In 2008, 49 year-old Missouri resident Lori Drew was prosecuted and convicted in Los Angeles for creating a fake Myspace account where she claimed to be a 16 year-old boy named Josh Evans. Drew's goal had been to create a relationship with Megan Meier,
a 13 year-old girl who had been in conflict with Drew's daughter. After
"Josh" ended the relationship with Megan, Megan committed suicide.
Drew's conviction was for misrepresenting her identity, in violation of the MySpace terms of service. The Los Angeles US Attorney successfully claimed that this was covered by federal computer fraud legislation against "accessing a computer without authorization via interstate commerce."[22][23]
Drew appealed the verdict, saying that her use of a false identity did
not constitute unauthorized access to MySpace, based on a 1973 breach of contract dispute where a court of appeals ruled that "fraudulently induced consent is consent nonetheless."[24] On 3 July 2009, the appeal was tentatively upheld. [25]
a 13 year-old girl who had been in conflict with Drew's daughter. After
"Josh" ended the relationship with Megan, Megan committed suicide.
Drew's conviction was for misrepresenting her identity, in violation of the MySpace terms of service. The Los Angeles US Attorney successfully claimed that this was covered by federal computer fraud legislation against "accessing a computer without authorization via interstate commerce."[22][23]
Drew appealed the verdict, saying that her use of a false identity did
not constitute unauthorized access to MySpace, based on a 1973 breach of contract dispute where a court of appeals ruled that "fraudulently induced consent is consent nonetheless."[24] On 3 July 2009, the appeal was tentatively upheld. [25]
