set out to cause her harm, just seek the truth, maybe in that process tempers grew, and in the very end one hurtful sentence was uttered to a person that was suicidal and that caused her to try once again to kill herself and that time she succeeded, I wonder what caused her to slash at her wrists earlier? I think this whole thing has been blown out of proportion in the courts, the mother has been punished publicly, she will forever be known as the myspace mom, I think that is enough - in the beginning I would of went for a charge of harassment, but at this point, I think it's time to move on

Details

05-20-2009, 08:48 PM

I have a feeling I know what's going on. I think the judge is going to dismiss this whole thing. And he's going to keep delaying until the statute of limits are done and she can't be charged with harassment, child endangerment or anything else in connection with Megan's death. :cursing:

He knows there will be an outrage and the people will want justice and her charged with something else. The judge should be be prepared to answer for this intentional manipulation of justice delayed.Cases are delayed all the time - it's nothing unusual. Defense attorneys sometimes even do it deliberately, to get a bit of more time free for their clients, but also normal schedule conflicts when trying to get a minimum of 4 busy people to have time for the hearing.

I don't think there's any intent to let her off.

Carol25

05-20-2009, 09:54 PM

Cases are delayed all the time - it's nothing unusual. Defense attorneys sometimes even do it deliberately, to get a bit of more time free for their clients, but also normal schedule conflicts when trying to get a minimum of 4 busy people to have time for the hearing.

I don't think there's any intent to let her off.
I hope you are right, Details.

Crispy

07-02-2009, 02:17 PM

Today is supposed to be the day. HLN just had a little snip about it, but didn't say anything new.

Carol25

07-02-2009, 03:22 PM

What time zone? I forget.

Pinetree

07-02-2009, 03:49 PM

CNN reporting that the judge threw out the conviction.....

Pinetree

07-02-2009, 03:51 PM

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,529817,00.html?test=latestnews

This from Fox....wow

BorderCollieMom

07-02-2009, 04:35 PM

Aquitted

The judge had alot to say. Just said on HLN...no link yet.

LisaM22

07-02-2009, 06:48 PM

case thrown out as it should be... :thumbsup:

LisaM22

07-02-2009, 06:52 PM

LisaM22

07-02-2009, 06:53 PM

Patriot

07-02-2009, 10:06 PM

Drew was convicted in November, but the judge said that if she is to be found guilty of illegally accessing computers, anyone who has ever violated the social networking site's terms of service would be guilty of a misdemeanour. That would be unconstitutional, he said.

"You could prosecute pretty much anyone who violated terms of service," he said.

http://www.theage.com.au/technology/lori-drew-cleared-of-myspace-cyberbullying-20090703-d6s0.html

I bet she's breathing a sigh of relief, since the prosecutors were seeking 3 years in jail and a hefty fine.

Steward said the ruling should mark the end of Drew's criminal case.

From Megan's mom's words in the article, it doesn't seem that they will sue her in civil court.

W_D_1

07-02-2009, 10:16 PM

http://www.theage.com.au/technology/lori-drew-cleared-of-myspace-cyberbullying-20090703-d6s0.html

I bet she's breathing a sigh of relief, since the prosecutors were seeking 3 years in jail and a hefty fine.

From Megan's mom's words in the article, it doesn't seem that they will sue her in civil court.

She deserved every day of that 3 years and then some.

Tracian

07-02-2009, 10:20 PM

joolz

07-02-2009, 10:22 PM

Tracian

07-02-2009, 10:25 PM

Tracian, in Wiccan I hope that translates into, "karma's a (w)itch and she's got Lori Drew's number on speed dial."

In a 'nutshell' close enough :smile:

I just can't understand that kind of evil...and IMO, that is exactly what it was...evil.

Patriot

07-02-2009, 10:28 PM

Ya know, we are posters on a message board, we snark at each other on occasion..but even my most annoying 'foe' would I attack like this so called human being that is a mother did to that child.

It is really too bad she got a pass...but as a Wiccan, all I can say...may everything she puts out come back x3...

And sadly, it isn't all that uncommon. If you have kids in sports you see first hand how vicious some parents can be when it comes to their child and competition. Kids can be nasty and vicious, but for the parents to get into it, rather than trying to stop it, is ridiculous.

joolz

07-02-2009, 10:37 PM

And sadly, it isn't all that uncommon. If you have kids in sports you see first hand how vicious some parents can be when it comes to their child and competition. Kids can be nasty and vicious, but for the parents to get into it, rather than trying to stop it, is ridiculous.

Doesn't it make you wonder if boundaries even exist any more? Between the parents who want to live out their own fantasies through their kids and the so-called helicopter parents who never stop hovering and have to analyze every time their kid blinks and the parents who need their kids to be their best friends and share everything, I really don't understand how kids ever get to separate and individuate. Sorry, I guess that is really OT, but I'd bet that Drew was sickly "over-involved" with her daughter's life as well as one evil piece of work. jmo

Hey Paula

07-02-2009, 10:41 PM

She deserved every day of that 3 years and then some.

