Defendant in MySpace Suicide Fights Computer Fraud Charge

  • December 16, 2008
Lori Drew, the woman convicted of three misdemeanors in the MySpace suicide case, can't be guilty of computer fraud because gaining access to a computer under false pretenses is still "authorized access" as a matter of law, Drew's attorneys argued Monday in a new bid at clearing their client's name.

In a written motion, defense attorneys H. Dean Steward and Orin Kerr cite cases in which courts have concluded that if someone gains permission through trickery or misrepresentation, it is still considered authorization and does not constitute non-consent. Drew's defense team previously argued that U.S. District Court Judge George Wu should dismiss the charges because prosecutors failed to prove that Drew "intentionally" violated MySpace's terms of service. Steward filed that request several weeks ago after prosecutors rested their case, and Wu has yet to rule on the motion.

Drew was charged with three felony counts of unauthorized access to MySpace's servers and one count of felony conspiracy for creating a fake MySpace account for a nonexistent 16-year-old boy named "Josh Evans." The account was used to lure 13-year-old Megan Meier into an online relationship with "Josh" before rejecting her. Meier committed suicide after receiving a message from "Josh" telling her the world would be a better place without her.--Tanya Irwin

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