Readers Comment About Florida Teen’s Brutal Beating For YouTube
April 12, 2008
Orlando (dbTechno) - The story of the six teenage girls who brutally attacked 16-year old Victoria Lindsay continues to pick up steam. The six teenage girls, and their two male look-outs will all be charged as adults and appeared for the first time in court on Friday. Our readers have been very vocal in regards to their thoughts on the case.
To recap the story one more time, on March 30, six teenage girls from Florida carried out a brutal attack on 16-year old Victoria Lindsay. The motivation was apparently due to heat between the girls, which started on MySpace. They also had two teen males act as their look-outs.
They video-taped the attack with the intent to put the video up on YouTube.
Some of the video was released by authorities, but was edited. Still, the video that was shown was extremely violent, as the girls repeatedly threw blows to the head of Lindsay. They also slammed her head into a wall, knocking her out completely.
According to the affidavit, following the beating the attackers put Lindsay in a car belonging to one of the attacker’s grandmothers, and then drove her around, dumping her at an intersection.
Here are some reader comments from our loyal dbTechno audience…
Maura: “Wow. Those girls really need to get over them selves. VIOLENCE IS NOT THE ANSWER!!”
Derek: “I want to see the video, the people have a right to put whatever they want on the internet. YouTube and Myspace also have their right to block such items but if they start to block content more frequently then there will be other sites to rise and take their place.”
Will: “They should send the six teens to jail until they are 21, and the one who is 17 should be going to prison. Personally I would just beat the crap out of all six so that they know how much it hurts.”
“The parents of all six dumb kids should also be send to jail and especially the owner of the house where this happened. This is why nobody trust anyone in this country, at least in Iraq I knew who my enemy was.”
Lou: “Have you noticed whenever a teen gets arrested, myspace is always somehow involved in one way or another? The powers that be at myspace should really look into this and make some major restrictions. It seems that anyone could post up anything without any evaluation. As for the 8 teens…I heard they showed no remorse at all, and even cracking jokes, maybe being tried and convicted as adults would let them see the seriousness of all this.”
Candice: “I don’t know what those girls where trying to prove because all it proved is that they were very weak not to mention stupid. All six of them had to gang up on one girl (woooooo they’re really tough). I feel bad for the girl and the mother. There should definitely be harsh punishment for all of them. The one video taping and the ones involved in the actually fight. They all played a role. This was not spur of the moment, this was planned! Someone has to be made an example of the violent fights that seem to be happening everywhere because it’s not a joke, especially when god forbid it ends up in death. Let’s not wait for that and say what we should of done…………………….Do something NOW!”
Jacqueline: “I’m a mom and it tares my heart out to see that things like this happen. I can’t tell you how badly I feel for Lindsay and her parents, I would be devastated if this would happen to my daughter. I really hope that all the teenagers involved will get the punishment they deserve and they do deserve punishment, all should go to jail. They ruined Lindsay’s life for ever, she will suffer from this for the rest of her life. One thing I hope for those heartless teenagers, I hope that this will never happen to their daughter when they become a mother or dad.”
“The fact that these teenagers did this so they could get the video on those websites tells you enough, those websites should watch every single video put on their website and take violent videos of the site and report these to the police so they can go after the ones who put it on there. Impossible? If you care I don’t think so and if they can’t do it…then get them of the net.
My husband has also been in Iraq, is this what they fight for? For freedom so the American people can kill each other?”
Zerobomb: “Apparently the parents have blamed the internet, claiming it fosters this sort of behavior. The internet, however, is quite confidant that it is in fact the parents’ fault. Had the parents instilled such virtues as temperance and charity the kids would not have even considered such cruelty. Had the parents provided a loving family environment the kids would not have turned to the internet for approval. Had the parents taught the kids to make worthwhile friends, the aggressors and the victim would not have even associated with each other.”
“There is no doubt the kids deserve harsh punishment, but the parents should also be reprimanded.”