I agree completely. That she, a grown woman and mother, escaped punishment is a crime in itself. I wonder how she can live with herself, knowing her cruel behavior ended with a young girl taking her life and another mother in grief?

Patriot

07-02-2009, 10:43 PM

Doesn't it make you wonder if boundaries even exist any more? Between the parents who want to live out their own fantasies through their kids and the so-called helicopter parents who never stop hovering and have to analyze every time their kid blinks and the parents who need their kids to be their best friends and share everything, I really don't understand how kids ever get to separate and individuate. Sorry, I guess that is really OT, but I'd bet that Drew was sickly "over-involved" with her daughter's life as well as one evil piece of work. jmo

Not OT at all IMO. I think you're probably right about her being overly involved in her life - at least, as being her "buddy" is concerned. I think that is an area that many moms of daughters struggle with, I know I do. And if someone hurts my daughter, I want blood - just like any other mother. But there has to come a time when adult common sense, good judgement and responsibility kicks in and evidently this woman didn't have any of that. She was too caught up in being a teenager herself. Probably her whole life was interacting with her daughter and her daughter's teen friends and being "one of them".

Tracian

07-02-2009, 10:44 PM

I agree completely. That she, a grown woman and mother, escaped punishment is a crime in itself. I wonder how she can live with herself, knowing her cruel behavior ended with a young girl taking her life and another mother in grief?

She is without a soul. I almost pity her...how much can she really think of herself or her child to do something so horrible?

Pathetic...twisted and really, really, sad.

RayStar

07-02-2009, 10:47 PM

I wanted this woman to do some serious jail time. She was too old to play a kids love game. I am disappointed.:mad:

Hey Paula

07-02-2009, 10:51 PM

She is without a soul. I almost pity her...how much can she really think of herself or her child to do something so horrible?

Pathetic...twisted and really, really, sad.

Or conversely: She thinks too much of herself and her child to care about anyone else and their child.

ITA: Pathetic, twisted and really, really sad.

Circe

07-03-2009, 02:25 PM

I just ran across this......

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/suffolk/ny-liad0312938492jul02,0,7824108.story

What is the deal with grown women who do things like this?? And to a NINE YEAR OLD no less.

kitty1182

07-03-2009, 02:38 PM

I wanted this woman to do some serious jail time. She was too old to play a kids love game. I am disappointed.:mad:

I'm disappointed too....:sad:

Carol25

07-03-2009, 02:47 PM

Well, this is a temporary order. If Drew comes out and bleats her "I told you so's and It wasn't my fault's" and acts unjustifiably cocky, maybe the judge will have had it with her and change his mind.

Although I think he had this in mind all along, he was just waiting for the notoriety to die down.

Shells2

07-03-2009, 02:51 PM

I can not believe this...

I guess there will be no justice for little Megan after all....:sad:

kitty1182

07-03-2009, 03:00 PM

I can not believe this...

I guess there will be no justice for little Megan after all....:sad:

Such a shame:sad:

Brat2002

07-03-2009, 03:16 PM

Ya know, we are posters on a message board, we snark at each other on occasion..but even my most annoying 'foe' would I attack like this so called human being that is a mother did to that child.

It is really too bad she got a pass...but as a Wiccan, all I can say...may everything she puts out come back x3...

The rule of 3 may be the only thing you and I will ever agree on.

I agree with the ruling on the basis of it not being a major crime to break a site's terms of agreement, but what she did was wrong, immature and downright cruel. Horrible example of a parent, not to mention human being.

Karma, baby. Everything we put out there comes back to us, good or bad.

smhustoiii

07-03-2009, 03:19 PM

I hope she is shunned and ostracized for a very long time. She is a despicable human being!!!

Circe

07-03-2009, 03:19 PM

The difference is knowing your target, it wasn't some anonymous forum like here, the mom knew the victim and made the attack personal, I hope her lawyers took every dime she had.

Wiccans believe in vengeance?

It's not vengance per se.........more of a what goes around, comes around type thing. You put out good vibes, you get them back, threefold. The same for negative things.

In other words, karma can be a b*tch.

aubrey04

07-03-2009, 03:25 PM

I guess I am the lone dissenter here. The only person responsible for the girl killing herself is the girl.

The woman is an immature *****, for sure, but in no way liable for
what this unstable girl did to herself.

It could have been anything that set her off. Didn't the parents
realize she was mentally ill? Was she getting counseling?
Why even allow such a fragile psyche to go to myspace?

Nope. You're not alone in your opinion. I agree with you and I agree with the judge. This conviction could open up a whole can of worms for the internet world... one which I guarantee many people would not like.

