Kevin Whitrick
| Kevin Whitrick | |
|---|---|
| Born |
17 August 1964 Cross Houses, Shrewsbury |
| Died |
21 March 2007 (aged 42) Wellington, Telford, Shropshire, UK |
| Occupation | Engineer |
| Spouse(s) | Paula Whitrick |
| Children | One son, one daughter |
Kevin Neil Whitrick (17 August 1964 – 21 March 2007) was a British citizen and an electrical engineer.[1] Whitrick's death was highly publicized for his live, online webcast suicide.
Biography
Marriage and children
At the time of his death, he was married to his wife Paula, and had 12-year-old adopted twins. At the time of his death Kevin lived apart from his family after the breakdown of his marriage two years previously.[2]
Suicide
On the day of his death, Kevin Whitrick was in a chatroom on PalTalk and was joined by about 60 other users in a special "insult" chatroom where people "have a go at each other".[2] He stood on a chair, punched a hole in his ceiling and placed a rope around a joist, and then tied the other end around his neck, then stepped off the chair. Some people thought this was a prank, until his face started turning blue. Some people in the chat room egged him on while others tried desperately to find his address. A member in the room contacted the police, who arrived at the scene two minutes later. Kevin Whitrick was pronounced dead at 11:15 p.m. GMT.[1]
Aftermath
The death has been reported in the press and is notable due to fear it might inspire other suicides,[3] the possibility of the webcam footage being made available on the internet,[4] and discussions over the culpability of web users who encouraged the man.
The police detectives traced about 100 chatroom users to question them about their role in the cyber suicide.[5] The Crown Prosecution Service has stated that none of the chatroom users will face criminal charges.[6]
Similar incidents
- Brandon Vedas died of an unintentional drug overdose while engaged in an internet chat, as shown on his webcam.[7]
- Abraham Biggs, 19, committed suicide by consuming significant quantities of prescription drugs, and streaming his suicide live on Justin.tv under the name feels_like_ecstacy. Before he fell unconscious and subsequently died, Biggs was also chatting on a body building forum, where he had reportedly threatened to commit suicide on numerous occasions.[8]
See also
References
- 1 2 Bale, Joanna (2007-03-24). "Get on with it, said net audience as man hanged himself on webcam". Times Online. Times Newspapers Ltd. Archived from the original on April 6, 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-27.
- 1 2 "Chatroom users 'egged on father to kill himself live on webcam'". This is London. Associated Newspapers Ltd. 2007-03-24. Archived from the original on March 7, 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
- ↑ Live hanging shown on web – Alberta suicide-prevention groups brace for copycat deaths
- ↑ Keep online suicide footage offline: police
- ↑ Ungoed-Thomas, Jon (2007-03-26). "Police consider charging chatroom users for inciting cyber suicide". The Australian. Retrieved 2007-05-27.
- ↑ "No charges over 'suicide' on web". BBC News. 2007-05-26. Retrieved 2007-05-27.
- ↑ "Net grief for online 'suicide'" BBC News, 4 February 2003.
- ↑ "Florida teen kills self in front of live webcam"Reuters.com
External links
- Appeal over webcam death images
- Chatroom user films his suicide on internet
- Sad dad hangs himself on web