Bullying trial takes on new significance

The bullying trial of Jason Thomas has been dragging on for a couple of years now in Bossier District Court.  Thomas was originally charged with cyber bullying against Danielle Cox, a minor.

‘ur not important’

On January 24^th, 2011, one of Danielle’s friends had posted Danielle’s number on Facebook and asked that her friends text her and tell her not to kill herself. Rather than offering help, the state alleges that Thomas used a program called ClamTXT to send multiple messages to Danielle’s phone, each purporting to come from a different person. The messages read ‘I won’t miss u’, ‘ur not important’ and ‘just end it all’.

On January 25^th Danielle ingested an excessive amount of medication in a suicide attempt. She survived.

In February Thomas was arrested on the Cyber Bullying charge. On May 20^th, 2011, Danielle did kill herself. The charge was amended to Criminal Assistance to Suicide.

There will be a status hearing on Tuesday to see if the case is ready to go to trial. I’ll keep everyone posted on that. 

I’m not going into any detail on the most recent bully related suicides, but will note that both occurred very recently.

Two more students are victims

In light of two more suicides that are bully related, this case does take on new significance. What I’m about to say isn’t accusatory, but facts are facts. 

A bad problem exists, and it is centered around South Bossier, Elm Grove Middle School and Parkway High School.  The Parkway band can’t make overnight trips for the next two years because of an incident that happened in April. Eight band members simulated a sex act on a freshman boy against his will as the students were walking to the bus. That is co-incidental to the suicides, and not nearly as serious, but it does reflect the culture that exists where bullying seems to have some acceptance.

Part of the solution

Obviously, something has to be done. As I said, I’m not being accusatory and blaming the schools for children killing themselves; I’m not saying that the schools are the cause of the problem.

However, they certainly need to be part of the solution. Something has to be done, and it will take people uniting and forcing action.

We’ll delve into this deeper in the weeks to come. Meanwhile, to find out more, you can go to Facebook and check out these two pages:

Smiles for Danielle

South Bossier Anti-BullyingCoalition

Something has to be done, and it will take people uniting and forcing action.

Danielle

Today marks the 1st anniversary of Danielle Cox's suicide. Danielle was a student at Parkway High School and was the victim of bullying. I have posted on three separate occasions about the incident. There are more developments, and I will post about them at a later date. 

Today is a day for remembrance.

Judge hears from both sides in Danielle Cox suicide case

Judge Joe Bleich heard from both the prosecution and the defense in the Jason Thomas case today.
Thomas is facing charges of Criminal Assistance to Suicide.
Thomas had sent more than 100 messages to 15 year old Danielle Cox encouraging her to kill herself.
You can read the details of the case from these two earlier blog posts, if you are not familiar with it.
Remembering Danielle
Bullying has Consequences
Judge Bleich granted a motion to allow the defense to examine Danielle’s medical records. He did place some very strict limitations on it, however, requiring that anyone who has access to the records (staff, etc) have to sign in and out, with their full name and address.
“I will not see this young girl’s medical records bandied about” were his exact words.
He also said that if anyone violates this strict confidentiality, they would ‘wish they had never heard of me’.
Danielle suffered from Diabetes and from Depression. It seems that the defense strategy will be to show that Danielle was troubled and that she was suicidal.
It seems to me that this is two-edged sword, however, and doesn’t exonerate the defendant from his actions.
Defense attorney Elton Richey also requested a bill of particulars as to exactly what facts led the prosecution to charge Criminal Assistance to Suicide. ADA Andrew Jacobs has 20 days to answer.
The trial itself will begin in May. I will keep you posted of any new developments.
Jessica’s parents have a Facebook page, Smiles for Danielle.

• Smiles For Danielle is a group created in her memory. Our hope is through education and awareness, those who suffer from mental illness will no longer see suicide as a viable solution. Welcome to this group, we look forward to doing great things and thank you for your support.

If you are on Facebook, join the group and keep up with their efforts to help other kids and families.

Channel 12 does series on Danielle Cox

I blogged back in August and September about Danielle Cox, the 15 year old Parkway High School student who committed suicide earlier this year.
Remembering Danielle
Bullying has Consequences
Jason Patrick Thomas of Bossier City is facing charges of Criminal Assistance to Suicide.
Thomas had sent more than 100 messages to Danielle encouraging her to kill herself.
In case you missed them, KSLA did a series focusing on this case.
If you have a teenager, I would encourage you to have them watch these videos. High-Schoolers need to be reminded that their actions have consequences.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
The case will be back in court on November 22^nd for a status conference.
Defense attorney Elton Richey was granted a motion for the State to present a bill of particulars to furnish:

1. The facts the State contends supports the allegation that Jason Thomas knowingly and intentionally advised, or encouraged, D.C. to commit suicide on or about January 25, 2011.
2. The facts the State contends supports the allegation that Jason Thomas participated in an act on or about January 25^th, 2011, which caused D.C. to commit suicide.
3. The specific acts that the state intends to prove at trial on the merits that constitute any of the following elements of the offense of Criminal Assistance to Suicide:

        a. That Jason Thomas advised D.C. to commit suicide.

      b. That Jason Thomas encouraged D.C. to commit suicide.

      c. The particular acts purportedly participated in by Jason Thomas, which caused D.C. to commit suicide.

Remembering Danielle

A candlelight vigil was held last week for Danielle Cox, a Parkway student who killed herself in May.
Danielle had diabetes and suffered from depression.
Earlier this year, when she was going through a problem with the depression, she sent a text message to a friend saying that she was going to hurt herself. The friend posted her number on Facebook, asking people to encourage her.
One male Parkway student sent her about 150 messages encouraging her to do it.
Danielle’s stepdad, John Morton, said “We didn't realize the impact, at all, that this had done, she thought that so many people did not like her because of the actions of that boy”.
On May 20th, Danielle committed suicide. She was 15 years old.
There are so many lessons here. First, of course, is that there always is hope. Second, our actions do have consequences. If someone is reaching out for help, don’t treat it lightly. Finally, Facebook, Twitter and the other social media outlets are great – but they are not the place to take your problems.
Depression and bullying are a deadly combination.
That’s why John & Jessica Morton have started a Facebook page, Smiles for Danielle.

• Smiles For Danielle is a group created in her memory. Our hope is through education and awareness, those who suffer from mental illness will no longer see suicide as a viable solution. Welcome to this group, we look forward to doing great things and thank you for your support.

If you are on Facebook, join the group and keep up with their efforts to help other kids and families.
The Bossier Press Tribune had a story on Danielle last week, here is the link.


Christmas 2010
John and Jessica Morton with Danielle, Jake and Emilie



About the Video

The last photo we have of Danielle is a photo she took of herself holding a paper smile in front of her tear stained face....hence the group's name Smiles for Danielle. This video contains many of the smiles photos that were created in her memory in response to her death.