Feb 27, 2009 2:26 pm US/Eastern
A Child's Hint Of Abuse On Her Social Network Site
Fourteen-Year-Old Priscila Amador Was Murdered By Her Father
FT. LAUDERDALE (CBS4) ―
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Social networking sites are communication tools to express happiness, sadness, or pending troubles for some.
CBS
Sexual abuse of children is a topic few people like to think about, but it's the focus of police investigations of a father's murder-suicide of three members of his family in their southwest Miami-Dade home. There are also questions of why no one came forward when one murdered daughter wrote of abuse on a social networking site.
It's not uncommon to find teenagers or adults express their feelings online and keep dairies for others to read.
Priscila Amador, 14, shot to death by her father, along with a sister and mother, wrote a post on MySpace.com that suggested she was experiencing personal problems, although she did not mention molestation.
She wrote, ''I have gone through so much and yet I still try to stand tall, because this whole world is coming down on me, and me blocking it hurts more and more,'' she wrote. ``That's why I don't care anymore.''
Pablo Amador, 54, shot and killed his wife, Maria 47, and daughters, Rosa, 13, and Priscila, Wednesday morning inside their southwest Miami-Dade home.
It's not uncommon to find teenagers or adults express their feelings online and keep dairies for others to read. In an unscientific poll of high school seniors in Broward, CBS4 Reporter Joan Murray found that Facebook and My Space were used as the main tools of communicating with friends.
"I have family members who live in Colombia, and I talk to them on my Facebook and My Space sites," said Mauricio Castro.
Students explained that some share private information, others very little. They can spend several minutes, to several hours chatting. And, yes, they can help friends in trouble over the Internet.
Karlton Weaver said a friend's mother had died, and he comforted her for over an hour on their Facebook connection.
Students say one must also be cautious. Without physical detection, someone might not be telling the truth over a computer screen, which can sometimes be visually detected in body language.
"Sometimes it's hard to tell if someone is being sarcastic or joking or serious," added Pierce Kafka.
"You have to know the person that's sending the message. You can't assume. You have to look at the person themselves," reiterated Qualey Smiley.
Child therapist Sue Glasscock runs Children's Harbor which helps abused and neglected children. She said err on the side of caution when in doubt about a friend.
"Find out what school they go to," said Glassock, adding "find that school's counselor," and advise them what you've learned.
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