seperis | Megan Meier

Probably most people have already seen this story in the comms, but I read it three days ago and still get violently nauseated every time I remember it, so.

Original Link

A Real Person, a Real Death

From the article:

Megan went to her room and Ron went downstairs to the kitchen, where he and Tina talked about what had happened, the MySpace account, and made dinner.

Twenty minutes later, Tina suddenly froze in mid-sentence.

"I had this God-awful feeling and I ran up into her room and she had hung herself in the closet."

Megan Taylor Meier died the next day, three weeks before her 14th birthday.

Later that day, Ron opened his daughter's MySpace account and viewed what he believes to be the final message Megan saw - one the FBI would be unable to retrieve from the hard drive.

It was from Josh and, according to Ron's best recollection, it said, "Everybody in O'Fallon knows how you are. You are a bad person and everybody hates you. Have a shitty rest of your life. The world would be a better place without you."

Short version: thirteen year old girl and best friend break up. Thirteen year old girl meets boy on myspace. Thirteen year old girl and boy become friends. Thirteen year old girl and boy talk. Boy starts to send unpleasant messages. Boy becomes cruel. Thirteen year old girl with a history of known depression kills herself. Boy turns out to be an imaginary construct of the parents of the broken-up-with best friend.

Parents, adults that knew this girl and how to fuck with her.

Quoting from many someone's--what the hell is wrong with people?

More Links

1. Mom: Web Hoax Led Girl to Kill Herself

2. Net hoax turns deadly, turns town against neighbors

From the article:

Tina and Ron Meier, who have separated since Megan's death, said they hope there will be a prosecution. In the meantime, Tina Meier said, they will push for a new law "to get justice for Megan."

In the absence of legal action, frustration is building online.

"Make them accountable. Anonymity should be awarded to victims, not to people who torment the helpless," wrote one reader in a posting on the Suburban Journals Web site.

"This family that perpetrated this prank is just EVIL ... Please move," read another.

"To the parents who did this to Megan, you're monsters. You are not welcome in our community. Leave now," read another.

3. Story of Girls' Suicide Takes New Life Online

4. Blog Readers Out Anonymous Adults that Newspaper Refused to Identify

From the article:

It turns out that Evans was a pseudonym created by two adults -- one of whom knew the Meier family very well. The St. Charles Journal decided to protect the privacy of the two adults and declined to name them in the story. That didn't sit well with incensed readers, who tracked down what they say is the identity of one of the adults and posted it online. Now the paper is being criticized for giving the adults anonymity.

You know. The oldest way society has to deal with people we can't kill or throw in jail is shunning. Jesus, if there was ever a textbook case for it, this would be it.

I would do some kind of meta on this, but honestly, it would be crappy because I can't see past the sheer horror of an adult--not just a parent, but any adult--doing this to a child. Doing this to a child they know. Doing this to a child they know and was friends with their daughter. I can't even get past the mental wtf of incomprehension of vendetta on a thirteen year old girl.

Mostly, it comes from a weird sense of--crazy, I know--proportional response. And this pesky set of ethics that come along with being human and not being a sociopath. There's not even a *whisper* of some kind of half-assed excuse--though seriously, I'm waiting for the Drews clever explanation.

Let's pick our top five choices for Why We Stalked a Depressed Thirteen Year Old Girl LOL:
a.) WE DIDN'T MEAN TO MAKE HER SUICIDE, IT WAS FOR THE LULZ.
b.) SHE WAS TOTALLY MEAN TO OUR DAUGHTER AND THIS IS HOW WE ADULTS HANDLE STUFF LIKE THIS.
c.) THE NANNY DID IT.
d.) BUT SHE WAS A BAD PERSON! BEING ALL THIRTEEN AND HEY, LOOK I PULLED UP SOME AWESOME DIRT ON THIS LITTLE GIRL THAT TOTALLY PROVES WE WERE JUSTIFIED! LET THE CHARACTER ASSASSINATION BEGIN!
e.) WE ARE TOTAL SOCIOPATHS BE SAD FOR US.

