Bulletin: MySpace Mom Beats Worst Charges
Categories: Trials
Just before 11 a.m. this morning Federal District Judge George Wu spoke the words that ended the weeklong MySpace Trial: "All right, let's bring the jury in."
Lori Drew (R) and her daughter Sarah Drew who was Megan Meier's best friend leaving the U.S. Federal Courthouse. Photo by Ted Soqui. Click image for MySpace Verdict slideshow.
Within moments the panel announced to the packed court that it found Lori Drew only guilty of three misdemeanors, while deadlocking on a count of felony conspiracy. Drew, 49, had been charged with falsely setting up a MySpace account to bully 13-year-old Megan Meier, whom she suspected of bad-mouthing Drew's daughter, Sarah. Drew's account created a handsome but fictitious character named Josh Evans. "Josh" toyed with Megan's affections through the account and through AOL Instant Messaging; on the evening of October 16, 2006, Megan, who had a long history of clinical depression, hanged herself after "Josh" dumped her.
Sarah Drew sat stone-still in court, a Chanel bag at her feet, while she heard the clerk announce that her mother had dodged the most serious consequences of her actions. Today Lori Drew entered the Federal Courthouse facing 20 years in prison and left as Ms. DeMeanor, a woman now looking at three years behind bars and a very real chance that the government won't pursue the conspiracy charge. Drew had also sat impassively through the reading.
After the jurors were dismissed, Drew's attorney, Dean Steward, made one more attempt to have all charges dismissed for lack of evidence -- a Rule 29 motion he'd been pressing since last Friday, only to be told repeatedly by Judge Wu that the judge needed more time to think the matter over. With the verdicts now in, Judge Wu's reply to Steward was not unexpected: "I will think about that," said Wu. "I have to digest the jurors' verdict."
Write Comment
Email to Friend
Print Article
