Teen questioned for online Bush threats

SuzeQuze · #1 10-16-2006, 02:27 PM

From usatoday.com:

By Don Thompson, The Associated Press
SACRAMENTO — Upset by the war in Iraq, Julia Wilson vented her frustrations with President Bush last spring on her Web page on MySpace.com. She posted a picture of the president, scrawled "Kill Bush" across the top and drew a dagger stabbing his outstretched hand. She later replaced her page on the social-networking site after learning in her eighth-grade history class that such threats are a federal offense.
It was too late.

Federal authorities had found the page and placed Wilson on their checklist. They finally reached her this week in her molecular biology class.

The 14-year-old freshman was taken out of class Wednesday and questioned for about 15 minutes by two Secret Service agents. The incident has upset her parents, who said the agents should have included them when they questioned their daughter.

On Friday, the teenager said the agents' questioning led her to tears.

"I wasn't dangerous. I mean, look at what's (stenciled) on my backpack — it's a heart. I'm a very peace-loving person," said Wilson, an honor student who describes herself as politically passionate. "I'm against the war in Iraq. I'm not going to kill the president."

Her mother, Kirstie Wilson, said two agents showed up at the family's home Wednesday afternoon, questioned her and promised to return once her daughter was home from school.

After they left, Kirstie Wilson sent a text message to her daughter's cellphone, telling her to come straight home: "There are two men from the secret service that want to talk with you. Apparently you made some death threats against president bush."

"Are you serious!?!? omg. Am I in a lot of trouble?" her daughter responded.

Moments later, Kirstie Wilson received another text message from her daughter saying agents had pulled her out of class.

Julia Wilson said the agents threatened her by saying she could be sent to juvenile hall for making the threat.

"They yelled at me a lot," she said. "They were unnecessarily mean."

Spokesmen for the Secret Service in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., said they could not comment on the case.

Wilson and her parents said the agents were justified in questioning her over her MySpace.com posting. But they said they believe agents went too far by not waiting until she was out of school.

They also said the agents should have more quickly figured out they weren't dealing with a real danger. Ultimately, the agents told the teen they would delete her investigation file.

Assistant Principal Paul Belluomini said the agents gave him the impression the girl's mother knew they were planning to question her daughter at school. There is no legal requirement that parents be notified.

"This has been an ongoing problem," said Ann Brick, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union in San Francisco.

Former Govs. Pete Wilson and Gray Davis vetoed bills that would have required that parents give consent or be present when their children are questioned at school by law enforcement officers. A similar bill this year cleared the state Senate but died in the Assembly.

Julia Wilson plans to post a new MySpace.com page, this one devoted to organizing other students to protest the Iraq war.

"I decided today I think I will because it (the questioning) went too far," she said.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/20...-myspace_x.htm

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

DavidMn · #2 10-16-2006, 02:30 PM

Suze, hanks for doing this. When I frst saw this I shook my head and laughed. I was like "Thank god they can go after a 14 year old girl but god forbid get UBL...

DrummerDeanna · #3 10-16-2006, 02:35 PM

Boy I surely do feel safer now

DavidMn · #4 10-16-2006, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrummerDeanna

Boy I surely do feel safer now

Hey I have an idea! Let's let go of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind behind 9/11 to make room for this "Terrorist."

sara1998 · #5 10-16-2006, 02:44 PM

I would be madder than hell if it were my daughter being questioned without contacting me first. That's a crock.

strandinthewind · #6 10-16-2006, 03:07 PM

She touts herself as a peace loving person and she puts that graphic on her web space - sounds inconsistent to me.

Having said that it was a total waste of time to investigate her this fully.

DavidMn · #7 10-16-2006, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

She touts herself as a peace loving person and she puts that graphic on her web space - sounds inconsistent to me.

Having said that it was a total waste of time to investigate her this fully.

Here's the thing I look at. Now, you could argue that she shouldve known better by age 14 that it was innappropriate to post somthing like that. On the other hand she removed it as soon as she found out it was illegeal.

**mylittledemon** · #8 10-16-2006, 03:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

She touts herself as a peace loving person and she puts that graphic on her web space - sounds inconsistent to me.

Having said that it was a total waste of time to investigate her this fully.

Yep. Exactly.

DrummerDeanna · #9 10-16-2006, 03:18 PM

Well this happened when she was 12 or 13 - the posting I mean. The main issue to me is why a child this young is allowed access to MySpace - and apparent UNSUPERVISED Internet access.

Also - she's a child...of course she's inconsistent!

**mylittledemon** · #10 10-16-2006, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrummerDeanna

Well this happened when she was 12 or 13 - the posting I mean. The main issue to me is why a child this young is allowed access to MySpace - and apparent UNSUPERVISED Internet access.

Also - she's a child...of course she's inconsistent!

sounds like she's garnered her ideas from her parents, the kids at school, and the limiting media, and thought a "Kill Bush" logo on her website was cool. And yer right, she's young...and stupid. Generally, nobody at 13 years of age knows what's going on.

strandinthewind · #11 10-16-2006, 03:24 PM

^^^

Because most parents I know (certainly not all though) do not rear their children. They depend on the schools and state to do most of the work.

A good example of this is religion. If religion were taught in the home, there would be no "need" for a public school to teach it

On edit - I realize it is tough to be a parent and my commentary was not meant to include all parents as I know many who are great parents.