Anyone think they'll go for e? I'm thinking combo a/d.

ETA: More links to further information on Megan Meier via google news.

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oh my god.

I can't believe that. Rather, I don't want to believe that. I don't want to believe that there are people in this world who would do something like that to a thirteen year old girl.

that, that just hurts my heart.

I really, really didn't want to. I read the first article several times just to absorb it, then googled and did some blog-hopping tonight, hoping it would turn out to be a lot less--well, a lot less insane. But not so much with less insane, but a lot more with utterly shock.

I really do not have words to convey my disgust that there are people in this world that would do such a thing to a child...

It's--yeah. I keep hoping something will come up to mitigate, but honestly, I can't see how anything *can*. I don't want to believe people are this utterly lost to basic humanity, but you know, wanting it doesn't make it true.

I can't even get past the mental wtf of incomprehension of vendetta on a thirteen year old girl.

You and me both. What. The. Fuck.

*boggles*

Also, I'm guessing e will pop up. Because they totally are.

I hate using that word, but honestly, I can't think of another one that fits this kind of mentality. The planning that went into this, effort for a sockpuppet to get a young girl's confidence, and then work on her known mental instabilities (teenagers are already at a disadvantage emotionally, compound it with her known depression, God), and then socialize with the family after her death? I can't even comprehend that.

WHAT

Okay, I thought you were going to say the boy on MySpace turned out to be the ex-friend, which would be totally understandable. Still a horrible end that this girl ended up killing herself, but I can totally see a kid doing that to get back at someone.

But parents!? WHAT. THE. FUCK. Who in their right mind says "this girl and my daughter had a fight, let me make up a sock puppet online to torment her"!?

I have a vague memory of once reading an article about a mother who killed her daughter's cheerleader rival or something like that. Some people are just batshit insane.

*sighs* The cheerleader thing was in Texas, too. Trust me, it was not that much of a stretch in football country for someone to pull something like that. *twitch* Horrific.

Okay, I thought you were going to say the boy on MySpace turned out to be the ex-friend, which would be totally understandable. Still a horrible end that this girl ended up killing herself, but I can totally see a kid doing that to get back at someone.

Me too. I thought at worst that it was kids doing it and the parents had just, you know, turned the other way and put it down to kids being kids crap. The punchline on that one was surreal--I think I read back twice just to be sure I'd read it correctly.

There are no words. "Oh my god" barely begins to express it.

It's really just--incomprehensible at first read. Like a very very bad made for tv drama or something. Gah.

This is disgusting. I don't even have any words for this kind of behaviour.

*nods* I can't even figure out how they justified it to themselves. Sure, you are hurt for your kid for whatever. You take her to dinner and talk to her. Not, you know, rain down freaking homicidal vengeance.

Whenever I was in an argument with a friend my mom hugged me and let me cry on her shoulder if I wanted, but she never even said a thing about the friend I was arguing with.

This whole thing is just disgusting. I can't even imagine why adults would think that is okay behaviour. They are just sick, sick people.

Whenever I was in an argument with a friend my mom hugged me and let me cry on her shoulder if I wanted, but she never even said a thing about the friend I was arguing with.

Yes! My mom like, made me cookies and let me cry and told me it would get better and I'd find new friends etc etc etc. I seriously cannot imagine, even with Child (who *was* bullied badly a few years back and I had to contact the school), going to this.

It just makes no sense to me that anyone goes from "young teenage girls have a falling out" to "let's emotionally damage one of them". Hell, both girls; how the *hell* is the Drew daughter going to be able to deal with this?

You know, I'm still thinking about that part.

God, that's just so horrible. And seriously, wft, about the other mother not feeling guilty cos she knew that Megan had previously tried committing suicide. I'm all for this law being passed, people should be held accountable for what they do online.

