9-29-2009 California:
Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles have filed a notice of appeal in the Lori Drew cyberbullying case, where a judge threw out the government’s case against Drew for allegedly using a fake MySpace account to drive a teenage girl to suicide.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Krause filed the notice (.pdf) on Friday in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, indicating that the government may appeal a judge’s ruling in July that acquitted Drew of three misdemeanor counts.
The federal prosecution of Drew relied on a controversial reading of a federal hacking law — essentially prosecuting Drew for violating MySpace’s terms of service by not being truthful in a online profile.
But U.S. District Judge George Wu said the government’s theory was unconstitutional.
Letting that interpretation stand would ultimately have given prosecutors the power to criminally prosecute anyone for violating a website’s terms of service, Wu reasoned, and “would convert a multitude of otherwise innocent internet users into misdemeanant criminals.”
Drew and two others created a fake MySpace account to harass 13-year-old Megan Meier, who later committed suicide. Federal prosecutors got involved after local authorities could not find a way to bring charges.
Friday’s filing, however, doesn’t mean the government will pursue an appeal.
In July, Wu conditionally overturned the jury convictions, which had found Drew guilty of three counts of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act for breaking MySpace’s terms of service agreement.
Wu’s ruling, however, did not become official until he filed his written judgment on Aug. 31, at which point the clock for filing a notice to appeal began ticking.
The Court of Appeals will now have to set a schedule for filing the opening brief in the appeal. Mrozek said given the court’s current schedule, it could be four months or longer before the government’s brief is due.
Drew was initially charged with three felony counts of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and one count of felony conspiracy to violate the statute. Last November, a jury convicted her instead of lesser misdemeanor charges on the first three counts and deadlocked on the conspiracy charge. Prosecutors said at the time they weren’t sure whether they’d attempt to retry Drew on the fourth charge.
Eight months later, Wu overturned the convictions on grounds that the statute was unconstitutionally vague.
Orin Kerr, a former Justice Department prosecutor who now teaches law at George Washington University, plans to work on Drew’s defense if the government pursues an appeal.
Kerr wasn’t available for comment, but on his blog on Friday he noted that the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals just recently rejected a number of cases that prosecutors in the Drew case had relied on for their broad interpretation of the CFAA. ..Source.. by Kim Zetter
September 29, 2009
CA- Prosecutors Set Stage to Appeal Lori Drew Ruling
September 1, 2009
Judge: TOS violations not a crime in teen suicide case
9-1-2009 National:
US district Judge George H. Wu has dismissed the case against Lori Drew, throwing out her misdemeanor conviction for unauthorized access. The ruling will be welcomed by Internet rights groups who feared that the case would set a precedent allowing terms-of-service violations to be prosecuted under anti-hacking laws.
Alleged cyber bully Lori Drew was officially acquitted on Friday when US District Judge George H. Wu issued a ruling in which he said that violating a website's terms of service is not a criminal offense. This ruling affirms an opinion that he issued last month when he revealed his intention to throw out the conviction against Drew.
Drew was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2008 for her role in a MySpace hoax that led to the suicide of 13-year-old Megan Meier. Prosecutors charged her under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), contending that her violation of MySpace's terms of service was tantamount to hacking. They rationalized this legal theory by arguing that using a website while failing to conform with its usage policy constitutes "unauthorized access," which is forbidden by the CFAA.
For the remainder of this story: by ars Techinca
July 3, 2009
Convictions against Lori Drew overturned today; case dismissed
I agree with the judge about the law being misapplied, however, let no one forget this woman is responsible for the death of a child. Accordingly, it is hoped that she will be placed on every state's "Central Registry" so that every state's Child Protective's Service is notified of her past.
7-3-2009 National:
From Cyberbullying blog:
The case against Lori Drew has been dismissed in federal court today, as the judge seemingly thought it would be wrong to criminalize certain Terms of Service violations of MySpace and other social networking web sites since users often misrepresent themselves online. (Bottom line when it comes to this ruling is that the law used to prosecute Drew was misapplied (and, frankly, not written very well).
