Family Outraged Over Teen's Online Suicide

Says Viewers Of Live Webcam Overdose Should Have Acted More Quickly To Save Him

(AP)  The family of a U.S. college student who killed himself live on the Internet says they are horrified his life ended before a virtual audience, and infuriated that viewers of the live webcam or operators of the Web site that hosted it didn't act sooner to save him.

Only after police arrived to find Abraham Biggs dead in his father's bed did the Web feed stop Wednesday - 12 hours after the 19-year-old Broward College student first declared on a Web site that he hated himself and planned to die.

"It didn't have to be," said the victim's sister, Rosalind Bigg. "They got hits, they got viewers, nothing happened for hours."

Biggs announced his plans to kill himself over a Web site for bodybuilders, authorities said. He posted a link from there to Justin.tv, a site that allows users to broadcast live videos from their webcams.

A computer user who claimed to have watched said that after swallowing some pills, Biggs went to sleep and appeared to be breathing for a few hours while others cracked jokes.

Some members of his virtual audience encouraged him to do it, others tried to talk him out of it, and some discussed whether he was taking a dose big enough to kill himself, said Wendy Crane, an investigator with the Broward County medical examiner's office.

Some users told investigators they did not take him seriously because he had threatened suicide on the site before.

Eventually, someone notified the moderator of the bodybuilding site, who traced Biggs' location and called police, Crane said. The drama unfolded live on Justin.tv, which allows viewers to post comments alongside the video images.

As police entered the room, the audience's reaction was filled with Internet shorthand: "OMFG," one wrote, meaning "Oh, my God." Others, either not knowing what they were seeing, or not caring, wrote "lol," which means "laughing out loud," and "hahahah."

His father, Abraham Biggs Sr., told The Miami Herald he didn't want to watch the video.

"We were very good friends," he said. "It's wrong that it was allowed to happen."

An autopsy concluded Biggs died from a combination of opiates and benzodiazepine, which his family said was prescribed for his bipolar disorder.

"Abe, i still wish this was all a joke," a friend wrote on the teenager's MySpace page, on which he described himself as a goodhearted guy who would always be available for his pals, no matter what time of day.

In a statement, Justin.tv CEO Michael Seibel said: "We regret that this has occurred and want to respect the privacy of the broadcaster and his family during this time."

It is unclear how many people watched it happen. The Web site would not say how many people were watching the broadcast. The site as a whole had 672,000 unique visitors in October, according to Nielsen.

Biggs was not the first person to commit suicide with a webcam rolling. But the drawn-out drama - and the reaction of those watching - was seen as an extreme example of young people's penchant for sharing intimate details about themselves over the Internet.

Montana Miller, an assistant professor of popular culture at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, said Biggs' very public suicide was not shocking, given the way teenagers chronicle every facet of their lives on sites like Facebook and MySpace.

"If it's not recorded or documented then it doesn't even seem worthwhile," she said. "For today's generation it might seem, `What's the point of doing it if everyone isn't going to see it?"'

She likened Biggs' death to other public ways of committing suicide, like jumping off a bridge.

Crane said she knows of a case in which a Florida man shot himself in the head in front of an online audience, though she didn't know how much viewers saw. In Britain last year, a man hanged himself while chatting online.

Miami lawyer William Hill said there is probably nothing that could be done legally to those who watched and did not act. As for whether the Web site could be held liable, Hill said there doesn't seem to be much of a case for negligence.

"There could conceivably be some liability if they knew this was happening and they had some ability to intervene and didn't take action," said Hill, who does business litigation and has represented a number of Internet-based clients. But "I think it would be a stretch."

Condolences poured into Biggs' MySpace page, where the mostly unsmiling teen is seen posing in a series of pictures with various young women. On the bodybuilding Web site, Biggs used the screen name CandyJunkie. His Justin.tv alias was "feels-like-ecstacy."

Bigg described her brother as an outgoing person who struck up conversations with coffee shop workers and enjoyed taking his young nieces to a pizza parlor. He was health-conscious and exercised, but was not a bodybuilder, she said.

"This is very, very sudden and unexpected for us," the sister said. "It boggles the mind. We don't understand."

[ann3332]

That is sad and very heart breaking for the family. I dont understand how can any one watch that and not do anything about it. and for people to make stupid remark about the young man. He probally had problem that he couldnt deal with. To call him loser its very heartless.

[dbstevens]

kid was a loser
Posted by PCreversed
-------------

The kid was suffering, reaching out in some way. Who''s the loser here, PCreversed? Seems to me that, with this attitude, you''re the sort of person who makes suffering people feel worse than they already do. In my book, your sort of expressed hatred is very sad. I know that all you want when you post stupidity like this is some attention, so you have it. If disgust satisfies you, then you can bask in it.

