Oceanside, NY – Jewish Girl In $3M Lawsuit Over Cyber-Bullies On Facebook

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    Oceanside, NY – This Facebook group was just for fun, but now a group of alleged Long Island cyber-bullies is facing a decidedly unfunny $3 million lawsuit by the former classmate they supposedly tormented.

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    Denise Finkel, 18, of Oceanside, also names Facebook in her lawsuit, accusing the social-networking Web site of being “grossly irresponsible” for allowing several other Oceanside HS students to post defamatory statements about her.

    Defendants Michael Dauber, Jeffrey Schwartz, Leah Herz and Melinda Danowitz allegedly discussed filling a classmate’s locker with rotten garbage and traded nasty barbs about someone they described as “the 11th cent” – claiming the person had AIDS a, according to documents filed in Manhattan Supreme Court.


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    28 Comments
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    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    could someone please defame me in facebook? i’ll only sue for 1 million.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    we have to be very careful with these issues, folks. on the one hand, it looks nice, no more nasty people, no more mean comments. on the other hand, it’s a curtailing of freedom, where people cannot say/write things on the fear of offending someone. that is very scary. scarier than cyber-bullies.

    Loshon Hora
    Loshon Hora
    15 years ago

    In the olden days few dared even snitch to the principal. Today the kids go through court.
    Times have changed. I am sure all those kids would easily trade off for a good canning in the principal’s office or even in front of the whole school, rather than this.
    BTW VIN would have a post with 1000 comments about the child abuse in the canning.
    I guess the times have changed not for the good.

    Me
    Me
    15 years ago

    I don’t mean to be the pot who calls the kettle black, but maybe these people have too much time on their hands.

    Pashuteh Yid
    Pashuteh Yid
    15 years ago

    Rabbosai, this is the main reason why we send our kids to yeshiva, whether we realize it or not. It is not for the frumkeit. It is pashut for the kindness and warmth, and the fact that kids are taught not to insult or say loshon hora.

    When we then go ahead and knock this group or that, or this rabbi or that, we might as well send our kids to public school, as we are throwing all our yeshiva tuition out the window.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    teach those kids a lesson they won’t forget!!!

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    #1 , the first amendment does not give people the right to libel and slander. People can and do sue when they have been libeled/slandered. If these bullies truly said this girl has AIDS when she doesn’t, they can ruin her prospects for marriage and employment, as well as her everyday personal/social life (many parents will not want their daughters being friends with her for fear of their daughters being being possibly exposed to this disease, even though casual contact is supposedly safe).

    If the allegations are true, I hope her lawsuit is successful. It will set a powerful precedent and deterrent, potentially saving countless other kids from the pain of bullying.

    morning sleeper
    morning sleeper
    15 years ago

    of course its facebook’s fault that a overly sensetive kid created an account and got tormented!!!

    jew boy
    jew boy
    15 years ago

    i think its messed up that she is sueing but in this politically incorrect world we live in shes definatly gonna win the case what an accomplishment your just 3 million dollars richer

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    poor girl i hope somthing happens to her freinds

    seriously...
    seriously...
    15 years ago

    this girls is my hall mate in college…and this is all over some stupid private facebook joke a couple years ago when the kids were in high school. the group only lasted 2 days and no one else could see it but them. i think it’s time to get over it……

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    I actually know a couple of the defendants. They are good, responsible kids, perhaps they made an unfunny joke, but I’m certain it wasn’t malicious. Clearly the plaintiff is being accusatorial for reasons other than her self-esteem.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    frankly, anytime children/students do something like this, it is most CERTAINLY malicious. You’ve got to be kidding me. It is having fun or a laugh AT SOMEONE ELSE’s EXPENSE — and it is most certainly HURTFUL. This from a parent whose son is harrassed and tormented in other ways by mean-spirited boys whose own personal issues are taken out on a friendly and innocent kid purely because he DOESN’T get in trouble in school and does what he is supposed to (which is clearly not cool), and who isn’t assertive enough to fight back so they pick on him because they know they can. They have made my son a very sad young man (this is an understatement), every morning, when he has to face the school day wondering what insult or action will hurl his way. If you do not experience this as a child or as a parent, you have no idea how hurtful and damaging it actually can be.

    This nasty behavior should NOT be tolerated and the parents of these kids should get a reality check. Usually kids who do these things have parents who are somewhat blind to the real nature and actions of their kids. Wake up parents — your kids are not as wonderful as you think. They are nasty and mean and hurtful and rather than making excuses for them or denying their behavior you should be having a real serious discussion with them that includes some consequences for their actions.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    Somewhere between both extremes is the truth. I know one of the defendant families involved, and apparently, the girl has some social issues of her own. Also, this happened in 10th grade. This is a gross waste of taxpayer dollars and court time, where murderers, rapists and extortionists will be kept patiently waiting their turn while the crybaby plays “Testify For Dollars”.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    I know Denise very well. Those awful children made her life a living hell.

    kelly J
    kelly J
    15 years ago

    Its fine to be a defender of freedom of speech however that ammendment does not sanction libal (the spreading of lies about an indvidual) Some have been saying kids will be kids however at 16 17 and 18 children know it is not okay to bully someone else. This was not a simply matter of calling her a name they humiliated her over the internet met in a group which she could not join in order to make up horrible lies about this girl. Also Aids is not a light subject and to use it in a way to scare others from being anothers friend is not okay at all. THose who are inflicted with such a horrible diease have fought long and hard for there rights and their toil is not something to make light of or to use as a bullying tactic. whether its worth 3 mil$ Idk but I most certainly hope it effects any scholorships or grants the kids have and that it remains of their reccord when it comes to job interviews its time young adults learn that the character flaw of bullying is not acceptable!

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    15 years ago

    I can’t say what the kids did was right. But suing for $3 million over some petty high school stupidity is ridiculous. I can understand punishing the kids to teach them a lesson with some misdemeanor, but even so it was a couple years ago when it happened. What high school kids haven’t done dumb things? Its always been happening, people get hurt grow up and move on. Suing isn’t going to fix whatever emotional damage she has because of what happened back then, its just going to make more people dislike her and be wary of her.