*nods*

I don't get how this isn't harassment, to be honest. Granted, I am no lawyer nor play one on TV, but wow.

I just.../Jesus/. This is beyond comprehension. How could any adult do this to a /child/? My God. And what is this woman teaching her own daughter? Christ. I think of someone doing this to one of my children, and I just want to /shake/ this woman until she sees the part she played in causing the death of a /child/.

Yes. Exactly.

It's honestly just so far out there that it seems impossible that any sane parent would think this was a good idea. It doesn't even compute.

What the fuck is wrong with people? Doing something like that, something so studiously cruel... it's beyond comprehension.

*nods* Yeah. Just--no words on that one. Or at least, all the words I can come up with tend to be various sounds of shock and horror.

Jesus, I have no idea what the world is coming to but this story made me incandescent with fury and desperately sad. Poor little lost girl

Yes!

I'm just incoherent about the parents' role in this, and boggling that adults would believe the appropriate response to 'my daughter's best friend has broken up with her' is to torture and humiliate the other child. I just - I'm reeling.

But it rips my fucking heart out to think of that poor little overweight ugly duckling of a kid. I mean, what, the world isn't cruel enough? It's not hard enough dealing with hormones and bullying and feeling shit about yourself, everyone comparing your appearance to that of the skinny icons of teen perfection? It's not enough to cope with the casual viciousness of high school? You're supposed to brace yourself for the possibility that adults you know and trust ARE COLDLY SETTING OUT TO DECEIVE YOU, BREAK YOUR FUCKING HEART AND HUMILIATE YOU?

Jesus. I don't know about you, but I had a fairly horrendous time being a teenager. I mean, yes, sure I was happy and friendly and passionately engaged with books and my studies, but I was also wretched about my appearance and my gaucheness and filled with self-loathing and awkwardness and all that painful cliched crap. Being a teen is pretty fucking agonising all on its own - but then this? It blows my MIND. I want to beat them with fucking bricks. They fail at life.

If this isn't child abuse, what the hell is it?

How is it possible that their daughter is still in their care?

(no subject)

From:

seperis.livejournal.com - Date: 2007-11-17 04:10 pm (UTC) - expand

That totally puts any other online idiocy - I was having a discussion about the dynamics of F_W earlier - into perspective. Harshly. *shudders*

*shakes head* It's just a brand new level of batshit there.

I'm with you on the shunning; no words, no direct ugliness or harassment - just turn your back whenever they appear. I've been so upset since I read this and I keep thinking about Megan's parents and about this Lori (or Lorie) Drew person and wondering what kind of person she is. What kind of mother that she could do that to a child. It's beyond my comprehension.

I love that idea. Shunning. Simple, legal, effective. They don't *exist*.

I am really pissed that there are the adults are not being charged. I think this whole situation is absolutely sick.

*nods* I wish there were something. Anything.

Dear God, that poor child, and those poor parents. Incomprehensible is a good word for it. I'm still sitting here just shaking my head with tears in my eyes.

WE ARE TOTAL SOCIOPATHS BE SAD FOR US.

Indeed, that one I can see--and people eventually doing just that. A little fireside chat on a newsmag, some tissues, baby pictures; a conversion, perhaps, and oh, the error of our ways as we see it now...

I sometimes imagine that public stocks and pillories should still be an option in corrections. Not a kind thought, but it's there right now.

With stuff like this? Yeah, the thought is there.

I totally see them pulling something like that.

That - is just incomprehensible. I mean, you try and protect your kids but when you're doing that, you never ever expect to have to protect them against something like this, because the assumption of basic human decency just precludes adults one knows and socialises with behaving like this. I suppose a lot of child abusers have also been ppl that families have known and socialised with, but - somehow them all doing it together, adults involving their kid too, is just too horrible. The guilty parties should have their child removed into protective custody, imho, because allowing a kid to be raised by people who teach them that kind of thing is OK can not be right.