Jennifer: “It really makes me sick. As much as I would like to say they will pay, we all know how the system works. I’ve known someone to pass away after being brutally beaten by several gang members (because of the color of his hat). Guess what, 2 of 5 members were jailed, one of them served 3 months, the other 2 years. My friend lost his life forever…..now they continue to live their life. What kind of justice is that. I pray for that girl the system will come through and all 8 of them will get what they deserve. They deserve to spend their life behind bars being beaten every day.”
Victoria: “I have a teenage daughter. She has shown me several videos on teen beatings. It is on YouTube the most. I am not impressed with the behavior of our teens today. Any teen who would brutally beat another should be locked up and be analyzed for mental problems. Be made to go to anger management and serve community service until they are 21. Maybe then they will realize that there are bigger and better things to be concerned with.
That is the problem with our children today. They are all about ME!!!”
Shawn: “We may be humans, but we are still animals with natural instincts, some of which we are probably still trying to evolve out of. Here in lies the problem with modern society. While the size of our brains and our intellectual capacity may distinguish us physically from other animals, it is our ability to strive to improve ourselves, and our surroundings, and to seek out our divinity that truly make us human. Love and Compassion are part of our nature, but behaviors like this are purely animalistic, and totally a step in the wrong evolutionary direction.”
Ramona: “The web sites are not the problem. its the gross behavior of those six girls. i myself am 16, and came across this story by word of mouth. the Immoral,evil, rank, and sinful acts by these Juvenile unintelligent witches is one of the most awful things i have ever seen. the shear fact that they truly believe that they are not at fault both angers me and scares me. This has nothing to do with Myspace (which i do not have) or YouTube. YouTube for example has guild lines that must be followed and this sickening video has been taken down. the problem lies with these 8 kids. their own dullness lead them to this and that is the only reason. parents are looking out for their children and the internet has been a target for a lot of issues but this is not one of them. to the parents of these kids and to these kids themselves you are to blame for what happen of March 30 to Victoria Lindsay and you all should pay for it like she is right now in the hospital bed.”
It is clear that this story has garnered an incredible amount of national attention, and for good reason. This is quite a story which is only going to evolve more and more.
The charges handed down to the teens include the following. 17-year old Mercades Nichols, 17-year old Britney Mayes, and 17-year old Brittini Hardcastle are all being charged with felonious battery, as well as kidnapping and false imprisonment.
16-year old Cara Murphy, 15-year old Kayla Hassell, 14-year old April Cooper, 17-year old Zachary Ashley, and 18-year old Stephen Schumaker face charges of felonious battery as well as false imprisonment.
We will have to wait and see how this goes, and just how much MySpace and YouTube is put under the spotlight due to their link to this story.
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26 Responses to “Readers Comment About Florida Teen’s Brutal Beating For YouTube”
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I HAVE A 16 YEAR OLD. THANK GOD WE TAUGHT OUR SON TO BE A LEADER NOT A FOLLOWER. WHAT KIND OF PERSON COULD DO THIS TO ANOTHER?
IF THEY DO THIS AS KIDS, WHAT THE HECK ARE THEY GOING TO DO AS ADULTS? WOW, THEY PLANNED THIS AND COULD HAVE KILLED THIS GIRL. I THINK THEY SHOULD GET ATTEMPED MURDER. WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO DO TO THE NEXT PERSON, YES I DO BELEIVE THEY WILL DO THIS AGAIN. SURE HOPE LINDSEY PARENTS BRING A CIVIL SUIT AGAINST ALL THESE KIDS AND THIER PARENTS. THANK GOD FOR THE GRANDMOTHER THAT TURNED OVER THE TAPE. AT LEAST SHE HAS MORALS. I THINK THESE KIDS DESERVE AT LEAST 2 YEARS JAIL TIME AND PUT ON THIER PERMENENT RECORDS. BUT WILL THEY GET IT????? HMMMM WILL SEE
There are three things that bother me other than the FACT that someone was severely beaten; First off, I’ve read maybe five times already that the victim supposely had a response to those who performed (they were in front of a camera) this act. My immediate thought was someone else had (has) access to her online account if this really did happen. I can not phantom anyone who just endured this punishment would even be remotely concerned about a written rebuttal to those actions.
