Parents say fake online 'friend' led to girl's suicide..


DARDENNE PRAIRIE, Missouri (AP) -- Megan Meier thought she had made a new friend in cyberspace when a cute teenage boy named Josh contacted her on MySpace and began exchanging messages with her.


Teen's parents say she thought she had made a friend through the social networking web site MySpace.

Megan, a 13-year-old who suffered from depression and attention deficit disorder, corresponded with Josh for more than a month before he abruptly ended their friendship, telling her he had heard she was cruel.

The next day Megan committed suicide. Her family learned later that Josh never actually existed; he was created by members of a neighborhood family that included a former friend of Megan's.

Now Megan's parents hope the people who made the fraudulent profile on the social networking web site will be prosecuted, and they are seeking legal changes to safeguard children on the Internet.

The girl's mother, Tina Meier, said she doesn't think anyone involved intended for her daughter to kill herself.

"But when adults are involved and continue to screw with a 13-year-old, with or without mental problems, it is absolutely vile," she told the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, which first reported on the case.

Tina Meier said law enforcement officials told her the case did not fit into any law. But sheriff's officials have not closed the case and pledged to consider new evidence if it emerges.

Megan Meier hanged herself in her bedroom on October 16, 2006, and died the next day. She was described as a "bubbly, goofy" girl who loved spending time with her friends, watching movies and fishing with her dad.

Megan had been on medication, but had been upbeat before her death, her mother said, after striking up a relationship on MySpace with Josh Evans about six weeks before her death.

Josh told her he was born in Florida and had recently moved to the nearby community of O'Fallon. He said he was homeschooled, and didn't yet have a phone number in the area to give her. Video Watch Megan's parents say she swooned when she received an affectionate note from 'Josh' »

Megan's parents said she received a message from him on October 15 of last year, essentially saying he didn't want to be her friend anymore, that he had heard she wasn't nice to her friends.

The next day, as Megan's mother headed out the door to take another daughter to the orthodontist, she knew Megan was upset about Internet messages. She asked Megan to log off. Users on MySpace must be at least 14, though Megan was not when she opened her account. A MySpace spokeswoman did not return calls seeking comment.

Someone using Josh's account was sending cruel messages. Then, Megan called her mother, saying electronic bulletins were being posted about her, saying things like, "Megan Meier is a slut. Megan Meier is fat."

Megan's mother, who monitored her daughter's online communications, returned home and said she was shocked at the vulgar language her own daughter was sending. She told her daughter how upset she was about it.

Megan ran upstairs, and her father, Ron, tried to tell her everything would be fine. About 20 minutes later, she was found in her bedroom. She died the next day.

Her father said he found a message the next day from Josh, which he said law enforcement authorities have not been able to retrieve. It told the girl she was a bad person and the world would be better without her, he has said.

Another parent, who learned of the MySpace account from her own daughter who had access to the Josh profile, told Megan's parents about the hoax in a counselor's office about six weeks after Megan died. That's when they learned Josh was imaginary, they said.

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.

The mother from down the street told police that she, her daughter and another person all typed and monitored the communication between the fictitious boy and Megan.

A person who answered the door at the family's house told an Associated Press reporter on Friday afternoon that they had been advised not to comment.

Megan's parents had been storing a foosball table for the family that created the MySpace character. Six weeks after Megan's death, they learned the other family had created the profile and responded by destroying the foosball table, dumping it on the neighbors' driveway and encouraging them to move away.

Megan's parents are now separated and plan to divorce.
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Aldermen in Dardenne Prairie, a community of about 7,000 residents about 35 miles from St. Louis, have proposed a new ordinance related to child endangerment and Internet harassment. It could come before city leaders on Wednesday.

"Is this enough?" Mayor Pam Fogarty said Friday. "No, not by any stretch of the imagination, but it's something, and you have to start somewhere."

As a parent, reading about things like this sadden and scare me to no end...

The Internet is like the worse bar you can think of, with a kiddy pool. I have found myspace to be full of vile people that could care less about morals or anything for that matter.

I think the people that made up the other account watch too much TV, I think there is more to the story than being represented.

I am very sorry the little girl did that and hope the family can find piece.

Could have happened in real life too. Though i doubt that crew would have had the balls to tease the poor girl if they had to look her in the eye.

I read this yesterday on CNN and felt so sad for that poor girl. I really don't know what to say on this. Normally I can comment but I think that I am best left with a closed mouth on this one. Sad just Sad

That's really sad.

I don't see any laws that were broken but I think there could be a civil case. Kids can be cruel but if an adult set that account up and played a hand in messing with that gilrs head they ought be be accountable. I mean really what adult would think its a good idea to mess with a 13 yr old in anyway.

quote Originally posted by User00013170: Could have happened in real life too. Though i doubt that crew would have had the balls to tease the poor girl if they had to look her in the eye.

