An alarming video on Facebook Live of a Georgia 15-year-old “TJ” Wimberly livestreaming her own suicide attempt stayed up long enough to help sheriff’s deputies save her.
The teenager took pills and put a plastic bag over her head during her suicide attempt on May 2, officials from the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office said. A sheriff’s sergeant found the girl unresponsive — but with a pulse — and she’s expected to recover.
Sgt. Linda Howard told CBS affiliate WMAZ-TV that deputies received multiple calls reporting the broadcast, and that Facebook also reached out to the sheriff’s office to get help for her.
In Georgia, a viewer watching the teen’s livestream called 911. Only the teen’s friends could view the video because of the girl’s privacy settings, but Sgt. Howard had a nephew who was friends with her on Facebook. She immediately called her nephew, who viewed the video and let his aunt know it wasn’t a prank.
“It was very serious and we needed to get to it right away,” she said.
Deputies got three possible addresses for the girl from her high school and sent officers speeding to all three homes. She was found in a bathtub at one of them.
“She was unresponsive, but one of our sergeants was able to find a pulse,” Howard said, adding that the girl is recovering.
“I’m just happy that we can give her back to her family,” Howard said.
Mother Jaquay Wimberly said that she doesn’t know the specific reason why her daughter tried to take her own life, but she thinks her daughter was being bullied.
“That was her way of getting her feelings out,” said TJ’s mom. “That’s the way I look at it. She was trying say ‘Hey, this is happening to me behind closed doors. Don’t nobody care, so this is my way of seeing if people really care.'”
“We don’t want it to get to a point where young people feel that they want to do. You have so much to live for. You have your whole life ahead of you,” said Wimberly in a statement to any other teen who may be contemplating suicide.
“This is bad, but it could’ve been worse,” she said thanking those who called 9-1-1. TJ is now getting help and is expected to be back home soon.
FB live continues to grow in popularity. “Facebook Live Stream” Search Popularity Has Risen Over 330% Since Facebook Live’s Rollout. Facebook paid publishers and celebrities $50 Million To Use Facebook Live. And Facebook paid $2.2 Million to influencers using Facebook Live.
Facebook spokeswoman Andrea Saul said the company in March unveiled a series of initiatives designed to help people who go online and contemplate suicide.
Facebook is testing how computers can quickly identify posts where it’s likely someone is expressing thoughts of suicide, and provide resources to the person even if someone on Facebook has not reported it yet.
Zuckerberg also announced that Facebook will hire 3,000 more people to review content, following a spate of violent incidents broadcast on the platform.
Whenever someone contemplates suicide, online or anywhere else, listening is key, said Briggs, who wrote about a book about his experiences, “Guardian of the Golden Gate: Protecting the Line Between Hope and Despair.”
“We need to take in every word,” he said. “When you get into one of these conversations, every word can mean something.”
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