Second thing is when the parents defend their child by saying the fight was one on one. Sure there may have been only ONE individual striking here at any given moment but the next punch was airborne from the next individual long before any recovery was possible. My take is this; the “pack” didn’t want to expose an opportunity of possibly striking each other during the barrage of punches.
The last thing that bothers me is the controls of internet access. Personally I don’t think anyone in this “pack” saved up their money, purchased their own computer, and then signed up for an internet provider. I think Mom and/or Dad were involved in all three. No parental controls seemed to be in place. Sure the interenet sites need to either screen all videos received so certain ones can go to a site requiring verification of age. Some will laugh at this but then again, the parents are the ones supposedly raising the child so there should be little to NO chance of their child ever getting into an ADULT SITE. My take on this? If you’re in an area that requires an adult age, no matter what your age you will be considered an adult. If not and something goes terribly wrong, well, you will find out what jail is all about. Let the internet sites monitor and restrict access to those under age, and hold them liable too.
The actions of the “pack” involved in this incident was wrong. People have wished everything from the same beating or worse to a “time out.” The only thing you have to do to conclude any punishment is ask yourself, “What if it were my daughter/child?” Sadly though you need to think this as the parent of the victim and parent of the one of the “pack.”
As for Victoria, she needs to understand most of the WORLD is behind her hoping for a safe and sound recovery. She has power now and lots of it. If used in the correct ways, I will assure you she will save someone’s life. And God only knows how many heros we need here on Earth.
“Ray”
I Think This An Absolute Disgrace. These Wicked Spoiled Egotistical Teenagers Deserve The Highest Punishment. Lets See How Cool And Hot They Are Now In Prison Attire With NO INTERNET ACCESS!
let me just say as the big brother the kids invloved in this would have a lot more to worrie about than jailtime if it was my sister!!! thye discust me and if i had witnessed that i would have given ALL of them a taste of there own medicine and let me also say that stuff like this happens everyday all around the high schools of america. i was personally attacked in a bathroom by 3 students when i was high school and if my sister is ever treated with such indecentcy whille shes in high school the people involved will need some serious protection. as a matter of fact if i ever saw there disgrace for human beings i would makes sure they understood just how sad there are and if it wasent against the laws make the feel double the pain that poor girl did. and anyone who has ever been invloved in somthin half as cruel just remember that the person ur pickin on my have an unstable older brother thast would die for his sister and anyone who reads this as u can tell i am very upset my this and i cant remember the last time i was this upset about somthing that i read in the news!
More than a century of women’s suffrage and liberalization in America and this is what it amounts to, women beating women. The women of the past who had coerced men to provide those freedoms were not ready for them, and they are still not. The constitutional provision that allows women the right to vote should be repealed. Women should be subordinate to and placed under the strict observation of adult men.
I feel the whoever is responsible in this group for coming up with the idea for the attack should see the most time behind bars. I am thinking 10 years of hard time in prison. The rest should see at least 5 years behind bars. The reason I feel this way is the depraved indifference shown by these girls. First it was pre-meditated, then after knocking her unconcious they woke her up and continued the attack. It is clear in the video she didn’t fight back , and pleaded for them to let her leave which they did not. On the civl side these girls and their families should be forced to pay for the remainder of their lives being they seemed to have caused permanent physical damage. Perhaps civil lawsuits of 50 million against each girl involved are in order.
When I hear the argument “the girl was not seriously hurt,” I think the suspects’ parents are missing the point. This girl received a severe, prolonged beating and could have suffered a brain hemorrhage (bleed). I don’t think any physician would argue that the potential for permanent damage and/or death is present in this case. As a physician myself, I have seen cases of head bleeds from far less trauma. Fortunately, this was not the case.
Additionally, the video in this case does not sensationalize anything. It is as an objective account of the events that transpired. This was a malicious, premeditated attack, and I’m frustrated by those who try to argue these girls have a juvenile mindset. The vast majority of 17 year olds will have the reasoning faculties of an adult, and should be tried as such.