It did. The girl is dead in real life.

They didn't tease her, they created a fictitious online persona to prey on her weaknesses. They knew of her problems with depression and ADD. In my opinion, they attempted to get her to kill herself, and were successful.

one of the tough parts of being online. hard lesson to learn. there are in fact ficticous people online.

but, I know its tough. easy to get wrapped up in a imaginary digital world. heck - look at us. but, I would havta say - this girl was already "on the edge". if she doesnt have the self worth to get thru that little thing - there is much more wrong than just some mean people.

quote Originally posted by Pyrthian: if she doesnt have the self worth to get thru that little thing - there is much more wrong than just some mean people.

I agree.. but one lost her life and the remaining are criminals FOR life. I duno which is worse.

Sticks and stones, people. If a few mean words is all it takes to get you to hang yourself, you're at the end of a long road of problems, not the beginning of it. This is not a tragedy. Not everyone was meant to survive into adulthood. Some contestants take themselves out of the running by accident, some do it on purpose. Life is a brief, beautiful, amazing thing; if you are unable to see past the challenges it presents you to appreciate its magnificence, don't let the door hit you on the way out. There is no shortage of human beings on this planet, and she did the six billion remaining survivors of humanity a small favor. Thanks Megan, from all of us.

^^^ That was kind of a cruel remark. The girl had problems like many teens do. I hope her parents sue the other parents as what they did was deceitful and vile.

.

[This message has been edited by JazzMan (edited 12-05-2008).]

I think the point crazy is trying to make here is life isnt for the weak. Cruel maybe but nature is full of cruelty... just look at they way some people on this forum act toward others, this forum is not exactly utopia but it's the best on the net.

You guys are focusing on this girl and not seeing the bigger problems.

What I find vile is these people attempting to leverage the legal system against the perpetrators of this stunt to redirect blame away from themselves and make up for their own failings as parents. Sure, I have no tolerance for bullies. But you can't let them get to you. Nearly everyone has been teased or harrassed at some point in their childhood. It isn't fatal, it's part of growing up - just like touching the hot stove or falling off the bike. Normal people stick a band-aid on it and move on. If it doesn't kill you it makes you stronger. But if you are unable to cope with it, boy wait till you see what grownup life is cocked and ready to throw your way. Look at all the mean things that people like Perez Hilton have to say about our favorite celebrities. And that's just talk. I'm fed up with this whiny crybaby generation of kids now being raised who have no concept of discipline, personal responsibility, or consequences. After having the dangers of the world around them safety-latched, sterilized, allergen-proofed, child-proofed and bubble-wrapped, they are completely unprepared for the dangers of the adult world. We are taking the wrong approach in making kids too safe, because it actually has the opposite effect of making them frail, fragile, and weak. This sort of incident should be a wakeup call to the people promoting this disastrous form of child-rearing.

Kids need to play rough and get hurt.
They need to fall from the tree.
I did.
If you were born before the 1980's you did too.

Kids need to be exposed to germs and bacteria.
They need to be punished for doing bad things.
I was.
If you were born before the 1980's you were too.

Not because it hurts them, but because it makes them stronger, smarter, better people.

Those of us born before the 1980's survived it. This generation will too.

It is not the number of challenges we face in life, it is how we deal with each of those challenges that is the greatest measure of our own success.

[This message has been edited by crazyd (edited 11-19-2007).]

quote Originally posted by GT86: As a parent, reading about things like this sadden and scare me to no end...

Ditto. And I have not even been a parent for long. This is just sick (on the part of the adults responsible).

I am pretty sure someone over 18 impersonating a minor is a crime. This could also constitute lewd conduct, as they were having a "relationship" with a minor. Its really sad and the people who created jake need to pay. As for the naysayers if you look in the article the mother admits her daughter wasn't mentally stable, however you can't justify creating a fake myspace account to spy on someone then posting terrible things about them and think its ok.

quote Originally posted by Mr.PBody: I am pretty sure someone over 18 impersonating a minor is a crime. This could also constitute lewd conduct, as they were having a "relationship" with a minor. Its really sad and the people who created jake need to pay. As for the naysayers if you look in the article the mother admits her daughter wasn't mentally stable, however you can't justify creating a fake myspace account to spy on someone then posting terrible things about them and think its ok.

Not really, if that were true you'd see lots of pedophiles going free because police impersonate minors all the time.... It's not illegal to do and it's not even considered entrapment.

My name on this forum isnt 84Bill and I have no doubt you are Mr.PBody. Cyberspace isnt reality and those who were born before the 80s know this... I do.

[This message has been edited by 84Bill (edited 11-19-2007).]

