Teen commits suicide in front of webcam

[Pandabear]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-webcam-suicide-112108,0,4832614.story

South Florida teen commits suicide in front of webcam

12:33 PM EST, November 21, 2008

FORT LAUDERDALE - Authorities say a South Florida teen committed suicide before a live online webcam audience after blogging about his plan.

Broward County medical examiner's office investigator Wendy Crane says 19-year-old Abraham Biggs died Wednesday from a toxic combination of benzodiazepine (ben-ZOH'-die-AZ'-uh-peen), a depressant used to treat insomnia, and opiates.

Crane says some audience members were encouraging, others tried to talk him out of it, and a few were debating whether the dose he took was lethal. Someone finally notified the moderator, who traced where the Pembroke Pines teen was located and called police. Biggs was dead by the time they got there.

Crane says: "He's just seen laying on the bed at that point.":1187603408.CR.Mothe

[packy]

This breaks a heart. My condolences to his family and I hope for peace for him now.

[Roamer]

:1187603408.CR.Mothe

Besides the end of a young life, I hope this doesn't encourage other kids to do the same.

I truly think the teen years are the hardest of our lives.

My condolences to his family.

[TigressPen]

We may hear about those who were encouraging him being charged. I would applaud. How totally inhuman they were.

[gramvof14]

We may hear about those who were encouraging him being charged. I would applaud. How totally inhuman they were.
OMG how could anyone encourage him to do that, what the hell is wrong with the teenagers.I just don't understand it, I guess I never will.:groan:

[Mysticalmom]

This is so very sad! I can't even imagine what other people were thinking by encouraging him how awful for the family and his friends!

My daughter is a teen in high school and the teenage years really are tough ones! She is in a group called "To Write Love on her Arms" which is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for those struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. Last week a bunch of people from her high school in the group wrote on their arms LOVE in marker and she said it was empowering and encouraging to see that and know that they weren't alone like so many times teens feel like they are all alone with those thoughts.

[Faith]

I don't think any teen should be allowed on the computer. Computers are a huge problem in our world today.

God bless this young mans family.

[SavannahStar]

I don't think any teen should be allowed on the computer. Computers are a huge problem in our world today.

God bless this young mans family.

Whoa........I do agree that computers are a big problem in our world today, especially with teens. But I would never go so far as saying they should not be allowed on them. Faith, can you be serious?

[Trailblazer]

Fla. teen commits suicide with live Web audience

MIAMI – A college student committed suicide by taking a drug overdose in front of a live webcam as some computer users egged him on, others tried to talk him out of it, and another messaged OMG in horror when it became clear it was no joke. Some watchers contacted the Web site to notify police, but by the time officers entered Abraham Biggs' home — a scene also captured on the Internet — it was too late.

Biggs, a 19-year-old Broward College student who suffered from what his family said was bipolar disorder, or manic depression, lay dead on his bed in his father's Pembroke Pines house Wednesday afternoon, the camera still running 12 hours after Biggs announced his intentions online around 3 a.m.

It was unclear how many people watched it unfold.

Biggs was not the first person to commit suicide with a webcam rolling. But the drawn-out drama — and the reaction of those watching — was seen as an extreme example of young people's penchant for sharing intimate details about themselves over the Internet.

Biggs' family was infuriated that no one acted sooner to save him, neither the viewers nor the Web site that hosted the live video, Justin.tv. The Web site shows a video image, with a space alongside where computer users can instantly post comments.

Only when police arrived did the Web feed stop, "so that's 12 hours of watching," said the victim's sister, Rosalind Bigg. "They got hits, they got viewers, nothing happened for hours."

She added: "It didn't have to be."

An autopsy concluded Biggs died from a combination of opiates and benzodiazepine, which his family said was prescribed for his bipolar disorder.

Biggs announced his plans to kill himself over a Web site for bodybuilders, authorities said. But some users told investigators they did not take him seriously because he had threatened suicide on the site before.

Some members of his virtual audience encouraged him to do it, others tried to talk him out of it, and some discussed whether he was taking a dose big enough to kill himself, said Wendy Crane, an investigator with the Broward County medical examiner's office.

A computer user who claimed to have watched said that after swallowing some pills, Biggs went to sleep and appeared to be breathing for a few hours while others cracked jokes.