I am pleased about this decision due to its implications, and hope that those who make law and adjudicate cases related to online communications continue to carefully evaluate the long-term usefulness of regulation. I hope that Megan’s family can somehow obtain closure; Tina Meier continues to work tirelessly to bring attention to cyberbullying through her experience, and we are in her corner. ..Source.. by Cyberbullying Blog
May 7, 2009
CA- 3 years in prison sought for MySpace hoax
5-7-2009 California:
Prosecutors argue mother ‘coldly conceived of a scheme to humiliate’
LOS ANGELES - A Missouri mother should serve three years in prison for her role in a MySpace hoax on a 13-year-old neighbor who committed suicide, federal prosecutors said in court documents filed Wednesday.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Krause outlined the government's position while requesting the maximum sentence for Lori Drew. Probation officials have recommended Drew receive a year of probation and a $5,000 fine.
Krause argued that Drew "coldly conceived of a scheme to humiliate" Megan Meier, a neighbor in a St. Louis suburb, by helping create a fictitious teenage boy on the social networking site and sending flirtatious messages in his name to the girl.
The fake boy then dumped Megan in a message saying the world would be better without her. She hanged herself a short time later.
Drew used her then-13-year-old daughter and a business assistant in the scheme, which played on Megan's insecurities, Krause said.
"Both the callousness of defendant's criminal conduct and the extraordinary harm it caused mandate a sentence of more than probation," Krause wrote.
Convicted of three counts
Drew was convicted in November of three counts of accessing computers without authorization. Besides up to three years in prison, she could face a $300,000 fine at sentencing set for May 18.
Drew's attorney, Dean Steward, has asked U.S. District Court Judge George Wu to throw out the verdicts.
Steward said his client couldn't afford the $5,000 fine recommended by probation officials because she no longer draws income from the coupon book business she had for nine years.
During the trial, prosecutors argued that Drew violated MySpace rules by setting up the phony profile for a boy named "Josh Evans." Jurors decided Drew was not guilty of the more serious felonies of intentionally causing emotional harm while accessing computers without authorization.
The jury could not reach an unanimous verdict on a felony conspiracy charge.
Drew was not directly charged with causing Megan's death.
Expert: Prosecutors 'gung-ho'
Some legal experts believe prosecutors are still smarting over the conviction on lesser crimes. In his filing, Krause continued to argue there is convincing evidence that shows Drew set out to inflict emotional harm to Megan.
"They are just totally gung-ho on this case," Matt Levine, a New York-based defense attorney and former federal prosecutor, said about prosecutors. "On one hand, what Lori Drew did was egregious and she should be brought to justice, but they have used the wrong legal theory here." ..News Source.. by MSNBC
May 6, 2009
DC- Prison Awaiting Hostile Bloggers
5-6-2009 Washington DC:
Proposed congressional legislation would demand up to two years in prison for those whose electronic speech is meant to “coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to a person.”
Instead of prison, perhaps we should say gulag.
The proposal by Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Los Angeles, would never pass First Amendment muster, unless the U.S. Constitution was altered without us knowing. So Sanchez, and the 14 other lawmakers who signed on to the proposal, are grandstanding to show the public they care about children and are opposed to cyberbullying.
The meaasure, H.R. 1966, is labeled the Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act. It’s designed to target the behavior that led to last year’s suicide of the 13-year-old Meier.
In response to Meier’s suicide, prosecutors turned to an anti-hacking statute, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and prosecuted Lori Drew. She was accused of violating MySpace’s terms of service agreement in what prosecutors said was a complex conspiracy to harass Meier via a fake MySpace online profile.
The judge presiding over the case is weighing a motion to nullify the jury’s verdict on allegations the authorities failed to prove Drew knew the MySpace terms of service existed — allegations that would be mooted had Drew been prosecuted under Sanchez’s proposal. Drew’s case was the nation’s first cyberbullying prosecution under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
Sanchez’s bill goes way beyond cyberbullying and comes close to making it a federal offense to log onto the internet or use the telephone. The methods of communication where hostile speech is banned include e-mail, instant messaging, blogs, websites, telephones and text messages.
We can’t say what we think of Sanchez’s proposal. Doing so would clearly get us two years in solitary confinement.
The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee. ..News Source.. by Wired News
December 11, 2008
Wrong law used to prosecute mom's cyber-bullying
12-11-2008 National:
What Lori Drew allegedly did to Megan Meier was despicable, but it doesn't justify her conviction late last month for violating federal laws designed to keep hackers from invading computer networks.
