When Is It A Crime To Copy The Dangerous Stunts You See On Social Media?
The reasons why social media is a bad influence are numerous, and many of them also apply to the media that captivated young people’s imaginations in earlier generations. The people on social media behave exponentially more rudely than we would wish for our children to behave in real life. Social media is noisy and caters to the shortest attention spans; it is addictive and distracts the youth from more useful pursuits. Sure, Grandpa, but isn’t that what everyone used to say about television, the movies, comic books, and even novels? Teenagers get a lot of bad ideas from social media. In imitation of their favorite influencers, they might wear ridiculous clothing and hairstyles and act as though the path to prosperity is getting the most social media followers, as opposed to studying or working. Most of the ill-advised things that teens do by example of their favorite social media channels are perfectly legal. Meanwhile, two young people in Pennsylvania are facing criminal charges after their attempts at recreating a Tik Tok stunt had disastrous consequences. If you are facing criminal charges because you are so young that, in your world, “6-7” is a meaningful catchphrase, but, “Kids, don’t try this at home,” is not, contact a Pittsburgh violent crimes lawyer.
What Is Involuntary Manslaughter?
Charges of involuntary manslaughter apply when someone accidentally causes someone else’s death. Ancient law codes that focused on restitution, without differentiating between civil and criminal law, tended to impose the same consequences for all incidents of killing, regardless of the killer’s intent. United States law treats involuntary manslaughter as a serious crime, albeit less serious than murder. No one gets a life sentence for an involuntary manslaughter conviction, as they would for a murder conviction. If the death was related to a car accident, the charge might be for vehicular manslaughter, or even DUI manslaughter, if the driver was drunk. Providing drugs to someone who suffered a fatal overdose can result in charges of drug-induced manslaughter.
In the News
Recently, Tik Tok videos featuring a dangerous stunt called table surfing have gained popularity. A person stands on a table tied to the back of a car and attempts to balance while someone else drives the car. Stephen Barratta was driving while his friend David Nagy table surfed behind his car. Nagy fell off and suffered fatal injuries. Barratta is facing charges for involuntary manslaughter; since he is only 17, his case is going through juvenile court.
Eniya Alvarado attempted the same stunt, and the friend who was table surfing behind her car fell off and suffered severe head injuries. Alvarado, 19, is facing charges for aggravated assault. News sources did not release the name of her injured friend.
Contact Gary E. Gerson About Criminal Defense Cases
A criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges related to an accident arising from attempts to replicate a social media stunt. Contact the law offices of Gary E. Gerson in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania about your case.
Source:
6abc.com/post/2-teens-charged-social-media-challenges-take-dark-turn-bethlehem-pa/17872738/