I’m a sixteen yr old myself, and i gotta say, i am disgusted and ashamed to call myself a teen of this generation. attacking a girl for posting something about you is absolutely sickening. you do NOT put someone in the hospital for talking trash about you. if someone is talking about you, be immature and talk smack right back, don’t bash the girl’s head in. The worst part about this whole thing is that they have no remorse, which means there is no redemption or rehabilitation for them. People who have no remorse for doing something so barbaric …. I don’t know how they, or their parents who are in fact defending their actions, sleep at night. I hope something is done to them, 10 times more drastic than what they did to that poor girl. Something, anything, to get it through to them that what they did is wrong.
These girls are pigs. Florida pigs. They obviously need to be incarcerated, and their lack of humanity indicates a need for psychiatric help. They are pigs. Florida pigs.
I was sick to my stomach watch these violent S………s.. doing this to this poor girl. If that was my daughter…. they would all pay for it one way or another. Our justice system better step up to the plate on this sick, violent act. Myspace.. Utube has nothing to do with it. These girls are violent sickos and should pay for their crime.
Sent them to jail and let’s see how they like someone bashing their head against the walls!!!!!!!!!
I’m truly not a bigget (I don’t know how to spell that word), but my former friend, Brett, out of guilt for the death of his friend, went to juvinal hall for 1 year. Anyway, he was the only white kid there. The other kids beat the tar out of him each day. Especially in the shower. Those upper middle class girls who beat that girl need to see a bit of violence directed toward them. I regret sayng that in a way, but they nearly beat that kid to death. She was unconsous at one point.
Todd Schirm
The attackers should go to jail and all schools should use this as an example to teach moral guidance to their students. What kind of place in the world has young people who not only gang up and beat another person but think it is to their credit to put it in the internet? Something deeper is wrong here. The parents of these children are partly to be blamed for failing to provide moral guidance to their children. No child that has been parented properly would behave in that way. That is a universal fact. However, sometimes even the best parents produce criminal minded children because they are so busy working to put food on the table they cannot have the time with the kids. The society also teaches children to want everything, companies advertise to them to make them want everything, to belive that human qualities are not as important as ipods and jeans and being cool in the eyes of others rather than being honest to oneself. Most parents end up running around like slaves working to give their children things. Things are being exchanged in the place of moral guidance, love, and constructive disciplining. We have to think about the bigger picture here. nevertheless, these attackers are old enough and criminal enough to serve the criminal sentence they deserve and other crimnal minded elements need to know that there is such a thing as justice. I wish this poor girl and her family well. She could not have known that those she trusted would betray her.
These eight people should all spend some serious time in adult jail (in general population) not in solitary confinement. Do these stupid kids realize that if things happen as they should that their families lives will be impacted forever via lawsuits. If the victim’s parents sue each of the families individually they will all be wipe out, even granny could lose her house. And that is as it should be. Nobody is to blame for this except for the people who participated in this including the boys.
it realy’s makes me sick that the girls did this to her and the girls should get put in jail and put in fort life……….
There are three things that bother me other than the FACT that someone was severely beaten; First off, I’ve read maybe five times already that the victim supposely had a response to those who performed (they were in front of a camera) this act. My immediate thought was someone else had (has) access to her online account if this really did happen. I can not phantom anyone who just endured this punishment would even be remotely concerned about a written rebuttal to those actions.
Second thing is when the parents defend their child by saying the fight was one on one. Sure there may have been only ONE individual striking here at any given moment but the next punch was airborne from the next individual long before any recovery was possible. My take is this; the “pack” didn’t want to expose an opportunity of possibly striking each other during the barrage of punches.
The last thing that bothers me is the controls of internet access. Personally I don’t think anyone in this “pack” saved up their money, purchased their own computer, and then signed up for an internet provider. I think Mom and/or Dad were involved in all three. No parental controls seemed to be in place. Sure the interenet sites need to either screen all videos received so certain ones can go to a site requiring verification of age. Some will laugh at this but then again, the parents are the ones supposedly raising the child so there should be little to NO chance of their child ever getting into an ADULT SITE. My take on this? If you’re in an area that requires an adult age, no matter what your age you will be considered an adult. If not and something goes terribly wrong, well, you will find out what jail is all about. Let the internet sites monitor and restrict access to those under age, and hold them liable too.