Two years ago, Megan, a 13-year-old Missouri girl, hanged herself after her online friend "Josh Evans," who had befriended her on MySpace, reportedly told her that he didn't want to be friends with her and that the world would be better off without her. But Josh was in fact Drew, a 49-year-old mother of one of Megan's former friends. According to published reports, Megan had been mean to Drew's daughter and Josh's fake online relationship with Megan was a way for Drew to retaliate.
During the trial in Los Angeles, it was revealed that some entries made by Josh were typed by Ashley Grills, a then-18-year-old employee of Drew who was a witness for the prosecution and was not prosecuted.
The case has widely been characterized as a legal assault on cyber-bullying, though it is extremely unusual for an adult to bully a teen. The case against Drew is frequently cited as a warning to would-be cyber-bullies that their actions could bring severe consequences to both their victims and themselves.
From what I can gather, this is a case of a squabble between two 13-year-old girls and a mother who intervened in a terribly immature and inappropriate way. Adults are supposed to help young people peacefully resolve problems. This is not so much a case of cyber-bullying as a case of a really bad parental intervention that had tragic consequences.
We need to fight against rude, deceitful and cruel behavior on and off the Internet. But that doesn't justify a reinterpretation of anti-hacking laws to jail people who misuse Internet services.
The legal theory behind the prosecutor's case was that Drew violated MySpace's terms of service that prohibit misrepresenting your identity and harassing others. MySpace rules, which Drew says she hadn't read, require that "all information you submit is truthful and accurate." Clearly Drew lied, but so have a lot of other people.
She was prosecuted under Section 1030 of the U.S. Code, which was crafted to protect against unauthorized access to computer networks to cause damage, steal information or money or jeopardize national security.
As far as I can tell, the law was not designed to prevent people from lying about their identity or otherwise violating rules on a publicly available online service. But that didn't stop the jury from convicting Drew of misdemeanor violations. The jury refused to go along with the prosecution's felony charges.
Let me say it again: What Drew did was terribly wrong and I don't blame prosecutors for wanting for find a way to throw the book at her. I just wish they had used a different book.
Based on this case, I'm one of millions of people who might also be guilty of a federal crime. I didn't harass anyone, but I did violate MySpace's terms of service by creating several fake identities with a variety of ages to test privacy features for teenagers while I was researching a book about MySpace in 2006.
And what about police officers who pose as teenagers to lure would-be predators? Should they have to request immunity from federal prosecution each time they engage in such a sting operation? I've even heard cases of law enforcement people advising kids to lie on their profiles to protect their privacy. Should they be indicted for conspiracy?
There are plenty of adults who lie online about their age. I have a friend who set up a profile on an online dating service using a false age, an old photograph and the exaggerated claim that he was "athletic." A date might have cause to be disappointed or angry at him, but should she have the right to demand a federal prosecution?
Even Megan, with her mom's knowledge, lied about her age. She was 13 and, at the time, MySpace required users to be at least 14. MySpace recently started allowing 13-year-olds to sign up. The usual penalty for violating terms of service is to be kicked off the service.
Had MySpace decided to go after Drew in court, it could have done so as a civil matter. But it's not up to federal prosecutors to take it upon themselves to enforce a company's online agreement with its members, especially if that company never asked for federal intervention.
-Note: Several Attorneys General, collectively, moved to kick registered sex offenders off MySpace. If there is no law, is that legal?
I can understand why a jury wanted to punish Drew for what happened to Megan. But it's not clear to me that putting Drew in jail on a hacking charge will help prevent cyber-bullying or future tragedies.
What is needed is an educational campaign that makes bullying or harassing just as unacceptable as racial epithets or subjecting others to secondhand smoke. While cases like this one — an adult harassing a teen online — are rare, cyber-bullying is a real problem among teenagers, but it requires serious long-term solutions, not quick fixes and the inappropriate use of a federal anti-hacking law. ..News Source.. by Larry Magid, DAILY News columnist
November 6, 2008
MO- Lori Drew wants a bench trial
11-6-2008 Missouri:
Attorneys for Lori Drew, the former Dardenne Prairie woman accused of cyber-bullying a 13-year-old who later committed suicide, asked today that her trial be held in front of a judge, not a jury.
In a motion filed about 11:30 a.m. St. Louis time, H. Dean Steward waived Drew's right to a jury trial.
It is the second time in recent days that Drew lawyers have moved to limit the potential impact at trial of the suicide of Megan Meier.
On Sunday, Steward filed a motion to bar any mention of Megan's suicide during the trial, saying that the suicide is unrelated to the computer fraud charge.
