Posted 08/20/09 at 11:36:48 AM by Paul Lilly

Got a beef with a 17-year-old girl? If so, one way not to settle it is to post a fake "Casual Encounters" Craigslist ad posing as the person you're peeved with. That's the lesson a Missouri woman is learning the hard way, who now faces felony cyber bullying charges for said ad.

A little history is in order here. After MySpace harassment led to a 13-year-old to commit suicide in the "MySpace Mom" case, Missouri changed its anti-harassment law to include cyber bullying, becoming the first state to enact such legislation. Violations are normally a misdemeanor, but Missouri's legislation allows for charges to be upgraded to a felony if the victim is under 18 and the suspect is over 20, a move intended to prevent adults from bullying minors.

In this case, 40-year-old Elizabeth Thrasher got into an argument with her ex-husband's current girlfriend on MySpace. The girlfriend's 17-year-old daughter got involved in the spat, and Thrasher ultimately ended up creating a fake personal ad on Craigslist and included the girl's photo, email address, and cell phone number.

If convicted, Thrasher could face up to four years in state prison and a $5,000 fine.

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Posted 08/14/08 at 12:57:21 PM by Chris Moody

Technology has always left the laws of the land playing catch up when it comes to regulating new things. A new law under consideration in California would allow cyber bullies who use text messages or the Internet to harass their fellow students to be suspended or expelled under a bill that is close to passing the state Legislature. The bill applies to bullying through messaging, cell phones, pagers, computers or other electronic communication devices.

Almost from the very beginning the internet has had it’s own form of bullies in the shape of Trolls and other jerks that feel brave based on the sense of anonymity (real or perceived) that being online gives them. Whether these Trolls are ‘griefing’ a multiplayer games or flaming a forum it has been up to the admins of these services to police their domain which boils down to cleaning up the Troll dung and banishing them by whatever means at their disposal.

This type of behavior in recent years has begun to see overlap with the more traditional schoolyard type bullies. Advanced cell phones with photo and video capabilities and text messaging and internet access make it all too easy for embarrassing situations to become immortalized online forever. This can make life hell for these kids at an age when they are most vulnerable.

Make the jump to hear more about cyber bullying.

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