My heart goes out to this kid. Like most of those who announce their plans for suicide, they''re only hoping that SOMEONE will care enough to intervene. Nobody did, and I''m ashamed and sickened by the people who feel that this was entertainment.

PCreversed, although your comment is sickening, I hope you NEVER feel the depth of despair that puts you in the position of wanting to take your own life. And if you ever do, I hope that someone cares enough, despite your hatefulness, to intervene and try to make things better for you. Even YOU deserve that.

[thealtamiranos]

This is so very sad. It''s obvious he had a mental issue but what about the site users who watched the entire scene unfold.

[blackyowe]

Our society is very sick indeed!

[lmartink]

We have seen dysfunctional aspects of the internet for years. Unfortunately, there will probably be other such pleas for help going out online to a largely uncaring world. Especially since this young man led the way, others will follow.

[deathofusa]

Wow. Sad. Sad for everyone.

One has to consider that there are sometimes no way to prevent suicide...I have seen the results before. A lot of times it is brain chemical imbalances and all the talking to the afflicted person will not help them get out of their overwhelming emotional rut. You can even tell the person that it is their brain chemical imbalances to no avail. Even when I have had episodes of depression I can''t reason my way out of it. Hopefully his family and friends can live with some peace.

[ghs4u]

The family claims it was sudden, the computer viewers said he threatened that before. The family is negligent for ignoring their own flesh and blood, not caring enough to pay attention to him. They obviously knew about issues since he was on medication for bipolar disorder. I do not think I would believe it to be real if I had seen it. Just seeing someone laying there would bore me, in which I would go to another site, not watch for hours to see if the guy would get up or die. People always want to blame someone else. They should look to themselves first for not being there for him and then learn to forgive themselves and know that it might not have been preventable at some point, that a person determined will act.

[skeetchamp]

Here comes the family, blaming the whole thing on the website. This is a very unfortunate thing. I''m sure the family will sue the internet company and collect money, but that%u2019s not right. Sadly, he murdered himself and broadcast the tragedy. The company%u2019s involvement was only that he used their service to broadcast his own actions. If they had no knowledge or control, they shouldn%u2019t be blamed. Americans sometimes look away from the source for someone to blame, when they should at the big picture. The father himself stated that he lived in the house with his son and didn''t know anything was wrong. If he was that close and didn''t know why is he laying blame on the internet company? Depression is a terrible thing and those closest to the suicidal person often choose to stay in denial of the most obvious signs, usually out of misguided feelings of guilt and shame. Depressed people often are ashamed to ask for help, or don''t know how. As for those who "encouraged" him to kill himself, there''s no way a sane person like me could imagine what''s inside their heads, but perhaps their names and contact information should be posted on the internet so we could all send them emails, phone calls and snail mail until they understand how many people in this world are disgusted by their actions. Maybe not.

[confeddunces]

"When you read the comments from the common hate filled posters on the CBS news forums this story is no surprise. - brianwwb."

I second this notion. And I recommend those commentators who go beyond the call of cruelty in their statements about this tragedy, to ask yourself: "Do I really feel?"

[nothappyatall]

"Here comes the family, blaming the whole thing on the website. This is a very unfortunate thing. I''''m sure the family will sue the internet company a"

Yeah, another LOSER decides to take pills and suddenly it''s the PLANET"S fault for not finding him in time!
Gezus, this is lame, like how would anyone who views anonymously posted webcams on some site going to know WHO and WHERE that person''s CITY is let alone where they live??!! Even if there''s an address in a profile or name there''s NO guarantee it''s even real, too many idiots play games and fake chit, so he took some "pills" and lays down on bed, how does anyone know they weren''t M&M''s???
WHat''s more, who gives a chit either? I mean, he hated himself and wanted to die- so adios amigo we got plenty of people who DO want to live and many who do and can''t- cancer for example.

[longtree-2009]

there is no law that says anyone has to do anything if someone is going to kill themselves. besides, there is no way to tell online if someone is putting on an act or it is indeed reality. if there is a law that requires anyone to do anything, it should be common knowledge. the one to blame for his death is the one that killed himself. next in line, might be his family and friends if they knew the man to be suicidal. but the general public, online or not, does not share in any blame or responsibility. if anyone wants to kill themselves, just do it and keep it a private affair. try not to leave a mess for someone else to clean up. your life, your choice.

[marcie253]

Wow, I think by a lot of the commentson here it shows how insensitive people are now. Mental Health is a medical condition by the way. Having bipolar is a medical condition. It can be deadly like cancer just in a different way. For people to even be watching that and making comments and saying do it. Shows how kind we are to our neighbors our fellow human beings. I predict that this economy and loss of jobs that goes with it we may have a much higher suicidal rate. To all of you are like oh well he was going to kill himself anyway. Would you feel that way if it was your son. Your baby boy you raised. Would you feel that way if it was your father, your brother your best friend? Wake up jerks! You are partially responsible for just not giving a shhh...it.

