Bad Day at Dardenne Prairie

The death of Megan Meier is a stark example of how far our laws lag behind internet technology. Immediate Federal intervention is required to prevent similar tragedies.

On October 16, 2006, 13-year-old Megan Meier committed suicide after exchanging a series of messages with someone she thought was a romantic teenage admirer named "Josh". But "Josh" was actually the parents of an ex-best friend of Megan's with whom Miss Meier had had a falling out. The perpetrators of this internet hoax first gained Megan's affection, and then bombarded her with increasingly insulting messages, culminating with the statement that "the world would be a better place without you," as reported in a November 17, 2007 Chicago Tribune online article.

According to a November 17, 2007 CBS News article online, Megan Meier suffered from depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. She was on medication, and, according to her parents, was doing well before her experience on MySpace drove her to hang herself in a closet.

Megan lived in Dardenne Prairie, Missouri, a town of 7,000 outside of St. Louis. According to The Tribune, Megan's story did not become well known until a local newspaper, The Suburban Journal, published a story on the case last week.

I like small towns; I've lived in a couple of them. Life is slower and people are generally friendlier. There's usually less noise, and you tend to sleep better than in a big city. But these seemingly idyllic places can have a dark underside: small-minded people. I can think of a couple of former small-town neighbors who are capable of doing what Megan's ex-friend's parents did. When hateful, immature adults exact revenge on a child, anything can happen.

According to news reports, Megan's parents were attentive to her needs. They monitored her activities on MySpace, and when she became upset about "Josh", ordered her to discontinue her correspondence.

After Megan's death, Ron and Tina Meier, separated. They are contemplating a civil suit against the ex-friend's parents. Those people should be slapped with a wrongful death judgment for every penny they have. They should also spend some serious time behind bars. The problem is, nobody knows what to charge them with.

An FBI report has been prepared, but no Federal charges have been forthcoming. According to The Tribune, the Federal statute against internet harassment covers only direct messages such as email, not the type of postings on MySpace that drove Megan to her death. The County Sheriff has found that no crime has been committed. With strong support from Mayor Pam Fogarty, the Dardenne Prairie City Council has proposed a local law making this type of internet harassment a misdemeanor punishable by 90 days in jail and a $500 fine. Mayor Fogarty is frustrated by the inadequacy of the punishment. It also does Megan's parents no good because it can't be applied to the Meier case since ex-post facto laws are unconstitutional.

In an attempt to protect the hoaxsters from harm, the Suburban Journal and other news outlets have not published their names. That hasn't prevented bloggers from finding out who they are, excoriating, and even threatening them with violence. A November 21, 2007 online article in USA Today has described this phenomenon as "internet shaming", a high-tech version of vigilantism. Mayor Fogarty has rightly condemned this practice.

As far as I'm concerned, the people who drove 13-year-old Megan to her death are killers. They deliberately set out to hurt her in a big way and knew, or should have known, that someone of Megan's age and fragility would react the way she did.

That said, we are a nation of laws, not mobs. This is 21st century America, not mid-19th century Dodge City. Civilized people fight perpetrators in court, not on the street. In the U.S., only courts can dispense justice, not self-appointed enforcers. O.J. Simpson recently tried to play that role, and now he's facing the possibility of spending decades behind bars.

This case cries out for justice, not vengeance. Criminal investigations are continuing, but given the current state of the law, do not look promising. Given the ubiquity of cyberspace, only the Federal government has the power to enact laws with teeth to combat this problem. It's high time that it did so.