A Florida teen who met a much older man on the internet went outside on July 25th to tell him they were expecting a baby girl. This happened shortly after midnight and Morgan Martin has not been seen since. She is 17 and the guy she met was at least in her mid 20's if not older. The guy came all the way from Kansas City to have sex with the teen he met on Facebook and then would continue to see her despite being threatened with jail time for having sex with the minor. Police do not think this is a runaway situation because the teen has not responded at all during the past two weeks to Facebook messages or texts or anything else. When you leave the house at midnight with an ultrasound in your hand to confront the guy who traveled across the country to have sex with you and you don't come back, that is never a good sign.
Exhibit A on why my daughters do not have cell phones or unrestricted Internet access.
ReplyDeleteGod help her and her family.
Wait, did I miss something? I thought the age of consent was 16.
ReplyDelete"Morgan is described as mixed race and appears Hispanic. She is 4 months pregnant, 5'2", 175 pounds, and has black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a white tank top, pink jacket with fur around the hood, grey sweatpants, and pink slippers."
ReplyDeleteWTSP.COM St. Petersburg, Florida
Sadly, I feel that he has killed her, or even worse, sold her.
ReplyDeleteEither way, it doesn't look good.
The worst part of this story is that her mom was home and Morgan told her she was going outside to talk to the guy at 12:30am. Her mom said it was a bad idea, then went to bed. She realized that Morgan was gone when she got up for work the next morning. Why the hell didn't she stay up and watch what was going on???
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete@nolachickee I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that she doesn't have the best mother.
ReplyDeleteIf he wanted out of it, he should've offed himself. He just made a bad situation much, much worse. I hope he just kidnapped her but I have a feeling she's not coming home. Hope I'm wrong.
She was 4 months pregnant so he had to have already known about the baby. Sad.
ReplyDeleteThe age of consent differs depending on where you live. In Ohio, where I live its 16. IN Florida, its 18.
ReplyDeleteMy question in this post is where were/are the parents???
This is why you always pull out and never make a depo.
ReplyDeleteI was watching the clive owen movie 'trust' last week, had to turn it off. Way too creepy. Every mum with teenage daughters should make them watch that movie along with 'kids'.
Trust is a great movie. you should also watch Megan is MIssing. It is shot from the computer screens POV. It is a bit cheeseball until.you get to the end. The end is horrifying. Every teenager should watch it.
Delete@Sarah....my 16 yr old does have a laptop and a cell phone (provided by my own dad) and you know what, this b*tch went out one night a few months ago, (while she was still 15, mind you) and wouldn't respond to my texts or calls for over a 24hr period. Well, I blew my top. I went to the house she "said" she was going to sleep at, they hadn't seen her. I went to the girl down the street who knows everyone's biz wax and she, her mom and grandmother looked at me like I was insane! I explained, next stop is the pd station so you better get that kid of mine to respond. When I explained MY fears, that she could have been kidnapped via some pervert she may have met online, and either raped and killed via GHB overdose, or sold, etc......I WAS LAUGHED AT!
ReplyDeleteSuffice to say, as soon as I left there, she sent me a text and then was pissed that I grounded her. Even with me as a mother, my kids and their friends truly believe that sh*t like this does not happen (and most parents are in denial too).
SO Sarah...KUDOS to you. I've actually taken my 15 yr old's son's laptop and cell phone away, and after a detox period, (my dad always over powers me on issues like this, but we're not speaking now....so I win), he's now reading, able to have a decent conversation, he's making music, writing, and the punk even cleaned out my garage!!!!
yes I enjoy my daily mail, and my pandora, and this site (celeb gossip = my drug of choice), but really has technology made us a better society? All I know is I can't say yes.
That said, I hope they find this girl alive, her poor mother. My prayers are with them both.
Amen to that. I grew up right as myspace hit the market. I am glad it wasn't around when I was younger cus I know I would have been trouble. My siblings are 6+ years younger then me and it's crazy to see how technology has influenced their lives in such a negative way. Making it so much easier for them to get in contact quicky with the wrong type of people. Kids are stubborn and if you punish them now, yes they will be angry at first, in the future they will thank you.
DeleteMartin's sister, Sierra Cahill, 20, saw her exit the house (not Mom). Mom found out next AM.
ReplyDeleteMom allegedly told her "you don't want anything to do with him … You're a kid. If he gets caught with you, he's going to jail,'".
No mention of her Dad.
From NY Daily News
.
Isn't murder the number one cause of death for pregnant women (girls)?
