Tricia Norman, mother of Rebecca Sedwick has said she plans on pursing charges or a civil suit against the girls, or the parent’s of the girls linked to her daughter’s suicide over cyberbullying.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr , in this case Rebecca Sedwick’s home life was questioned as part of the reason for her suicide. However, the 12 year old girl’s death also raised concerns over (lack of) cyberbullying laws .
Rebecca Sedwick committed suicide in September by jumping off a silo after being cyberbullyied by two other girls. Fourteen year old Guadalupe Shaw and 12 year old Katelyn Roman were arrested and charged with felonious stalking a month later. Vivian Vosburg, 30, mother of Guadalupe Shaw was also charged with child abuse and child neglect. Ms. Vosburg also allegedly punched two boys in an altercation in which she was shouting and calling them names. The incident was eventually posted online. Like mother like daughter I guess. One of the girls posted on her Facebook after Rebecca’s death:
“Yes IK I bullied REBECCA nd she killed her self but IDGAF.”
(IDGAF stands for I don’t give a f***). Local Sheriff Grady Judd said the online posts were what led to the arrest of the girls and they are now receiving psychological treatment. The charges against the two girls were dropped last week. Now Tricia Norman says she plans on pursuing a wrongful death civil suit, or suing the girls mother’s. On top of using those avenues in the pursuit of justice, Ms. Norman also says she plans on creating “Rebecca’s Law”, designed to impose criminal penalties for cyberbullies.
Attorney for Ms. Norman, Matt Morgan has promised the nation a “crusade” against bullying. Plans include a federal laws requiring schools to adhere to strict procedure to get a handle of bullying. He spoke briefly of the problem on a bigger level :
“Bullying has become a problem of epidemic proportions within our society. We intend to use the civil justice system to change behavior while we wait for our legislation to go through the proper channels.”
Tricia Norman lives with the pain and anger of her daughter’s very preventable death every day, knowing the girls involved are blatantly unapologetic:
“I’m very angry with the individuals I believe are responsible for my daughter’s death. I keep waiting for an apology I now know will never come.”
So what do you think of the news that Tricia Norman, Rebecca Sedwick’s Mom is planning to sue and make sweeping changes to cyberbullying laws?