Someone notified the moderator of the bodybuilding site, who traced Biggs' location and called police, Crane said.

As police entered the room, the audience's reaction was filled with Internet shorthand: "OMFG," one wrote, meaning "Oh, my God." Others, either not knowing what they were seeing, or not caring, wrote "lol," which means "laughing out loud," and "hahahah."

An online video purportedly from Biggs' webcam shows a gun-wielding officer entering a bedroom, where a man is lying on a bed, his face turned away from the camera. The officer begins to examine him, as the camera lens is covered. Authorities could not immediately verify the authenticity of the video, though it matched their description of what occurred.

Montana Miller, an assistant professor of popular culture at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, said Biggs' very public suicide was not shocking, given the way teenagers chronicle every facet of their lives on sites like Facebook and MySpace.

"If it's not recorded or documented then it doesn't even seem worthwhile," she said. "For today's generation it might seem, `What's the point of doing it if everyone isn't going to see it?'"

She likened Biggs' death to other public ways of committing suicide, like jumping off a bridge.

Crane said she knows of a case in which a Florida man shot himself in the head in front of an online audience, though she didn't know how much viewers saw. In Britain last year, a man hanged himself while chatting online.

In a statement, Justin.tv CEO Michael Seibel said: "We regret that this has occurred and want to respect the privacy of the broadcaster and his family during this time."

The Web site would not say how many people were watching the broadcast. The site as a whole had 672,000 unique visitors in October, according to Nielsen.

Miami lawyer William Hill said there is probably nothing that could be done legally to those who watched and did not act. As for whether the Web site could be held liable, Hill said there doesn't seem to be much of a case for negligence.

"There could conceivably be some liability if they knew this was happening and they had some ability to intervene and didn't take action," said Hill, who does business litigation and has represented a number of Internet-based clients. But "I think it would be a stretch."

Condolences poured into Biggs' MySpace page, where the mostly unsmiling teen is seen posing in a series of pictures with various young women. On the bodybuilding Web site, Biggs used the screen name CandyJunkie. His Justin.tv alias was "feels_like_ecstacy."

Rosalind Bigg described her brother as an outgoing person who struck up conversations with Starbucks baristas and enjoyed taking his young nieces to Chuck E. Cheese. He was health-conscious and exercised but was not a bodybuilder, she said.

"This is very, very sudden and unexpected for us," the sister said. "It boggles the mind. We don't understand."

___

[Oceanblueeyes]

OMG how could anyone encourage him to do that, what the hell is wrong with the teenagers.I just don't understand it, I guess I never will.:groan:

Sometimes I am just left speechless by some of these teenagers. I just think it is all a bad dream and then I realize it isn't and it all seems to be more often and more bizarre.

What has happened to caring for someone who feels down and depressed? What has happened to some of these children who seems to be a body with no heart or soul?

How anyone could encourage their friend to take their own lives is just too wicked for words.

[Boscorelli]

THe teenage years are the most difficult years for EVERY ONE: Parents the teens,thier brothers/sisters,teachers neighbors.
Teenagers seek to be 'accepted' and unfortunately very often seek out the worse case role models.DRUGS ALCOHOL,SEXand other related abusive behaviors,either in school or out. The fact that he suffered from 'manic depression,is espcially important in this case.
The report says the victum was 19,an adult according to the law;and therefore it may be very legally difficult to prosecute other people.
The internet like everything else has both a positive and a negative attached with it.We make the decisions as adults on how we will use it.
It was also stated that the victum ,Biggs,either tried or threatened to commit suicide before.
Many people who tried to commit suicide and fail the first time,complete the act the next time.

Boscorelli

[gabby]

:1187603408.CR.Mothe How horrific for that family.

[Boscorelli]

Hi Gabby
I totally agree with you how sad.When a person commits suicide,they want to end their own pain and suffering;but they never consider how much pain and suffering is inflicted on members of the family,friends etc.
There is documented psychological evidence,that the person who finds the body often expierences emotional psychological guilty feelings;blameing themselves and this could go on for years.Some people never fully recover
Bill Kurtis AMERICAN JUSTICE featured a program on suicide.The victums were both teenagers and adults.