The actions of the “pack” involved in this incident was wrong. People have wished everything from the same beating or worse to a “time out.” The only thing you have to do to conclude any punishment is ask yourself, “What if it were my daughter/child?” Sadly though you need to think this as the parent of the victim and parent of the one of the “pack.”
As for Victoria, she needs to understand most of the WORLD is behind her hoping for a safe and sound recovery. She has power now and lots of it. If used in the correct ways, I will assure you she will save someone’s life. And God only knows how many heros we need here on Earth.
“chase”
As a mother, although I only watched the short clip Good Morning America aired, I am overwhelmed with great emotions concerning this incident. There is no excuse or reason that could ever justify this brutal beating. As a parent I have to realize when my children do wrong……period! “Please don’t continue to victimize Lindsay by making excuses for your children”. We as parents also bare responsibility as to what influence TV, internet, music, etc. has on our children. I have two girls and heaven knows it has not been easy to raise GOD FEARING children. Yes, they have done things that have disappointed me….and that’s because I don’t believe in giving them privacy. The doors to their rooms have always remained opened. I am sure there will be individuals out there that might think what an invasion!!! But to you I say…it’s called TOUGH love. This tough love has brought me sooooo much pain as a parent at the moment, however; years later my eldest daughter has learned to appreciate, not except my form of parenting skills. She knows she and her younger sister did not come with instruction manuals. We parents need to realize the HUGE impact we have on our children so we need to proceed with care. Guiding my children is a daily battle. I never forget to make time to listen to my children….I have had to bite my tongue at times and wait for the right time and choice of words to respond. Parents never forget you are a parent NOT a friend to your children. I am sure your kids have plenty of friends. Your GOD giving duty is to be a parent to them. As far as what punishment the teens should receive…that, I leave in God hands and the laws of this GREAT nation. Regardless of what punishment (if any) they receive in this lifetime, they will still all have to come before GOD one day. And that my friend, is WORST than any justice this land can give. Now, i have to pray this out of my mind and think good thoughts, because i am sick to my stomach.
I’ve been watching this story and totally agree these kids need to be made an example of.
First of all, what the hell is happening to kids these days? First it was the little middle school kids beating on Sarah Kreager thinking it was ok. Now you have these white trash little brats thinking they’re cool beating the crap out of one girl. Pretty smart huh? Hey kids, you know what would have been smarter? NOT video taping a beating. Now you’ll be in jail, (God willing) and then we’ll see how tough you think you are. Don’t bend over for the soap boys.
some advice, Please for the love of God, do not reproduce.
Don’t be surprised when these same vicious people are arrested some day for abusing their own children.
Tim
Im from Australia and seeing that on T.V. on every channel frightned me. I have seen teens being mean to each other and sometimes getting physical but i have never seen such a brutul attack on such a young girl. But not only that but they chucked her in the car and left her at an intersection. What were they thiking? i mean how can u get to the point where u would want to lock someone in a room and start beating someone? Did they think they would get away withy it by putting it on the net. i dont even want to watch the full video because it is too upsetting. The question is… Why?
This is a very interesting topic and the first thing i would like to say is that i am glad these girls are being charged as adults and that they will go to prison. It seems like today, teenage girls think that they are all tough and no one and nothing is better than them, there is soo much peer pressure within these teenagers but not only that i believe that parents should have a stronger impact on teens, these days parents dont even care what their teens do, sso what kind of a parent are you?? now all the parents are crying, saying that their children dont deserve it, well then they should have disciplined them better. Everyone should get what they deserve if they committ a crime because that is a choice they made. I am from Europe and i can say there is a major difference between american teens and european teenagers, tooo much of a difference that if i started writing about it the discussion would go on and on, the only thing i would say teenagers in europe are more mature and know the differences between right and wrong. I am only 21 years old (almost a teen myself) and what i have seen from being in america and comparing it to what i have seen in europe it just discusses me because these teens are horrible and so are their parents.
Another thing i wanted to mention is, why would someone even video tape such an brutal attack??? and then post is on the internet??? they probably thought it would just be cool, and thats how much the teen brain works, please.