[pcreversed]

Maybe better parenting could have saved us from having to hear about how they feel about this. I think it is pathetic that they are out-raged over this. They did a poor job of parenting and now they are out-raged at this. I am out-raged on the fact that their loser kid did it on-line. I don''t fault you-tube, they had no idea what that freak was up to. He, and he alone was the only one who had control over this and you-tube should sue the parenets for their un-involvement in this. What a bunch of losers. I can see why he killed himself, having to deal with that kind of parent most have been difficult, to say the least

[shanev137]

It''s not surprising that so many sick people lined up online to watch this.

[lbh12]

I think it''s very sad that the young man chose to commit suicide, but that is the ultimate personal decision. I am sorry for his family for the pain it must cause. As far as the internet angle goes, it shows how badly the person must have wanted attention and how indiscriminately people will watch anything at all. It seems to me that this is the high tech version of watchers on the ground yelling "Jump!" to the guy on the ledge. Crude, insensitive and probably normal for a lot of people who don''t have much in the way of decency. So it''s not the fault of the watchers that they didn''t intervene; perhaps some even thought it would have been intrusive to meddle. Not everyone who commits suicide is mentally ill, and it is just a very controversial situation because at first blush it seems so atrocious. But it is also a free country. The question that bothers me more is why anyone would want to watch... The people who did should not be legally liable, but they certainly should reconsider what kind of people they are.

[cbsblogger]

On one hand we have those who run the entertainment industry and internet who are much more interested in "hits" and dollars than credibly helping society or saving lives.

On the other hand we have viwers who put their entertainment and American Idol like stuff at a higher priority than being productive accountable members of a responsible society.

This doesn''t surprise me as we have a culture where celebrity usurps every thing else.

[f091964]

the idiot killed himself. what is his white bread family gonna do now? Sue everyone with internet access? If he was gonna kill himself he was gonna do it no matter what. Suicide is one of the most selfish acts a human could commit. It is also an unforgivable sin.

[liselle3]

The internet may very well be anonymous, and people will say and write things that they normally would not do or say if they were known or could be seen. But what people need to remember that while you are anonymous, there is someone always watching you - God. To stand back and watch another human being take his own life, whether they thought it was a hoax or not, is very sad. Do people forget how they''d like to be treated, or like their loved ones to be treated? Truly sad. I think if we all remember that God is watching us, it would help us to control our impulses to be cruel.

[barbaraf4]

We no longer know how to interact, face-to-face, on a personal level. Now we have cell phones, texting, blogging and any other activity that allows us to be detatched observers. We no longer live our lives. We simply watch them unfold.

[liselle3]

markjessup1

Watch the video of the family''s response to this. The family is heartbroken, perhaps this will give you a dose of humanity.

[shanev137]

Posted by liselle3 at 10:40 PM : Nov 22, 2008


liselle3....you really have to think about the level of dementedness in people who would get off on watching something like this happen. These sick people don''t have souls, or a conscience, and they certainly don''t believe in any type of church God. They could just as easily get off on watching someone kill themselves in person as they could over the internet.

[f091964]

the family is now feeling guilty about how they raised this loser

[grammawhamma]

When you read the comments from the common hate filled posters on the CBS news forums this story is no surprise.

Posted by brianwwb at 01:19 PM : Nov 22, 2008

My thoughts exactly.

[nothappyatall]

there is someone always watching you - ***. To stand back and watch another human being take his own life, whether they thought it was a hoax or not, is very sad.
liselle3

Yawn, well your ''god'' is the one who knew this was going to happen in advance and HE stood by and LET IT happen anyway, so dont blame his audience- US for watching his mistakes take form!

[pirmin3]

This loser improved the gene pool.

[bhrater-2009]

Alas there have been a number of hoaxes, and it is a sad state that because of the scale of weird video''s on the net that people could think it wasn''t real.
It''s not the internets fault that this guy took his own life. It was someone watching that did call it in. I wonder with this kid so upset and suicidal, where was the family during this twelve hours he was alone with medication. They could have been a little more switched on to his condition; rather than blaming the web site and others.
It''s a sad case, but be careful where you lay blame.

[rwsmith29456]

Why would these viewers call for help? They WANTED to see someone die and were entertained by the spectacle. Putting a stop to it would have spoiled all the fun.