I think Lori Drew is a vile individual and what she did was immature and disgusting. She's a bully of the worst order, but the conviction was weak. imo.

Pat

07-03-2009, 03:33 PM

I hope she is shunned and ostracized for a very long time. She is a despicable human being!!!

It's been awhile since I read about this case, but isn't that what has happened?

It is beyond my comprehension that adult parents would behave this way to kids...for any reason. There is absolutely no justification for this kind of behavior.

Having been a baseball mom for many years, starting at the T-ball age, I have seen some pretty bad parental behavior, but this kind of stuff tops that by far.

I wish the woman could have been prosecuted under a law that would have had her doing significant jail time.

Tracian

07-03-2009, 03:38 PM

Tracian

07-03-2009, 03:41 PM

The rule of 3 may be the only thing you and I will ever agree on.

I agree with the ruling on the basis of it not being a major crime to break a site's terms of agreement, but what she did was wrong, immature and downright cruel. Horrible example of a parent, not to mention human being.

Karma, baby. Everything we put out there comes back to us, good or bad.

I have agreed with you on other things, and I do enjoy your posts, even when I disagree.

ITA with your post in regards to the character of this 'mother'

Tracian

07-03-2009, 08:55 PM

Is suicide a crime? I don't think so. Yes, I remember being a teenager.
A vision and hearing impaired teenager who was also incontinent due to birth defects. You don't think I got picked on? I was also molested.
If I had killed myself, who would have taken the "criminal heat?"

It would depend on the circumstances. IIRC in this case this young girl was taunted and told everyone would be better off if she was dead, that this twisted evil grown woman, who pretended to be a boy that liked her, told her horrible things...and pushed the issue of wishing she would just kill herself.

I am sorry for the pain you had to go through, many of us were victims of bullies, but IMO, what this woman as an adult, with an adult mind, manipulated a young girl to take her own life.

Snoopy50

07-03-2009, 09:05 PM

It would depend on the circumstances. IIRC in this case this young girl was taunted and told everyone would be better off if she was dead, that this twisted evil grown woman, who pretended to be a boy that liked her, told her horrible things...and pushed the issue of wishing she would just kill herself.

I am sorry for the pain you had to go through, many of us were victims of bullies, but IMO, what this woman as an adult, with an adult mind, manipulated a young girl to take her own life.
As much as I am disappointed that this miserable creature will not serve jail time, the judge made the right decision IMO. The Law is pretty clear, for the conviction to stand would open doors for liability for even the slightest and implied infraction. I was surprised she was even charged, although I believe she is a horrible thing and deserves to rot away from society forever. a menace for sure, but there ARe other judges, one in particular, HE is our final judge and I would not wish to be Lori Drew when she stands before Him. While I believe that a jury would award damages to Megan's parents out of outrage, they too should not be subjected to holding this awful woman in their life anymore. Megan's mother has been focused on creating awareness since this tragedy, and I think she is honoring her daughter by doing so. Running the legal gambit for years with Drew will serve no purpose. Let the healing begin, IMO.

Tracian

07-03-2009, 09:10 PM

As much as I am disappointed that this miserable creature will not serve jail time, the judge made the right decision IMO. The Law is pretty clear, for the conviction to stand would open doors for liability for even the slightest and implied infraction. I was surprised she was even charged, although I believe she is a horrible thing and deserves to rot away from society forever. a menace for sure, but there ARe other judges, one in particular, HE is our final judge and I would not wish to be Lori Drew when she stands before Him. While I believe that a jury would award damages to Megan's parents out of outrage, they too should not be subjected to holding this awful woman in their life anymore. Megan's mother has been focused on creating awareness since this tragedy, and I think she is honoring her daughter by doing so. Running the legal gambit for years with Drew will serve no purpose. Let the healing begin, IMO.

I understand that the law is on that evil person's side...but you know that old saying...

Then the law is an a$$.

I do also hope that a civil jury exacts justice, and an example for the future.

FrankieBones1

07-04-2009, 09:08 AM

Nope. You're not alone in your opinion. I agree with you and I agree with the judge. This conviction could open up a whole can of worms for the internet world... one which I guarantee many people would not like.

I think Lori Drew is a vile individual and what she did was immature and disgusting. She's a bully of the worst order, but the conviction was weak. imo.

Did she not get some kind of probation or community service at least?

FrankieBones1

07-04-2009, 09:10 AM

I understand that the law is on that evil person's side...but you know that old saying...

Then the law is an a$$.

I do also hope that a civil jury exacts justice, and an example for the future.

Has there been talk of a civil suit? If so, I hope Drew is left penniless and homeless. What an easy target she'll be for pokes and taunts.

LisaM22

07-04-2009, 11:52 AM

LisaM22

07-04-2009, 11:57 AM

Snoopy50

07-04-2009, 01:39 PM

I understand that the law is on that evil person's side...but you know that old saying...