Even if these teens werent caught now, the bad karma would come to them eventually. What goes around, comes around and there is no way out. So right now when they sit in their prison cells i am sure they will regret what they did and i kind of feel bad for them because they are going to miss out on the most important /fun years of their lives, but then again i dont feel bad because they chose prison.
People need to be accountable for their actions. Too many young people have gotten away with too much, unfortunately. No matter how old they are, they must realize that there are consequences for everything they do. I think that more penal systems should crack down on these youth offenders so they realize that this animalistic behavior is NOT acceptable in society. North America is considered to be a developed continent yet the behavior of young people in both Canada and the US are far from civilized!!! So, is this the price of freedom in developed nations? Has society made them become that de-sensitized? What hope is there for the next generation? Personally I’m appalled at this kind of behavior, no matter how old the perpetrator is. Society must wake up and realize that we have a serious problem with crime today, especially in teens. But it must begin in the home and at school, before it’s too late. Obviously these youth offenders need attention but they also need discipline. When I was a teenager, we wouldn’t dream of beating our classmates, adults or anyone…. otherwise, we’d suffer the consequences. Too many young people today realize they can get away with crime and thats where society has gone wrong. Children need to be taught respect and rules. Caregivers and teachers should NOT be afraid of using discipline but the way things have progressed, no one is allowed to do anything. Now, looking back, I appreciate what my family and teachers were trying to do. We were actually afraid of being sent to the prinicpal’s office. (A little bit of fear can go a long way.) Now it seems the younger generation is fearless and have the upper hand. I think it’s time for some serious changes or western society is heading for disaster.
There are youth offenders out there who have committed heinous crimes such as murder and gotten away with it. After a few years in some juvenile school and they’re back on the streets…perhaps beating up your neighbor or grandmother next. When will it stop!! People need to become proactive…and now, not later!! Like the students who just watched their teacher get beaten and even recorded it on their cell phones!! What’s with that? Dont’ these people have a thing called a conscience? I agree…these youth offenders need to realize that this behavior isn’t acceptable nor should it be tolerated by anyone at any time nor at any age. If they’re old enough to commit a crime, they should be old enough to be tried like a criminal!
You know I saw the video and even if I was as small as the 16 year old Victoria, I would have tried to defend myself at least somewhat against those girls. That was awful how they all just ganged up on her and knocked her around like that. What is the point? If anyone else saw the video, they would also have noticed the weight difference in the girls that beat her up, to the size of Victoria herself. I would say she weighed maybe 100 pounds and the other girls that beat on her weighed at least 150. They should all be old enough and mature enough not to do something like that, but I guess their parents didnt rasie them that way. All the people involved should be in jail as of right now. I would like to see EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THE GIRLS involved APOLOGIZE to her face and then see her walk away and just never look at them again. She did the right thing, even though she should have defended herself a little bit at least. This is just the way I feel.
This attack could have been prevented if society would teach a different way other than violence. I am fifteen and don’t understand why it’s necessary for girls to be “tough.” I actually find it humerouse that it took six of the girls to gang up on one smaller than them all, for them to feel like they were strong, it’s quite pathetic if you ask me.
i think that the 6 girls that beat the 1 girl sould get up to 6 years in jail
i think that they are gettin what they desrive nd if they dont learn there lesson then they really need some help. 6 people fighting one dirl thats worng what they dont know how to fight by there self . then they have something worng with them . all i have to say is i hope that it happens to them just so they can see what shee went through .THINK BEFORE U DO THINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It’s real tough to get 6 girls to beat up 1. Real tough and cool to Gang up on someone because she posted comments that WERE NO DOUBT TRUE on my space. This makes me angry. The world we live in today makes me angry and the justice system makes me angry. We let sick and disturbing people out of prison everyday to commit the same damn crimes that got them there is the first place, and these teens will without a doubt will be no different. They’re nothin but a sorry bunch of redneck, waste of human flesh, ignorant, hateful, UGLY, !!!!! And the guys are! Gotta beat, or help beat up a girl because they are insecure and know what sissys they are. Probably beat by their dads and told they would never amount to anything…well guess what boys, HE WAS RIGHT! lol Nothing but disgusting garbage. I hope you all ROT IN JAIL…and no doubt ROT !