ReplyDeleteSadie thanks. I am actually a FL native and always thought that is was 16. It actually is.
ReplyDeleteIn Florida: "if a person is less than 24 years old, they may enter into sexual contact with a person who is at least 16 years old.".
Trust (the movie) scared the hell out of me, and I don't have a girl. @Omama! I'm so glad you finally tracked her down. I'd be out of my mind.
ReplyDeleteThe Short One turns 12 on Wednesday. I'm fearful of parenting a teenager and I'm not even there yet!
omg i saw trust too and the fact that she still goes with him after learning that he's like in his mid 30s just ughhhh parents need to teach their kids!! AND make sure their kids understand what they are being told!! i was almost kidnapped when i was 8 years old right in front of my house these older men in their 30s came up to me and asked if "i wanted to go on a walk with them" i ran inside and told my mom that two strangers wanted me to go on a walk with them and she called my godfather who is a cop but by the time he got to our house they were gone. parents need to make sure their kids understand when they tell them not to talk to strangers or take candy from them or help them look for a lost pet kids will say they got it but parents need to make sure they really understand what they are being told
ReplyDelete16 in FL unless:
ReplyDeleteThe age of consent in FL is 18 ONLY *** IF*** the older person is in a position of authority .
I can't find this jerks employment.
@Agent**It - the older partner cannot be 24 or older either.
ReplyDeleteThat's right. I forgot how convoluted it gets here:)
ReplyDeleteI am parenting a 14 year old. It's terrifying. She has a cell phone, internet access and a very unconcerned father. For some reason, she believes everything that guys tell her, yet doubts women and doesn't think anything bad will ever happen to her. I just have to be strict and hope she doesn't leave my house to go live with her dad.
ReplyDeleteShow her Dad articles like this one and ask if that concerns him ? Possible? Maybe not.
ReplyDeleteI don't care what the age of consent is. What kind of idiot mother lets her daughter go out at midnight to tell a guy he's going to be a father? My mother would have had my dad there with a shotgun (and we didn't even own a shotgun) just to make sure I was safe. And it would have been the middle of the day. In public. People have absolute no sense.
ReplyDeleteI thank God I grew up in the 50s and 60s and didn't have to face this kind of temptation kids have today. It's time people should have to qualify for a license in order to breed.
This is has been going on forever, it's just the world is a much smaller place now.
DeleteWhy is this being reported by enty, while he has not said one word about the tragic shootings in Wisconsin? That makes me very very upset.
ReplyDeleteNot many stations doing a good job on that story...
DeleteAgent - Me too!
ReplyDeleteI have to say that I am soooooooooo happy I don't have children. I have a hard enough time keeping myself safe and healthy. I would be a wreck trying to keep them safe in this day and age. Kudos to all you parents that can keep tabs on them without being crazy.
@Omama
ReplyDeleteI hear you. I have an almost 16 year old, head strong daughter too. It is HELLISH raising her sometimes. GAH!
There really is hardly any way to keep them off the internet nowadays. If you take their phone or computer, their friends all have one to loan them. Their IPods, phones and such are all computers now.
@Sarah Good luck with that~
I hope this young woman is still alive.
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ReplyDelete@ brittiany ,I was curious about that as well.
ReplyDeleteMy mom tells me no one locked their doors when she was a kid, the cars in the driveway were open also...
ReplyDeleteI can't even imagine it....
@Omama- good for you. My 15 year old has given me trouble with all the access. I can't Maine what I'd have gotten into at her age with the world at my fingertips.
ReplyDeleteThe ante gets upped constantly. The MySpace/ Facebook generations have changed the way kids communicate. Sexting and nude/semi nude photos are all commonplace.
It never got that far with my kids, but I got wise to the bullshit early on
Like yourself, grandparents that want to spoil the kids were an issue, I always said no phones so my ex's parents bought them Itouches that they quickly turned into phones.
My daughter snuck out one afternoon for an hour and a half. When she got home I took the device and made her give me the code. At 1 am she got a text from a boy telling her she should sneak back over. I pretended to be her and found out he was 20. He asked her to come over and let him take her virginity.
He got a visit that night all right, and one he will never forget. I told that little fuck if he ever thought her name again I'd knock his fucking teeth out and then throw him in jail.
I did file a report, and even though she's below the age of consent and he's over 4 years older (the number of years required to prosecute) they declined to press charges. Due to the nature of the possible sexual abuse (by him) they made ME undergo an investigation from CPS. It took me nearly two months to get them out of my life, house, and appointments.
