Eight underage teens to be tried as adults

Victoria Lindsay, a 16-year-old girl from Polk County, Florida, was lured to a friend's home early April and brutally beaten by six cheerleaders. The setup of the story is one that almost every girl in the world can relate to: catty high school drama. It all started when the seven girls, including Lindsay, began fighting over MySpace and texting. It was reported that Lindsay had "trash talked" and threatened the six other girls on her MySpace and may have even posted some pictures as blackmail. The 16-year-old's parents claim that their daughter's MySpace had been hacked and several details and photos had been altered. The beating occurred in the home of "friend" Mercedes Nichols. CBS news reports that Lindsay was invited over, and she arrived to harsh words and violent behavior. Within minutes of being in the home Lindsay was knocked unconscious. Her six attackers waited for her to regain consciousness and proceeded to beat her for over thirty minutes. The entire fight was videotaped for the purpose of posting it on the Internet (YouTube and MySpace). Only a short portion of the video is now splashed across the web, along with mug shots of the girls and two boys who stood guard outside. The girls got their wish of being "most viewed" on YouTube, but clearly not in the way they had hoped. Many viewers have pointed out the most disturbing part of the video is not the beating, but rather it is the sounds of the girls encouraging each other to participate in the beating. At one point, Lindsay was told to fight back; she did not want to sink to her attackers' level and did not fight back. The eight teens (including two boy guards) arrested include: 18-year-old Stephen Schumaker, 17-year-olds Mercedes Nichols, Brittini Hardcastle, Britney Mayes and Zachary Ashley, 16-year-old Cara Murphy, 15-year-old Kayla Hassell and 14-year-old April Cooper. All eight accused will be tried as adults, charged with felony battery and false imprisonment, and will face harsh punishment. The smallest amount of jail time served could be one to two years. Sentences are yet to be given, and rumors of possible life sentences have been discussed. As for Lindsay, she escaped the beating with several bruises, a concussion and possible permanent loss of sight and hearing in her left eye and ear. She will be home-schooled from now on and will continue recovering through physical as well as psychological therapy.