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Judge to acquit MySpace 'bully' MySpace 'suicide bully cleared'
(about 5 hours later)
A US judge has indicated that he will overturn the conviction of a Missouri woman accused of "cyber-bullying" a 13-year-old girl who later killed herself. A US judge has acquitted a Missouri woman over her role in a computer hoax directed at a 13-year-old neighbour who later killed herself.
Lori Drew was alleged to have posed as a teenage boy on MySpace and sent flirtatious messages to Megan Meier. District Judge George Wu stressed the ruling in the case of Lori Drew was tentative until issued in writing.
Drew, 50, was convicted last year after allegedly creating a fake MySpace page to find out what Megan Meier was saying about her daughter.
After the fake boy "dumped" Ms Meier online, she committed suicide.After the fake boy "dumped" Ms Meier online, she committed suicide.
Drew, 50, was found guilty of illegally accessing computers last year, but Judge George Wu said he was tentatively acquitting her. Drew was found guilty in November of illegally accessing computers.
If Drew were convicted for breaking the social networking site's terms of service, "you could prosecute pretty much anyone who violated terms of service," he said. But the judge said on Thursday that if she had been convicted for breaking the social networking site's terms of service, "you could prosecute pretty much anyone who violated terms of service".
'Public symbol''Public symbol'
Prosecutors alleged during the trial that Drew had set up the phony MySpace account in order to find out if Megan Meier was spreading rumours about her daughter Sarah. Posing as "Josh Evans", Drew started an online relationship with her teenage neighbour, before apparently staging a falling-out and sending a message that "the world would be better off without" her.
Posing as "Josh Evans", she started an online relationship with the 13-year-old, before apparently staging a falling-out and sending a message that "the world would be better off without" her. She hanged herself a short time later in October 2006.
During court proceedings, Drew's lawyer argued that "the government's case is all about making Lori Drew a public symbol of cyberbullying". During court proceedings, Drew's lawyer argued that "the government's case is all about making Lori Drew a public symbol of cyber-bullying".
"The government has created a fiction that Lori Drew somehow caused [Megan's] death, and it wants a long prison sentence to make its fiction seem real.""The government has created a fiction that Lori Drew somehow caused [Megan's] death, and it wants a long prison sentence to make its fiction seem real."
But federal prosecutor Tom O'Brien said he stood by his decision to prosecute.But federal prosecutor Tom O'Brien said he stood by his decision to prosecute.
"I'm proud of this case," he said. "This is a case that called out for someone to do something. It was a risk. But this office will always take risks on behalf of children."I'm proud of this case," he said. "This is a case that called out for someone to do something. It was a risk. But this office will always take risks on behalf of children.