Drew was indicted in May on one count of conspiracy and three counts of illegally accessing protected computers after prosecutors accused her and others of creating a fake account on the social networking site MySpace in 2006 and using it to cyber-bully Megan. Megan and Drew's daughter were friends but became rivals and Drew wanted to find out what Megan was saying about her daughter, prosecutors have said.
Drew's trial is currently scheduled for Nov. 18 in Los Angeles. ..News Source.. by Robert Patrick, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
June 16, 2008
Woman Charged in Internet Suicide Case Pleads Not Guilty in Federal Court
Because of the issues related to the Internet, identifying who established the MySpace account, I will be following this case. It is likely some of the issues will be advantageous to RSOs and their fight on e-mail issues.
6-16-2008 National:
A Missouri woman pleaded not guilty in Los Angeles federal court Monday to charges in an Internet hoax blamed for a 13-year-old girl's suicide.
Forty-nine-year-old Lori Drew stood quietly beside her attorney Monday. She pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy and accessing protected computers without authorization to get information used to inflict emotional distress. She is free on $20,000 bond.
The proceeding lasted only a few minutes. Drew and her lawyer declined to comment to reporters waiting outside the courtroom.
Drew, of suburban St. Louis, Mo., is accused of helping to create a MySpace account that appeared to belong to a 16-year-old boy named Josh Evans. The boy did not exist.
Drew's daughter had been a friend of 13-year-old neighbor Megan Meier and the fake account was used to send cruel messages to the girl, including one stating the world would be better off without her. Megan hanged herself in 2006.
Drew has denied creating the account or sending messages to Meier.
The charges were filed in California where MySpace is based. MySpace is a subsidiary of Beverly Hills-based Fox Interactive Media Inc., which is owned by News Corp.
Drew's case was assigned to U.S. District Court Judge George Wu and her trial scheduled for July 29. A status conference was scheduled for June 26. U.S. Attorney's spokesman Thom Mrozek said Drew would be allowed to return home pending trial.
Each of the four counts against Drew carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
Drew's lawyer has said he will challenge the charges.
Experts have said the case could break new ground in Internet law. The statute used to indict Drew usually applies to Internet hackers who illegally access accounts to get information.
U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O'Brien has acknowledged this is the first time the federal statute on accessing protected computers has been used in a social-networking case.
Rebecca Lonergan, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches law at the University of Southern California, has said use of statute, known as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, may be open to challenge.
Lonergan said the crimes covered by the law involve obtaining information from a computer, not sending messages out to harass someone.
"Here it is the flow of information away from the computer," she said. "It's a very creative, aggressive use of the statute. But they may have a legally tough time meeting the elements."
James Chadwick, a Palo Alto, Calif., attorney who specializes in Internet and media law, said he has never seen the statute applied to the sending of messages.
He said it was probable that liability for the girl's death would not be an issue in the case. "As tragic as it is," he said, "You can't start imposing liability on people for being cruel."
Missouri police didn't file any charges against Drew in part because there was no applicable state law. In response to the case, Missouri legislators gave final approval to a bill making cyber harassment illegal. ..News Source.. by Law.com
See also: Liability for Net-Driven Suicides?
May 21, 2008
Legal Theory Used in MySpace Suicide Criminalizes Website Lies
5-21-2008 National:
Some legal experts are criticizing the theory being used to prosecute a Missouri mother charged in connection with the suicide of a girl who used MySpace.
Lori Drew was indicted last week for her alleged role in creating an account in the name of a fictitious boy whose cruel messages were said to have led to the suicide of 13-year-old Megan Meier. Drew is charged with conspiracy and accessing protected computers without authorization.
The novel Internet theory in the case contends Drew violated MySpace’s terms of service when she created the fictitious account, the Associated Press reports. As a result, her use of the website amounted to illegal access of protected computers, the theory contends.
The illegal-access theory gives a business contract the force of federal law, the story says. Anyone who signs up for an online service using a fake name or e-mail address could be at risk of criminal prosecution under the interpretation.
Harvard law professor John Palfrey told AP the legal theory could have unintended consequences. "An application of a general statute like this might result in chilling a great deal of online speech and other freedom,” said Palfrey, who heads a task force on Internet safety convened by MySpace.
Drew has denied that she created the account or sent the messages to the girl. ..more.. by Debra Cassens Weiss
