LoneTree Creative Preserve Authorblog

I don’t know if many of you have heard about Megan Meier, but she was an Americian 13-year teenage that committed suicide due to Online Harassment.  The bully was not another teenager, but the mother of a friend of Megan’s.  This bully was identified as Lori Janine Drew who was indicted by a federal grand jury with one count of conspiracy and three counts of accessing protected computers without authorization to obtain information to inflict emotional distress.  Each count of the indictment carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.

Because of this terrible event the following laws have been passed:

• The Board of Aldermen for the City of Dardenne Prairie, passed an ordinance on November 22,2007.  The ordinance prohibits any harassment that utilizes an electronic medium, including the Internet, text messaging services, pagers, and similar devices. Violations of the ordinance are treated as misdemeanors, with fines of up to $500 and up to 90 days imprisonment
• The city of Florissant, Missouri also passed a “Cyber Harassment” law, with other municipalities, counties, and states considering following suit;
• The state of Missouri revised its harassment laws to cover harassement through computers and mobile phone messaging, and creating a new crime to cover adults 21 and over harassing children under the age of eighteen.