South Carolina girl kills herself over bullying, family says

[sl8]

Source: CBS News

A South Carolina girl's family said she shot herself to death because she was being bullied at school, CBS affiliate WTOC-TV reports.

Toni Rivers, 11, told five of her friends that "she just couldn't do this anymore, and she was going home, and she was killing herself," her aunt, Maria Petersen, told the station.

Hampton County sheriff's deputies were dispatched to the family's home late in the afternoon on Oct. 25 after Toni's 14-year-old sister called 911, according to an incident report. Petersen said Toni died three days later.

The state's Law Enforcement Division is investigating the death.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/south-carolina-girl-kills-herself-bullying-family/

[Chasstev365]

1. So sad. My heart goes out to the family.

[wasupaloopa]

3. She was being bullied. I was bullied in grade school and my parents were great parents.

If a kid is bullied at school it is hard to deal with. But must be dealt with.

[jzola]

4. Her parents must have made it easy for her to shot herself.

Why was she able to get a gun?

[iluvtennis]

16. My question exactly. Why wasn't the gun locked up. Kept mine in safe in bedroom and

locked bedroom door to keep my kids out as they got home from school before I got home from work. A lot of sitters don't watch em like a parent would.

BTW, the schools my kids attended talked big about anti bullying policies and procedures, but when we parents (and our kids) reported it, the school didn't do anything to stop it, so it continues on and on.

This is just so sad, 11 years old.

[miss-nasty]

6. You are totally ignorant and so wrong

People ignorant on this topic should think about what they're saying before posting. You are ripping many parents hearts out that have children that have committed suicide. You should educate yourself then likely you'll be ashamed and delete your disgusting comment.

[sarisataka]

9. Your comments show

Ignorant on the matter of teen suicide.

I have worked, and still do part-time, with some Funeral Directors assisting them. I have seen far too many teens who killed themselves. Many of them had very loving and supportive families. Sometimes they were aware of issues in their children's lives other times they were not. Bullying however is a cause that reappears in well over half of the cases.

[Brother Buzz]

13. Forget it Jake, it's a spam post touting a tow truck outfit in New Orleans

MIR Team, please pick up the white courtesy telephone

[sarisataka]

15. I wondered about that link

But not enough to click on it. Should be a one post Wonder

[Brother Buzz]

19. I believe the MIR Team was out on their union covfefe break

All better now.

[sarisataka]

24. .

[ornotna]

12. You posted this nonsense to spam us

[democratisphere]

5. I hope they find the little bulling bastards; indict, convict then throw them in jail.

Where the hell is Melania with her anti-bulling campaign?

[SunSeeker]

7. Heartbreaking. This is why I do not keep guns in the house.

[sarisataka]

10. In cases I have seen

Hanging occurs about three to four times more often than self-inflicted gunshot wounds. Overdoses are the third most common method but trails the other two significantly.
I have never noticed any difference in the grief level of families who lost a child to suicide based on what method their child used to end their life.

[SunSeeker]

14. I am not disputing the grief level. I am saying guns make suicide more likely.

Because they do.

In 2006, after years of suicides among young men in the Israel Defense Forces, authorities forbade the troops from bringing their rifles home on weekends. Suicides dropped by 40 percent, according to a 2010 study by psychiatrists with the IDF and the Sheba Medical Center.

https://www.stripes.com/news/experts-restricting-troops-access-to-firearms-is-necessary-to-reduce-rate-of-suicides-1.199216

In particular, there was no significant change in suicide rates during the week, so it's not the case that the timing of the policy coincided with some other change which made soldiers less suicidal overall. It was a clear case of means reduction.  

We all get depressed, but we don't all have a gun handy when we are at our lowest point. Guns are quick, efficient killing tools that allow suicidal people to act on impulse, before friends, family and medical professionals can intervene. Guns turn a treatable depression into a fatal illness.

[sarisataka]

18. It is true the ability of a firearm

To inflict a lethal injury is nearly unmatched, it is still simply a means to an end.

If we choose keep our Firearms securely locked, or to not even own one, and pat ourselves on the back that the problem is solved we are merely deluding ourselves.

