• January 2, 2009

A U.S. attorney in Los Angeles has dropped a felony conspiracy charge against Lori Drew, who was found guilty last month in the MySpace suicide case.

The motion filed Wednesday dismisses the conspiracy charge on which a federal jury could not reach a verdict. That jury found Drew guilty of three misdemeanors for accessing a computer without authorization. The jury rejected similar felony charges that claimed she did it to cause emotional distress to Megan Meier, a teenager who later committed suicide.

Drew faces up to three years in prison and a $300,000 fine, but under federal guidelines is more likely to get probation. A sentencing date has not been set. U.S. District Judge George Wu may rule on a defense motion to dismiss all charges against Drew at a Jan. 8 hearing in Los Angeles. The judge has the authority to reject the jury's verdict.--Tanya Irwin