Florida teen commits suicide online.

[futuresoptions]

Published - Nov 21 2008 03:18PM CST | AP
By RASHA MADKOUR - Associated Press Writer
A South Florida college student killed himself by overdosing on drugs in front of a live online audience as some computer users egged him on, some debated his method, and others tried to talk him out of it.

Abraham Biggs, 19, of Pembroke Pines, died Wednesday at his home from a toxic combination of opiates and benzodiazepine, a drug used to treat insomnia and depression, said Wendy Crane, an investigator with the Broward County medical examiner's office.

Authorities say the Broward Community College student is not the first person to commit suicide with a webcam rolling.


It's unclear how many people were watching through the Web site bodybuilding.com. Someone finally notified a site moderator, who pinpointed Biggs' location and called police, but they arrived too late to save him, Crane said.

Biggs, who used the screen name "CandyJunkie" on the bodybuilding Web site, started blogging about plans to kill himself 12 hours before he was found lying dead on his bed. He posted a link from bodybuilding.com to Justin.tv, a site that allows users to broadcast live videos from their webcams.

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

But Biggs' family was infuriated that neither viewers nor the site acted sooner to save him.

"When (police) came in, the webfeed stopped. So that's 12 hours of watching," said his sister, Rosalind Biggs, who said her brother struggled with bipolar disorder. "They got hits, they got viewers, nothing happened for hours."

Rosalind Biggs described her brother as a friendly, social, outgoing person who struck up conversations with Starbucks baristas and enjoyed taking his young nieces to Chuck E. Cheese.

"It boggles the mind," she said. "We don't understand."

[futuresoptions]

Authorities could not immediately verify the authenticity of a video posted online that shows a gun-wielding officer entering a bedroom where a man is lying on a bed, facing away from the camera. The officer peers over to look at the man, then begins to examine him as the camera lens is covered. The video matches Crane's description of events.

Condolences poured in to Biggs' MySpace page, where the mostly unsmiling teen is seen posing in a series of pictures with various young women. On justin.tv, his alias was "feels_like_ecstacy."

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."


The Web site declined to release information on how many people were watching the broadcast. The entire site had 672,000 unique visitors in October.

Messages left with the bodybuilding Web site were not immediately returned Friday.

A spokesman for the Pembroke Pines police said they were investigating but declined further comment.

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

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[pwd72s]

Isn't anything private these days?

[Rick V]

I have a friend who OD'd while online. She didn't tell the person she was chatting with what was going on. She just didn't want to be alone. Fortunately the end result was very different. The authorities got there in time. It is a very sad thought that life is so bad that someone feels that is the only way out. It makes me sad to think that my friend would do something like that. She is such a bubbly person, everybody loves her.

[scottmandue]

People suck.

[slakjaw]

Yeah people suck +1000

Thats sick.

[bell]

isn't that the same site with the fugly chick who posed by the integra?

[bell]

Because it's Monday - and I think everybody needs a good laugh

[futuresoptions]

no kidding, just ***** my pants from laughing so hard.... let me go get a towel...

you might consider placing a warning next to that link....

[flashgordon13]

WHY, WHY WHY??? I need the eye bleach!! I agree a warning would be a good thing for those of us who are sober. There isn't enough booze in my house to make her look good.

[Racerbvd]

Originally Posted by flashgordon13

WHY, WHY WHY??? I need the eye bleach!! I agree a warning would be a good thing for those of us who are sober. There isn't enough booze in my house to make her look good.

Someone owes me the $6 grand I spent to get my eyes fixed

[futuresoptions]

Okay, back on topic...


Published - Nov 22 2008 05:53PM CST | AP
By SARAH LARIMER - Associated Press Writer
The father of a college student whose suicide was broadcast live over a webcam said Saturday he was appalled by the virtual audience that egged on his son and called for tougher regulation of Internet sites.

Abraham Biggs Sr. said those who watched and the Web site operators share some blame in his 19-year-old son's death.

"I think they are all equally wrong," he said. "It's a person's life that we're talking about. And as a human being, you don't watch someone in trouble and sit back and just watch."


Police found Abraham Biggs Jr. dead in his father's bed Wednesday, 12 hours after he first declared on the Web site for bodybuilders that he planned to take his own life. He took a fatal drug overdose in front of an Internet audience. Although some viewers contacted the Web site to notify police, authorities did not reach his house in time.

Biggs, who has said he was at work during the episode, said he had not known about his son's online presence.

"I think after this incident and probably other incidents that have occurred in the past, they all point to some kind of regulation is necessary," Biggs said. "I think it is wrong to have this happen for hours without any action being taken from the people in charge. Where were they all the time?"

The younger Biggs posted a link from the Web site to Justin.tv, which allows users to broadcast live with 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 users told investigators they did not take him seriously because he had threatened suicide on the site before.

Biggs Sr. said he believes the webcast was a cry for help.

"But rather than get help, he was ignored," Biggs said. "I would not want to see anything like that on the Internet and not try and get help for that young man. I think that's what the average person would do. Any normal person would do. I'm really appalled."

[futuresoptions]

Published - Nov 22 2008 05:53PM CST | AP
By SARAH LARIMER - Associated Press Writer
Pembroke Pines Police Department Sgt. Bryan Davis said no new information on the case was available Saturday.

Biggs Sr. said funeral arrangements have not yet been set for his son, who he said loved helping others.

"He was a good kid. Good kid," Biggs Sr. said. "It's a shame I wasn't there to help him. It's a big loss to me. I wish I was there to help him _ since nobody else would."


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."

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.

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.

[serge944]

What a tragedy.

I used to support weightlifting for teens, but seeing the kind of over supplementing juice monkeys that emerge, it's hard to. Gyms themselves contribute to the problem - they care about nothing more than to sell as many gym memberships as possible. I see people lifting weight like they are having a seizure and "trainers" walk right past without a second glance. If the basics aren't even taught, neither is supplement/steroid abuse.

I saw a redneck family come into a Vitamin Shoppe saying "Our son has been working out for 2 weeks now...what do we need to buy to make him bigger? I mean, not too big, but, you know, bigger..."