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Fox
Joined: 04 Mar 2009
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 Posted: Mon Jul 08, 2013 4:17 pm Post subject: Teen Risks Jail Over Facebook Message |
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When A Teen's 'Sarcastic' Facebook Message Goes Terribly Wrong.
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On February 14, just two months after the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting, an 18-year-old in Texas named Justin Carter was arrested.
Carter, an avid gamer, got into a spat with a fellow League of Legends player on Facebook. After being provoked and told he was "messed up in the head," Carter fired back with a startling comment:
I think Ima shoot up a kindergarten / And watch the blood of the innocent rain down/ And eat the beating heart of one of them.
Carter's father says the next messages Carter wrote included "lol" and "jk" to imply he was kidding.
"It's incredibly inappropriate when you take it out of context for sure," Jack Carter, Justin's father, tells NPR. "It was a sarcastic remark in response to an insult."
A woman in Canada was alarmed by Carter's questionable comment and notified authorities. Carter's home was then searched (although no weapons were found) and his computer was taken. The teen spent his 19th birthday in jail; this is the first time he's been incarcerated.
A jury in Texas' Comal County charged the teenager with making a terroristic threat in April, which is considered a third-degree felony. That means Carter could spend ten years in jail for the Facebook comment. The judge also gave him an unusually high bond, $500,000, which his family can't afford to pay.
Carter's trial is beginning this month but in the meantime, the teen's father says his son has fallen into a deep depression.
"He's very depressed, he's very scared," Jack Carter said, telling CNN that his son feels like he'll never leave prison. "He's pretty much lost all hope."
And in an interview with NPR, Jack Carter painted a more gruesome picture of his son's experience in jail. He says his son has had "concussions, black eyes" and "moved four times for his own protection." He also says his son is nude in solitary confinement because of his depression.
Carter's mother Jennifer posted the situation on Change.org and acquired nearly 100,000 signatures in support of her son's release. In addition, the Carter family has found a pro-bono lawyer to take on the case.
The trial will come down to this:
In a social media world where younger generations are learning to speak now and think later, how far does freedom of speech really go?
While Carter's father understands why authorities had to investigate his son, he doesn't feel an impulsive comment on Facebook should be this detrimental.
"He says he's really sorry. He just totally got caught up in the moment of the argument and didn't really think about the implications," Jack Carter tells NPR. "I miss my son. He's my friend. And I just want him out. Nobody's life should be ruined because of a sarcastic comment." |
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Captain Corea
Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Tue Jul 09, 2013 10:29 pm Post subject: |
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| I'm of a mixed mind on this - I think people should be held accountable for their words - online or not. But I also think that context is relevant. Two guys playing basketball and one says to the other "I'm gonna beat your momma like your daddy should have" should not really be taken in the same light as someone phoning in a bomb threat to a school. |
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le-paul
Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Location: dans la chambre
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| Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 12:01 am Post subject: |
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what a shame, he wont be able to teach in korea now 
Anyway, i think this day and age, a part of a child's education should be teaching them about the implications of guarding their words and actions. There are eyes and ears everywhere and people have become very adept at appointing blame and settling disputes with the help of outside agencies.
I heard some doorman say " its political madness gone maad! you cant even hit anyone anymore without them calling the police!"
And you cant say anything either. |
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Kuros
Joined: 27 Apr 2004
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| Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 2:17 pm Post subject: |
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Comal Country Criminal District Attorney Jennifer Tharp should be terminated, voted out of office, whatever it takes.
The fact that no specific kindergarten was named, and the 'jk' and 'lol' appending the comments, shows that this Jennifer Tharp has the very worst instincts when it comes to the exercise of prosecutorial discretion. |
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KimchiNinja
Joined: 01 May 2012
Location: Gangnam
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| Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 9:06 pm Post subject: |
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USA = police state
"...and eat the beating heart of one of them"
^ Hehe, that's called joking around guys. Now he's going to become a real terrorist. |
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