The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

[Turk]

By Craig Malisow Thursday, Feb 13 2014

A young man's violent threat on Facebook lands him in jail, and limbo.

Approximately one hour after Justin Carter posted a sarcastic comment on a Facebook thread, his life began to ­unravel.

Prosecutors have failed to produce the entire thread containing Carter’s alleged threat, according to his attorney, Don Flanary.

The first reaction occurred behind the scenes, in another country. The 18-year-old Carter had no way of knowing that, while he did grunt work at a drapery shop in San Antonio, a person in Canada saw his comments — posted 60 days after the Sandy Hook school-shooting tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut — freaked out and initiated a 24-hour chain reaction of insanity that would wind up with Carter facing 10 years in prison.

Carter's comments were part of a duel between dorks, and may have had something to do with a game with strong dork appeal called League of Legends. But the actual details and context of the online exchange are, in the eyes of Texas authorities, unimportant. Prosecutors say they don't have the entire thread — instead, they have three comments on a cell-phone screenshot.

One of the comments appears to be a response to an earlier comment in which someone called Carter crazy. Carter's retort was: "I'm fucked in the head alright, I think I'ma SHOOT UP A KINDERGARTEN [sic]."

Carter followed with "AND WATCH THE BLOOD OF THE INNOCENT RAIN DOWN."

When a person writing under the profile name "Hannah Love" responded with "i hope you [burn] in hell you fucking prick," Carter put the cherry on top: "AND EAT THE BEATING HEART OF ONE OF THEM." (The Austin police officer who wrote up the subsequent report noted: "all caps to emphasize his anger or rage." )

That's when someone in Canada — an individual as yet unidentified in court records — notified local authorities. Because Carter's profile listed him as living in Austin, the Canadians sent the tip to the Austin Police Department. Along with a cell-phone screenshot of part of the thread and a link to Carter's Facebook page, the tipster provided this narrative: "This man, Justin Carter, made a number of threats on Facebook to shoot up a class of kindergartners. ... He also made numerous comments telling people to go shoot themselves in the face and drink bleach. The threats to shoot the children were made approximately an hour ago."
Full Story: http://www.dallasobserver.com/2014-02-13/news/the-facebook-comment-that-ruined-a-life/full

[jtmulc]

[jtmulc]

This is why we remember Wheaton's Law: Don't be a dick

[calguyhunk]

Honestly? I don't have any sympathy for that guy whatsoever. He deserves to rot in jail for that. Rather him than innocent kids, I say. Also, needs a serious evaluation of his mental health. Looks a bit off already if you ask me. :angry:

These threats are what psychologists call 'warning signals'. If you don't put him in jail now and then he actually goes on to do anything remotely like that, can you imagine the repercussions? You just don't joke about something like this. It's unfunny beyond words can describe. And he didn't just stop at one off-the-cuff remark either. He went on and on and on with gratuitous amounts of graphic violent imagery. :angry:

Sorry, but anybody who sympathizes with this @$$hole is a clueless retard. Just what it is. -_-

EDIT: I just noticed somebody constantly liked each and every one of his distasteful - not to mention menacing - posts. Who does that? :o

Edited February 18, 2014 by calguyhunk

[tipo]

sick f*ck! he deserves to be neutered and kept in jail for the last of his life