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Immigrant Teen Taunted by Cyberbullies Hangs Herself
Massachusetts Girl, 15, Was Reportedly Bullied Online Before Taking Her life
By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES
Jan. 26, 2010
Even in death, Phoebe Prince was bullied. On a memorial page dedicated to the Massachusetts teen who had recently committed suicide, Facebook members left taunting comments that had to be removed.
The 15-year-old -- a recent immigrant from Ireland with a pretty face and a soft brogue -- was found dead in her South Hadley home Jan. 14, according to police.
Afterward, her fellow students came forward to tell school officials that Prince had been teased incessantly, taunted by text messages and harassed on social networking sites like Facebook.
"It's heart-wrenching," said South Hadley Police Chief David LaBrie. "She had only moved here last summer."
"We are looking at all factors," said LaBrie, who was assisting the Northwest District Attorney's office with an investigation into Prince's death.
LaBrie refused to discuss the details of Prince's suicide out of "respect for the family's privacy.
"It's tremendously emotionally draining on the family and the whole community right now," he told ABCNews.com. "It's such a sad thing."
Many in the suburban community of about 17,000 in western Massachusetts was in shock after learning that Prince had reportedly hung herself just days after accepting a date to a high school dance.
In a letter to parents, Principal Daniel Smith called Prince "smart, charming, and as is the case with many teenagers, complicated. ... We will never know the specific reasons why she chose to take her life.''
Prince is not the only case of apparent bullying that has sparked national headlines.
Cyberbullying Likely Factor in Suicide of Massachusetts Teenage Irish Immigrant - ABC News