Myspace trial megan

Each count carries a potential sentence of five years in prison," says CBS News. From the L. Times : "Lori Drew, dressed in a sweater and looking every bit the Midwestern mom, sat expressionless at the defense table during much of the proceedings. The A. Times notes. Grills said that Lori Drew was present when they agreed to the terms of service, but neither woman read them. Grills testified that she, Drew and Drew's daughter were trying to figure out a way "to expose Megan" for rumors she'd allegedly been spreading about Sarah…She said Drew also helped formulate messages that were sent to Megan and at one point suggested that they have 'Josh' arrange a meeting with Megan at a local mall at which Sarah and her friends would 'pop out' and tease Megan.

Grills also testified that she had no idea that Megan had had emotional problems in the past, until Drew told her shortly after Megan's death, "We could have pushed her overboard because she was suicidal and depressed. When the Drew family and Grills got word that Megan had killed herself, they got off the internet and turned on the TV.

The defense clearly believed that the harder part of the prosecution was unauthorized use of a computer because the hook for the unauthorized use came from MySpace terms of use which forbid the use of a false identity.

But the terms are dense and lengthy, and, as the defense lawyer put it, "nobody reads it. To help in establishing this half of the case, prosecutors elicited testimony from Grills, the year-old employee, who testified under immunity. Grills testified that she had told Lori Drew that it was illegal to have a fake my space account and Drew had said it was OK, everybody did it. They clearly had no problem convicting Drew for unauthorized access of a computer, since that is also an element of the lesser included misdemeanors on which they agreed.

The apparently easier part of the prosecution's case, proving intentional infliction of emotional distress, is where the jury balked. They did not believe the conduct of establishing the fake account rose to the level of outrageousness required for intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Link copied. The prosecution team sought to prove four felony counts for unauthorized entry into a computer with the intent of inflicting emotional distress But jurors convicted on only three lesser misdemeanor counts for unauthorized access of a computer with the purpose of gathering information.

But the proof cut both ways. Watch Now. Local News. Weather Traffic U. Station Info. Newsmakers Our America Localish. Follow Us:. MySpace trial: Mom thought hoax was funny kabc.