[trishab56]

"As someone who attempted suicide many times,..."
Posted by Rick_Phlaire at 06:24 AM

Many times?? And you still can''''t get it right?? Talk about a waste of DNA.
-----------------------------------------------
Posted by pirmin3 at 07:17 AM : Nov 23, 2008

-Rick_Phlaire, I guess you needed psychological support and some medical attention! How did you manage that?

[earache4]

natural selection....

[rixmix98]

Many times?? And you still can''''t get it right?? Talk about a waste of DNA.

Posted by pirmin3 at 07:17 AM : Nov 23, 2008



Pirim3 you are a moron. I really really wonder what kind of low life could possibly make a comment like yours.

[czmdm]

Maybe if the family had paid a little more attention to this fellow his death could have been avoided. People who commit suicide give off signals for a long time prior to doing so. But hey....it''s the USA, the family wants to blame someone and it can''t be themselves.

[pcreversed]

Where was the family while this was all going on. they want everyone else to do what is their responsibility and then blame everyone else when those things are not taken care of. Another example what someone pointing the finger at people who are not responsible to do their jobs. I call BS on the family and point the finger back at them. And no, I did not watch the video and have no intention of viewing it in the future. Their kid was a loser and so are they

[runningralph]

It is sad when one so young commits suicide. Teenagers are very emotional and their feelings are easily hurt. Maybe the family or the people online should have done something but in the end suicide is self inflicted. No blame to lay on anyone.

[ericv2644]

It is a shame that some many people watched this young man kill himself. I wish that I had seen it before his death i would have call ed police immediately. People are sick and self centered.

[vcofreason]

Although I am saddened to hear of this young man''s demise, I must admit that sadly, there is nothing anyone could have done. Even if every person pleased and tried to find out who he was and were successful, there is no guarantee that he wouldn''t have done it the next day. Yes, I know that his family or the authorities maybe could have gotten him help but these are all really far fetched outcomes.

There also was a HUGE likelihood that the young man was a prankster and the fact that most people don''t want to get involved and look like a fool. Some people jump off a bridge, some jump off a building to sensationalize their demise, this young man just chose another modern forum in which to do himself in. Sad, but a reality.

[liselle3]

newster1
Not going to get into a "God" discussion with you... but take God out of it, and call it whatever you will... Karma - whatever. Do you honestly think it''s kind, humane, respectful of your fellow man/woman to behave in a cruel and disrespectful manner? I honestly think that people shouldn''t post comments that they aren''t willing to say directly to other people - or perhaps the family that is grieving this young man. Would you be willing to say directly to his dad that his son was a waste of DNA for instance?

[cutetinia]

All suicides go to heaven. I promise.

[ofbyfor3]

Even if had been a prank, what is the hurt in saying ''don''t do it''?

Certainly much less than those who were egging him on. I think they should be charged with complicicity. They DO have a responsibility to bear.

[ofbyfor3]

No one should have sat there and laughed--that''s just sick!!!!!!!!!

[shanev137]

All suicides go to heaven. I promise.

Posted by cutetinia at 01:57 PM : Nov 23, 2008


Show me heaven, hell, and your God right now, this minute.

[slim1h2o]

Show me heaven, hell, and your God right now, this minute.

Posted by shanev137 at 03:19 PM : Nov 23, 2008

Heaven = Hot Fudge Sundae

Hell = life on Earth...

God = Figment of somebodies imagination..

Or as Carlin has put it,,,"The Big Guy in the Sky"

[confeddunces]

To those who have posted alarmingly cruel and sadistic comments about the victim and his family, have you ever supposed that you might be in denial about your own issues, like depression? I can''t image someone making these comments with a clean bill of health. Stop and think about things.

[slim1h2o]

I can''''t image someone making these comments with a clean bill of health. Stop and think about things.

Posted by ConfedDunces at 03:55 PM : Nov 23, 2008

Probably indicative as the same group who watched, and egged on the kid that commited suicide.

Compassion is dead in America...

[slim1h2o]

Posted by forever1973 at 04:38 PM : Nov 23, 2008

Where''s that poem from?

And so true too..

[forever1973]

Posted by slim1h2o at 04:45 PM : Nov 23, 2008

It is the last song from Pink Floyd''s "The Wall".

[slim1h2o]

Posted by forever1973 at 04:49 PM : Nov 23, 2008

LOL,,Yup...I remember now, vaguely.

The name Waters thru me off a bit though.It shouldn''t have, but it did...

[forever1973]

P.F. were an incredible band.

[slim1h2o]

They were much more than a "band"

They were Rock Opra at it''s finest. With the writings of Roger Waters, and the music coming from David Gilmore.

One of the best writing and music teams since Simon and Garfunkle..

[forever1973]

Posted by slim1h2o at 05:05 PM : Nov 23, 2008

Well, yes, I would agree that they were more than "just a band".