LORI DREW CASE

Photo left: Lori Drew

Alleged Perpetrator. Photo right, center: Megan Meier

alleged victim

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Hi All,

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In a Comment stream “I didn’t do it” said:

"I'd like to see how the Lori Drew verdict will impact this blog".
Nov 26, 2008 10:19:00 AM"

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Your BLOGMEISTER researched this case and it is very complex and interesting:

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The essence of the case is that the Federal Government alleges that one Lori Drew and accomplices set up an account with MySpace and harassed a 13 year old girl to the point that she committed suicide.

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Please take note that this is an extreme simplification of many issues involved in the case. Below I have pasted in an article by a retired FBI Agent on the case.

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To be knowledgeable, the reader should research further.

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As to the impact on this BLOG; I do not see “Cyber-Bullying” or harassment of persons with personality deficits. Nor do I see any violation of the GOOGLE Term of Service.

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I believe the impact of the case on this BLOG is zero, but read up on the case and express your views here.

In the following reference, the highlighting in red is mine:

Dave Israel
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REF: http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/911118.html


Retired FBI agent looks at specifics of MySpace case

By LAURA BAUER
The Kansas City Star

Jeff Lanza, a retired FBI agent who presents Internet safety training to parents and children, discussed the MySpace case after Wednesday’s verdict. He breaks down the legal specifics of the case and what impact it may have.
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Question: What was this case all about?

Answer: Legally, it had nothing to do with the suicide. She (Lori Drew) was charged, without a doubt, because of what happened. But she was charged with violating the MySpace user agreement.
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… If you were going to use these charges throughout all the users in MySpace, you could charge almost everybody. Half the people who go on there make up their age, say things that aren’t true. The reason this was brought forward is it resulted in the suicide of a very vulnerable young girl.
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Q: What can we learn from this case?

A: Metaphorically, this case was about the power of unmitigated instant communication. What I mean by that is, even the worst person, the person who bullies people, if you do it in person, you can see the person’s reaction. You can see how much your words hurt someone. It tends to mitigate the behavior. You can see how hurtful the bullying is, how hurtful the words are. On the computer you don’t get any of that feedback. You don’t see how that makes them feel.
For both adults and kids, you can never predict how someone will react to what you say to them. On the computer, you have no mechanism of feedback, beyond typed words, to know how people are responding to what you’re saying.
I think it’s a good idea, in a general sense, to be truthful online and use the same skills most of us have learned from one-on-one communication. Use those skills online. Don’t change your method of communicating because you’re talking on a computer. A lot of people become more harsh, more judgmental, more critical when it’s through a computer.
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Q: What can parents learn from this; what do they need to know
to keep their children safe on the Internet?

A: First, the computer needs to be in an area of the house that’s public. In the living room, the family room, not behind closed doors. If a kid walks away from a computer upset, if he acts unusual, you’ll get to see that in a public place. It gives you a window into what they’re doing without spying on them. If a kid walks away from the computer withdrawn, or depressed, that could be a sign that they are getting these kinds of messages.
Parents should talk with kids about bullying online.
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Q: What does this mean for people who use MySpace? Should they, especially kids, be reading the fine print?

A: I don’t think it’s a harbinger for future law enforcement activity on MySpace. I think this case was brought because they wanted to see some justice and this was the only avenue to see that in this case. What I think ought to happen, states should take notice like Missouri has, have statutes that will deter this type of behavior, so people could be brought to justice for this type of behavior.
(After Megan Meier’s suicide, Missouri passed a law against cyber-harassment. Similar federal legislation has been proposed in Congress.)

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See the following reference regarding the Verdict in this case:

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/11/prosecution-ple.html

Excellent article with many links to further research!

Finally, see the actual Federal Indictment of Lori Drew:

http://fl1.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/nytimes/docs/cyberlaw/usdrew51508ind.pdf