Then the law is an a$$.

I do also hope that a civil jury exacts justice, and an example for the future.

Gosh, for once, we are not 100% in agreement. Still love ya though!:laugh:

Shells2

07-04-2009, 02:34 PM

Is suicide a crime? I don't think so. Yes, I remember being a teenager.
A vision and hearing impaired teenager who was also incontinent due to birth defects. You don't think I got picked on? I was also molested.
If I had killed myself, who would have taken the "criminal heat?"

Suicide is a crime.

It's murder. You can not charge the person who committed the murder as they are dead, but you can charge the person who created the circumstances for the murder to take place.

I'm sorry you had such a rough go of things... That's really sad that you were picked on as well as having to deal with all of that stuff. You must be an incredibly strong person.

diamond

07-04-2009, 02:37 PM

she never should of been charge with what she was charged with, good for the judge throwing this out - imo she should of been charged with harassment or something at the beginning, but at this point I say they need to let it go, if the family wants to take her to civil court, that is their choice, but this was just ridiculous, charging her with setting up a free account with a fake name, talk about reaching for a charge, the precedent this would of set would of been dangerous

I agree.

I did not follow that case closely, but what I do recall is that Lori Drew, her daughter and another person were involved. At that time there was speculation that the other person involved was the person that sent the messages.

Also, Megan's parents were home when she killed herself. Her mother stated on the news that her daughter told her what happen before she ran to her bedroom and committed suicide. This child's parents knew their daughter's mental fraility and they also are at fault. The parents should not have allowed their daughter internet access knowing that she was unable to cope. The parents should not have allowed their daughter to correspond with internet strangers. One push of a button on the computer and that problem is gone.

JMO

Shells2

07-04-2009, 02:38 PM

LisaM22

07-04-2009, 04:07 PM

How would it have been dangerous? You find it dangerous, that maybe, possibly, grown adults would think twice about emotionally torturing a vulnerable teenage child?

She should be locked up IMO.

yes, I think it is a dangerous precedent to set, that was not what the law was designed for, they were misusing the law...

LisaM22

07-04-2009, 04:09 PM

Shells, I really think you have to look at intent here.

Lori Drews was tired of Megan smack talking her own daughter on the internet, the daughter was all upset over Megan's postings, and Lori set up a way to find out what was being said - and to who - on the internet. That was her intent, near as I can tell and what the evidence shows.

The person who meant to harm Megan was the 18 year old employee, who "broke up" with Megan and then said the world would be better off without her. THAT woman should be held accountable for some of this - if anyone should - and I don't think she's been charged with anything at all. I really don't get that reasoning.

What Lori Drews did was act like a 14 year old and devise a way for her daughter to spy on Megan's postings about her own daughter.

I don't think that rises to the level of a crime - the intent isn't there to harm.

It was the other woman who did the damage.

I agree and if I also recall correctly the girl went to her mom about it and she sent her to her room alone, I would no more say the mom was criminal negligent then the other girls mom - you can't arrest people when someone else kills themselves, imagine all the suicides we would have on bad break up's and stuff, it would get insane - jmho

LisaM22

07-04-2009, 05:21 PM

Suicide is a crime.

It's murder. You can not charge the person who committed the murder as they are dead, but you can charge the person who created the circumstances for the murder to take place.

I'm sorry you had such a rough go of things... That's really sad that you were picked on as well as having to deal with all of that stuff. You must be an incredibly strong person.

it is not murder or we would have to charge people with attempted murder when they failed to kill themselves, it's suicide and attempted suicide - not murder and attempted murder

Tracian

07-04-2009, 05:55 PM

Gosh, for once, we are not 100% in agreement. Still love ya though!:laugh:

Right back at ya Snoopy!!! :wub:

justaguy

07-04-2009, 06:47 PM

i think the law is still playing catchup when it comes to the internet. cyberbullying, cyberstalking...all these things are relatively new. i am betting that sometime within the next five years we see a conviction in a case similar..

bonniez45

07-06-2009, 10:46 AM

Just catching up on this totally agree there should be a punishment for her malicious (can't spel this morn) intent but I don't know why they couldn't have stalking charges against her and I think there might be something similar in charges like that.
She did set out with malice aforethought to do mental harm to this child why did they pretty much stick to internet.

tv4me

07-06-2009, 12:19 PM

Just when you thought you couldn't like this women even less, the LA Times reported that she told reporters that she desereved to have the charges thrown out. She never should have been charged. No remorse. No sorrow. They had a picture of her looking smug and smirking.:cursing:

What a pig. In my opinion, the woman did what she did because Megan was pretty and thin...and if you've seen Lori's daughter, she looks just like Lori. Another canidate for America's Biggest Loser. Thin, she ain't.