Pretty much yes. Youu know to watch for the pedophiles and watch for other kids bullying and you watch for people who abuse your kids--but who sees 'adults create personal to stalk your child' on the list? IT's insane.

I told my Mum and her comment was 'they murdered her'. I agree with that. Manslaughter at the least. Other crime committed online gets prosecuted, this deliberate harassment which was clearly aimed to mentally harm her should be punishable also.

Fucking right.

(no subject)

From:

seperis.livejournal.com - Date: 2007-11-17 04:14 pm (UTC) - expand

Jezebel.com ID'd the parents (http://jezebel.com/gossip/drew-no-blood/are-the-parents-who-myspacetormented-megan-meier-into-killing-herself-ready-to-atone-um-323254.php): I totally agree on the premise of shunning.

Totally with you. Shun shun shun.

These people won't even take responsibility for what their stupidity has caused and show some damned remorse. Can you imagine how you'd feel if you'd in any way contributed to the death of a thirteen year old? And yet, not even an "I'm sorry" from these people. Instead, they do seem to be going for an a/d strategy. Shunning, an excellent idea.

*nods* That's what blows my mind. And her "I didn't feel as guilty because I found out she tried to suicide before?" Er. What world is that mitigating?

This is sick on so many levels, I have no words.

I think the worst part, to me, is that this is a specific, targeted approach which lasted six weeks. It's not just something they didn't think about; this was calculated.

People suck.

It's just horrifying to think people, parents, planned this. And never stopped to think, gosh, this is kind of immoral and evil.

As much as I hate the parents who created the myspace account and think that they bear some responsibility for the girl's death, it's been pointed out that gave the password to their daughter, who gave it to a bunch of schoolmates. It's probably those schoolmates who sent the vicious messages to Megan seeing as "Josh" had been nothing but friendly to Megan previously.

The person I'm quoting from is pretty reliable. If what she's saying is accurate, the mother who created the myspace account was in agreement with everything posted to the account.

The last comment was made by a girl the mother recruited to be in on the prank. She's the one who told her mother about what happened and that mother informed the Meiers.
From what I heard, the password only got out to the kids they involved.

One of the kids said that the mother behind it found the comments amusing and encouraged it. So she was part of what happened the day she killed herself, and when she noticed something going on at the Meier house she promptly deleted the myspace account and calling people involved so they wouldn't say anything.

Re: Nevermind: update

From:

seperis.livejournal.com - Date: 2007-11-17 04:09 pm (UTC) - expand

(no subject)

From:

seperis.livejournal.com - Date: 2007-11-17 04:08 pm (UTC) - expand

(no subject)

From:

eal.livejournal.com - Date: 2007-11-17 06:34 pm (UTC) - expand

I am honestly surprised that they haven't been arrested for child abuse. Not sure the DA could make it stick in the end, as there'd be a lot of legal wrangling over it, but I'm surprised they didn't step up to the plate and at least try to get those bastards for child abuse.

*nods* That is surprising--at least on the level of harassment if they couldn't find anything else. It's not like these are friends that fell out--this is a deliberate effort to torture someone and by adults, not other kids.

Gah.

I saw this on CNN last night and was so glad the reporter was upset about what the police said- that basically there wasn't a crime committed. But I was happy to hear the CNN legal reporter say the only course that could work is a civil case. Hopefully the parents of the suicide victim will do this. If that is the only way to say no to this behavior, they need to do this.

*nods* Yes, they do. This kind of thing has to be--I mean, now, when its started, use it and make an example.

Boy turns out to be an imaginary construct of the parents of the broken-up-with best friend.
HOLY SHIT WHAT?

This is the most fucked-up thing I've heard in a long while.

edited at: Date: 2007-11-17 04:12 pm (UTC)

Pretty much my sum reaction too.

What? WHAT?
*flails with incoherent RAGE*

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