Boscorelli

[gabby]

Hi Gabby
I totally agree with you how sad.When a person commits suicide,they want to end their own pain and suffering;but they never consider how much pain and suffering is inflicted on members of the family,friends etc.
There is documented psychological evidence,that the person who finds the body often expierences emotional psychological guilty feelings;blameing themselves and this could go on for years.Some people never fully recover
Bill Kurtis AMERICAN JUSTICE featured a program on suicide.The victums were both teenagers and adults.

Boscorelli

I know. My older cousin got so depressed he committed suicide. His mom, dad, siblings and children still have difficult moments. It shocked me because he was always the outgoing type that seemed happy all of the time. No one knew he had gotten so depressed. And everyone he called that day before he hung himself and they were working or didn't get the call all felt guilty and thought they should have answered the phone or called in at work that day. Truth is he didn't leave any messages on their voice mail or answering machines that indicated he was thinking of suicide. He didn't tell his brother when he called or his mom that he was feeling that way so they both told him they would catch up with him after work. And the first year my daughter was in high school a boy committed suicide. He hung himself in his mom's closet. Even the students that didn't know him (school had just began and many didn't even know who he was) felt some form of grief and shock. They had counselors for the other students to talk to.

This particular case is eerie though that so many people watched while this child committed suicide. It was like a fascination or game with them. Not only does that worry me from their actions, but it makes me feel even sadder for the family because people watched and still their son wasn't saved. Maybe I'm feeling it too personal because last spring my cousin's ex bf beat her to death (shattered her head so bad on the asphalt that they had to use clay to rebuild her face for viewing). He done it in front of a crowd and no one prevented her death. In a split second it happened. It went from domestic violence (which they should have stepped in and prevented IMO just like in this case when the boy started mentioning it and preparing someone should have started right then to attempt to stop it JMO) My cousin left behind two small children. It's just so sad whether another person inflicts the fatal blow or if it is self inflicted. Left behind are many people that hurt. My prayers remain with this family. IMO

[gabby]

I left out a point I wanted to make in the first paragraph. I know this family probably blames themselves as well, but it's possible there was nothing they could have done to prevent it. May the Lord help them realize that and give them some peace. JMO

[TeeOne]

My heart goes out to the family and to those viewers that encouraged him to go ahead and do it. Because sooner or later they will wake up and know how wrong what they did was, then they'll have to live with it for the rest of their lives.......

[Roenick]

My heart goes out to the family... even if he felt he had none, someone cared for him. Specially now in death.


We had a guy in high school kill himself. Wow... it'll be 13 yrs in December.
At the funeral his mother did not show up. His father would not talk and his step mom had this to say "I can't believe (his name) would do this. Specially so close to the holiday and ruin it for his younger siblings and us. He was always so selfish."

They always say there are signs but sometimes they are very small. Just take each day for what it's worth and love those you know.

[TigressPen]

My heart goes out to the family... even if he felt he had none, someone cared for him. Specially now in death.


We had a guy in high school kill himself. Wow... it'll be 13 yrs in December.
At the funeral his mother did not show up. His father would not talk and his step mom had this to say "I can't believe (his name) would do this. Specially so close to the holiday and ruin it for his younger siblings and us. He was always so selfish."

They always say there are signs but sometimes they are very small. Just take each day for what it's worth and love those you know.



With such a loving family, I can understand why he'd attempt suicide. Can you imagine what he'd gone through ... So sad a story, Roenick. I wonder if after all these years they miss him, think of him with love. Instead of thinking he put a blemish on the family name.

[gabby]

My heart goes out to the family... even if he felt he had none, someone cared for him. Specially now in death.


We had a guy in high school kill himself. Wow... it'll be 13 yrs in December.
At the funeral his mother did not show up. His father would not talk and his step mom had this to say "I can't believe (his name) would do this. Specially so close to the holiday and ruin it for his younger siblings and us. He was always so selfish."

They always say there are signs but sometimes they are very small. Just take each day for what it's worth and love those you know.

:1187603408.CR.Mothe How awful! IMO

[Boscorelli]

This 19 year made a decision to end his life,in front of a webcam.Why he chose this method, we will never know;but no one is legally responsible for this tragedy but the victum.
AS I am post on this message board,I am totally responsible for the contents of what I post.I am also free to go to any website of my choice.The Internet is called the 'information highway';but it is I the adult will make the choice;of what content I wish to view,the responsibility is mine.

Boscorelli