Once again another family hurt, and this time a child died. What was it all linked too MYSPACE!!!!
In my opinion Myspace should be shut down, and never spoke of again. I do not see what people see in Myspace? I think it is the stupidest thing in the world. The public is trying to make the internet safer, which is a good thing YET they are letting sites like Myspace, Facebook, Bebo...... ruin our world.
When Myspace came out it was huge everyone was on it. I still personally have never had an account on any of these sites, I refuse to support them.
Facebook " The safer , newer myspace" How is it safer? Because you are registered by where you live? Wow now these criminals know were you live. At least on Myspace people can decide not to share were they are from.
I feel sorry for the little girl, and her family.
Myspace should be the criminal under the spotlight.
Am I the only other person that feels this way about these "community sites"?

Yes, you are. Myspace is only a symptom, if it is anything. It is not the problem.

quote Originally posted by crazyd: There is no shortage of human beings on this planet, and she did the six billion remaining survivors of humanity a small favor. Thanks Megan, from all of us.

You’re a real fricken sweetheart, aren’t you?

quote Originally posted by crazyd: It is not the number of challenges we face in life, it is how we deal with each of those challenges that is the greatest measure of our own success.

Sure, we all face a number of challenges throughout our lives, but some unfortunate individuals get a whole boat load of them in one go instead of having them spaced out a bit.

Perhaps many of us who have successfully risen to meet our challenges have simply not had to deal with too many of them at any one point in time.

quote Originally posted by Wii Bird: Once again another family hurt, and this time a child died. What was it all linked too MYSPACE!!!! In my opinion Myspace should be shut down, and never spoke of again. I do not see what people see in Myspace? I think it is the stupidest thing in the world. The public is trying to make the internet safer, which is a good thing YET they are letting sites like Myspace, Facebook, Bebo...... ruin our world. When Myspace came out it was huge everyone was on it. I still personally have never had an account on any of these sites, I refuse to support them. Facebook " The safer , newer myspace" How is it safer? Because you are registered by where you live? Wow now these criminals know were you live. At least on Myspace people can decide not to share were they are from. I feel sorry for the little girl, and her family. Myspace should be the criminal under the spotlight. Am I the only other person that feels this way about these "community sites"?

My Ex will not allow our son to have a Myspace account. Which I think is dandy. Too many adults on Myspace (some pretending to be kids I'd bet). Honestly, I don't bother with that stuff either (just too old I guess).

Here we go! People asking the government to regulate or shut down a site.

*shakes head*

there is nothing wrong with "MySpace". just like every other good thing on earth - some people just cant control themselves. beer is good. some people drink to much. sugar is good. some people eat to much.

she was allowed to live in an imaginary world.

.

[This message has been edited by JazzMan (edited 12-05-2008).]

quote Originally posted by JazzMan: And the point that I'm trying to make is that one of the few things that makes us "better" than the other animals on this planet is the ability to care for others who are weaker than ourselves. It's call compassion, and as far as I know we are the only species on the planet that has it. Sometimes. JazzMan

True... but those who perpetrate this kind of "crime" arent exactly made of strong well adjusted stock either so they arent exact prime candidates for success either.

So yeah, put them in jail for life for killing someone... and call it a self cleaning gene pool.

quote Originally posted by JazzMan: And the point that I'm trying to make is that one of the few things that makes us "better" than the other animals on this planet is the ability to care for others who are weaker than ourselves. It's call compassion, and as far as I know we are the only species on the planet that has it. Sometimes. JazzMan

Playing devil's advocate here - in the rest of nature, the weak get weeded out of the genepool, making room for the strong. This helps ensure survival. Will we humans be our own undoing by protecting the weak, rather than letting nature strengthen our kind?

quote Originally posted by Wii Bird: Once again another family hurt, and this time a child died. What was it all linked too MYSPACE!!!! In my opinion Myspace should be shut down, and never spoke of again. I do not see what people see in Myspace? I think it is the stupidest thing in the world. The public is trying to make the internet safer, which is a good thing YET they are letting sites like Myspace, Facebook, Bebo...... ruin our world. When Myspace came out it was huge everyone was on it. I still personally have never had an account on any of these sites, I refuse to support them. Facebook " The safer , newer myspace" How is it safer? Because you are registered by where you live? Wow now these criminals know were you live. At least on Myspace people can decide not to share were they are from. I feel sorry for the little girl, and her family. Myspace should be the criminal under the spotlight. Am I the only other person that feels this way about these "community sites"?

Just a thought, but instead of banning things, how about parents monitor what their kids do online? Same thing when people talk about certain TV shows. Don't like it, or think it's good for kids? Don't allow your kids to watch it. I've grown tired of people (not you, it's just that your post got me going) trying to abdicate responsibility for their kids by trying to ban things that have the potential to be harmful. Parents have a responsibility to shield their kids from harmful things when they are young. As kids grow older, it's our job to incrementally introduce them to reality, good and bad, and also how to deal with both. It would be nice if we could teach our kids that they world is a safe and fair place, but sadly that just isn't the case.