The police, CPS, and counselors all knew that I did the right thing. None of them thought my kid was being abused at home, but they still spent months interviewing me and minutes interviewing my kid's potential abuser.
In the end, that little fuck and all his loser friends who can't get girls their own age will remember him nearly getting his ass kicked by a 5'5 blonde, and the subsequent visit from detectives and CPS, but if there's a next time I'll handle it the old fashioned way, and let the friends that offer (and they did) to go kick his ass anonymously.
You slept with your windows open .
ReplyDeleteSorry for the book, but I hate that it sounds like I have a troubled kid, my daughter is beautiful and is an honor student. Girls this age are so vulnerable, they are so obsessed with being loved. These guys will try anything, do anything, say anything.
ReplyDeleteI hate the Ida of spying on my kids, but if you ever get a chance to look at their Facebook messages or texts it will tell you if you need to.
Sarah, I really appreciate that you did that. When I was about 6 or 7, I was biking home from a friend's house in my neighborhood and a guy stopped and told me he was lost and wanted me to get in his car. I ran up the hill home with my bike (probably should've just dropped it but I was scared), and told my parents. My dad put me in the car with him and we drove around looking for the guy. It looked a lot like this guy's car from the neighborhood, but I think I got scared about getting someone in trouble so I said I didn't know. Looking back, it probably was that guy because so many of these incidents are not totally random.
ReplyDeletejesse, this is why I say being a mother is a thankless job! you do all the heavy lifting, take all the shit, to keep them safe. Well I can say that when my kids got older, they appreciate it. But right now you arent a warm and fuzzy mommy like you'd like to be, you're a policeman!! dont worry, other moms understand, we got your back! :)
ReplyDeleteas for this girl, I wish it all ends well. Sometimes I dont understand men at all.
ReplyDelete@Sarah
ReplyDeleteI just realized when I said good luck w/ that it sounded rude. I didn't mean it that way, sorry! I just meant there's hardly any way at all to keep teens completely away from the 'net. So yes, keeping whatever you can under control is the way to go.
I believe it's important for my girls to have cell phones so they can call if they are ever in trouble or a situation they do not want to be in. The cells stay in the kitchen at night and the alarm is set with my husband's and my code (our girls have a different code). The most important rule about the cell is if I call or text they respond. If not they can kiss the cell and other privileges they enjoy goodbye! It's also a plus for parents to be able to monitor email, web usage, texting etc through the cell not to mention its like a tracking device.
ReplyDeleteBest thing ever for our family!
Oops I meant to say house alarm!
ReplyDeleteYou know what's crazy is that my neighbors daughter has a Facebook and is only 11. She also has unsupervised internet access and the mother doesn't even check the history (I asked the daughter about it). This kid has an iPad and iPod touch a Twitter and a Facebook. All at 11 years old. Maybe this makes me old fashioned, but the girl's mother is 10 years older than I am you would think she would know better.
ReplyDelete@Amber- thanks! Something similar happened to me as a kid but there was never anyone looking out for me.
ReplyDeleteI sort of put a lot of personal business out there today, but this stuff hits close to home as a parent of 15 and 11 year old girls.
I'm not perfect as a mother but I will protect them from all I can, and I'll put myself in harms way before I see them hurt. And if any guy is trying to prey on my kids I'll gladly put THEM in harms way! Lol, don't mess with my babies!
@RenoBlonde- no offense taken, I am trying to find balance. I think it's not healthy to completely take it away, but I want to trust her. She was on these gamer sites and using the chat features. I tried to tell her she's chatting with 60 year old men, not hot 17 year olds, but you know kids know it all.
I worry about her meeting some guy like this with similar results. Funny that she's so shy with guys at school but very bold with strangers. Terrifying.
My 14yr old niece was recently grounded for lying to her mother twice as well as going into a very dodgy,well known druggie area and was caught out bigtime. She had her phone confiscated, no internet access and was prevented from seeing her friends for 2 weeks. As further punishment, her mum allowed me to take her to work with me one day as we had a huge storeroom to clear out and leaflets to be counted! Brilliant punishment - think she learned her lesson. The funniest part throughout was that her mum had posted she was grounded on her facebook page so her friends could see; her wee boyfriend decided to plead her case for her on the post. Here is a direct quote: "I think the punishment is to Harsh and is destroying the life of someone since they cannot comincate with the outside world for 2 weeks". Seriously - the youth of today have no idea what harsh punishment is!
