The sad case of a Nova Scotia teenage girl who committed suicide in shame and harassment seems to be drawing to a close. The name of the girl was in household use across Canada for at least two years until a court at the trial of a boy accused of taking her picture slapped a ban on all names. Taking her picture? She was at an out-of-control teen party, in bed with another boy, apparently with her full consent. The picture and the boy’s use of it were finally defined by the authorities as the distribution of child pornography, surely one of the most unusual applications of that law. But the girl was underage. Her girlfriends testified that they had begged her to get out of bed and leave the party but she adamantly refused. Pictures were distributed on the Internet and the teen ultimately took her own life. This morning (Monday, November 24, 2014) in Halifax the teen boy who took the picture pleaded guilty to one count of distributing child pornography Now it seems to be over, even though the girl’s parents would like to be able to have her name out in public again. It is a case that should give everyone — especially the media — pause about what’s news and what should not be news. Reporters have made much of the Internet’s role in this case but very little is said about the hourly repetition of her name with all the lurid details over many months. Wikipedia