Saying MySpace is responsible for this is like saying Toyota is responsible if I hit someone while driving my Camry.

quote Originally posted by GT86: Saying MySpace is responsible for this is like saying Toyota is responsible if I hit someone while driving my Camry.

LOL

I like that analogy

Sorry, just can't blame the site. How many members? how many suicides? I guess they need a mental disability disclaimer! heh.

Sure, I feel bad for the family, it's always (almost) tuff to lose somebody you care about, especially for a parent that loses a child. Pointing the finger and making dam sure somebody is to blame and pay whenever something bad happens to a kid when it WAS THEIR OWN DOING is a road we have been going down for too long. We will all be arrested for being rude next and of course teasing is harassment.

quote Originally posted by JazzMan: And the point that I'm trying to make is that one of the few things that makes us "better" than the other animals on this planet is the ability to care for others who are weaker than ourselves. It's call compassion, and as far as I know we are the only species on the planet that has it. Sometimes. JazzMan

I think the thing that makes us "better than the other animals on this planet ", is the speed at which we can adapt to changes in our enviorment.
Some other animals have been seen to care for the weaker of them.
Elephants come to mind.

quote Originally posted by fierobear: Playing devil's advocate here - in the rest of nature, the weak get weeded out of the genepool, making room for the strong. This helps ensure survival. Will we humans be our own undoing by protecting the weak, rather than letting nature strengthen our kind?

So should we start killing retard babies? They're just so darn cute though.

quote Originally posted by WhiteDevil88: So should we start killing retard babies? They're just so darn cute though.

Another way to look at fierobears's question: should we get rid of all human weakness? Animals don't alter their environment to the same extent we do. As a result, we have lengthened our lifespans and allowed people who otherwise wouldn't have reproduced to do so. Should we get rid of technology that enables us to lead an easier existence, since it isn't part of the natural order?

Seriously, if we lived a "kill or be killed" existence as most animals do, we wouldn't have time or resources to care for those who can't. But since we live a large part of our lives out of the so-called natural order, it's not quite a fair argument to call natural order back into the question.

[This message has been edited by GT86 (edited 11-20-2007).]

quote Originally posted by Boondawg: I think the thing that makes us "better than the other animals on this planet ", is the speed at which we can adapt to changes in our enviorment. Some other animals have been seen to care for the weaker of them. Elephants come to mind.

I Ya know boon... I think it's the speed of communications that is at fault here and no so much that we can adapt. Theres one girl who couldn't adapt to both. Yes it's sad... and it is sad that children die but thats what life is.. it about getting to that grave. Sure the experiences can be great if you live long enough but not everyone is able to pull it together, ruck up and march 3 clicks to the next battle front.

Life is a daily struggle. I curse everyday I wake up and thank god... am thankful to make it home so I can relax.. and just chill.

http://news.sky.com/skynews...0200-1293473,00.html
Facebook has a few things to answer for, it seems..just take a look at this case...and the guy who has just been arrested..I actually think the Police are grateful for the information they can glean from it..
Nick

quote Originally posted by crazyd: Sticks and stones, people. If a few mean words is all it takes to get you to hang yourself, you're at the end of a long road of problems, not the beginning of it. This is not a tragedy. Not everyone was meant to survive into adulthood. Some contestants take themselves out of the running by accident, some do it on purpose. Life is a brief, beautiful, amazing thing; if you are unable to see past the challenges it presents you to appreciate its magnificence, don't let the door hit you on the way out. There is no shortage of human beings on this planet, and she did the six billion remaining survivors of humanity a small favor. Thanks Megan, from all of us.

You or I are not the ones to decide if she deserves to be here. These people took her life into thier hands. It wasn't natural selection.
You and hitler would get along well.

quote Originally posted by crazyd: There is no shortage of human beings on this planet, and she did the six billion remaining survivors of humanity a small favor. Thanks Megan, from all of us.

This goes down as one of the most ****ed up statements I've heard all year.

quote Originally posted by pokeyfiero: You or I are not the ones to decide if she deserves to be here. These people took her life into thier hands. It wasn't natural selection. You and hitler would get along well.

Reading pretty far into that aren't you pokey? I don't believe he said she "deserved to die" anywhere in his post.. perhaps you could quote his words instead of twisting them beyond all recognition?

Ohh... and I dont like you anymore.. Not only dont I like you any more but you're retarded too.. and broke down old gimp of a man.

So go leap off a bridge and take a long walk on a short pier.. ya wimp.

I spose I'll wake up tomorrow and be jailed for "attempted murder" before my first cup of coffee. Get real.

[This message has been edited by 84Bill (edited 11-20-2007).]