[SunSeeker]

20. Please stop with the straw men. This is a serious subject.

No one said keeping guns out of the house will end suicide. No one is "deluding" themselves.

My point is that guns in the home make suicide more likely. It is a fact.

[sarisataka]

23. There are few subjects I take more seriously than teen suicide

I have taught Suicide Prevention in the military and in some schools. At the funeral home and I also work with our grief counselor to reach out to friends of suicide victims at the services to prevent follow on suicides.

I am also the parent of a teen and a preteen. The VA contact me yearly to check on my psychological status because I am at a demographic that is one of the highest suicide risks in the country.

[SunSeeker]

25. Me too. A high school friend killed herself with her family's gun.

If you are in a demographic that is one of the highest suicide risks in the country, I sincerely hope you do not keep a gun in the house.

[sarisataka]

28. I do have some

And have discussed risks with my wife. Though I personally have never felt suicidal I have the guns secured with a dual system. She has the ability to lock me out if I seem depressed or showing other risk signs.

I also have several friends in similar situations. Long ago we agreed to reach out if life ever seemed hopeless before taking any action. About 20 years ago one called for help. Though it was 3am we arrived in under ten minutes. One took him to the hospital while the others secured his weapons. We kept them for nearly a year until we were satisfied the crisis was truly over. He trusted us and never once asked for the guns back. Today he his healthy and happy with a wife he adores. If he or she were to call again, the rest of us would respond again.

[Kaleva]

32. Your wife may not see the signs in time.

My wife can and has dropped to bottom in less then an hour time. I left home on morning to run some errands and by the time I came back a short time later, she had attempted to end her life. She was her normal self when I left but something caused her to crash.

Having guns in the house, when you are part of a high risk group, and hoping that someone can see the signs or that you are sound enough to make a call for help isn't wise IMHO. Or you maybe your wife only has access to the guns.

Edit: But then again, you may be fine. One can't diagnosis or even offer sound advice from reading a few posts and while I have some training and experiences in this area, I can't say what's best for you.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

8. Melania, can your husband spare you a tweet or two? He won't tweet about this. Will you? . . nt

[Ilsa]

27. Weshould sneak it into a twitter thread of hers. nt

A bunch of us.

[DK504]

11. I was bullied by classmates and my mother told me "oh, they're just kidding with you

it means they like you because they have noticed you."

Seriously she said that to me. She didn't care, she only wanted to look good in front of her friends and keep the facade of the bombardment of abuse within my family and classmates.

I tried to run away and they caught me and brought me back. Yeah, it got worse from there on out. Telling the parents sometimes won't work...I had to trust some teachers and tel them the truth.

[pnwmom]

21. I'm so sorry that happened to you. That is the kind of stupid thing that parents sometimes say.

Especially when it involves the opposite sex -- they're being mean because they like you. What a dumb thing for a parent to say.

My father always told us to ignore bullies, so I did. It didn't stop them. Finally, when I was in my forties, I told my dad how much it hurt when certain boys called me "brillo" and "SOS," because of my hair. He said, "well, it was your fault for not ignoring them."

That was my last attempt to get any understanding from him.

[crazycatlady]

30. My mother told me to stop complaining and suck it up

The school also did nothing about it. In fact, more often than not, I was the one who got into trouble.

[Initech]

17. This is why we can't have nice things.

That kid definitely deserved better, along with the thousands who kill themselves because of bullying. And our president and first lady are clearly not helping.

[Judi Lynn]

22. What a shame there was no one to help her.

Rest in peace, Toni Rivers.

Who wouldn't want to protect this child from harm?

[SunSeeker]

26. So heartbreaking.

[JDC]

29. That pic crushes me. So sad

[smirkymonkey]

31. Oh god, that poor little girl!

I hope the kids who were bullying her are haunted by this for the rest of their days. I am so sorry for Toni and her family. This should never happen to a child this young.

[Kaleva]

33. The 11 year old used her own gun to kill herself

"Toni's stepfather, Robert Thomas, said the gun used in the shooting belonged to the girl. "

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/south-carolina-girl-kills-herself-bullying-family/