ReplyDeleteI hope this missing young woman turns up safe and that this situation causes more young women her age to take more care with their personal safety.
@auntliddy thanks! I am definitely not my daughter's best friend but as long as she's safe, I'll BE the bitch, I'm fine with that.
ReplyDeleteI pray that nothing bad happened to this girl, but it doesn't look good.
My daughter is 12. There is no such thing as electronic privacy in our house until you are 18. I know all of her passwords (and use them weekly!) and if they are ever changed without my knowledge, all electronics (including phone) are taken away for a painful period of time. She has been told from a very young age that people can be whomever they want to be online and that those young boys on Star Wars are likely 30yo men. I have also emphasized that the internet is FOREVER and never to post anything that she would be embarrassed for her grandmother to see. Also no posting of peronal info or, importantly, public pictures that have identifying info (for instance, what school she goes to). She is extremely mature and trustworthy however, it is not HER I'm worried about...it's all of the pervs (old AND young) who now have a new tool at their disposal.
ReplyDeleteOooo, Wee S...I LOVE the idea of posting the grounding on Facebook. Kudos to her mom!
ReplyDeleteAgain, lack of a loving father, will lead a young girl to find that love by proxy. Fathers! Look to your children!
ReplyDeleteHope She's Okay. Prayers to her Famz.
ReplyDeleteYes, murder is the #1 cause of death for pregnant women.
ReplyDeleteFeeling that you are a strong person and can prevent bad things from happening to you is something predators pick up on. This can actually make you a target.
Just seconding all the recommendations to watch Trust w/your tween/teen kids. It's a frightening movie because it is so believable. The victim comes from a loving, supportive, two-parent family and an affluent background (the point being, it can happen to anyone). She is not forcibly raped or murdered or any of the other things that might happen to a girl who meets a stranger over the internet; she is destroyed nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteMy sympathy to all the parents of teens out there. The worst part is that most of the teens know more about how to use the technology than their parents do. I'm pretty sure that if I had a teenager in the house, she'd know how to have a FB acct that I got to see, and another that I knew nothing about.
I hope this girl is alive and well. Chances are unfortunately slim.
Who kills people because they are pregnant and get away with it??? Seriously?? Who says, f*ck wearing a condom, I'll just kill her if she gets pregnant instead??
ReplyDeleteI hope the girl is on a honeymoon with her new husband and not dead.
Don't know if anyone posted this, but a woman's pregnancy is the most dangerous time of her life, and not because of natural things.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad my daughter is no longer a teen. This entire situation is horrifying!
ReplyDeleteLambkin, you are right. I'm divorced and their dad is more involved with the son he had with his new fiancé than he is with my girls. A father's love makes a girl feel secure with herself and the world. I can give my grs so any things but not that. It breaks my heart.
ReplyDeleteI hope this girl is found, please post updates here Enty.
ReplyDeleteI have just turned 18 and i don't know if things are different in America to England or you guys are the minority, but you all seem really strict!! We are educated about the dangers of the Internet in school and 99.99% of teens can use it responsibly. If my mum ever tried to nose at what I was doing on the Internet I would freak out, it is an invasion of privacy, surely you can just block them from visiting specified websites as an administrator?
I am not getting at any of you I am just completely shocked at how strict you all are - maybe the USA is just more dangerous? And surely mobile phones are important for being able to contact your kids when they are out and vice versa??
Sian I'm from N.Ireland and I don't think it's a country thing,I just think it's a responsible parent thing!Im only an aunt but I tell you I'm just as strict with my niece when the occasion calls for it and her mum allows it. Sometimes the invasion of privacy is worth it when it protects your family.
Delete@Brittiany, I think what makes this information useful is that the story about this missing girl isn't being reported nationally. There is no shortage of coverage on the tragic Wisconsin shootings. I appreciate this site bringing this story to the attention of many who may not have been aware of it otherwise.
ReplyDeleteMy son is 13 and I have his facebook password. He mostly uses facebook to play games, but the rule is, once you change your password and I don't have it, you lose computer access. He's a great kid and I trust him, so I just do spot checks once in while.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the fact that the few private messages to girls that I've read reveal that he has absolutely no game makes me feel a lot better.
@sarah...No worries (about the book...I always do the same;)). My kid's honor roll too (but the school is in the 1% of the nation...and her tenth grade stuff is the same as my son's k12 8th grade homeschool stuff...But i'm getting off topic).
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, it honestly says nothing about you as a mom, or their natural intelligence, kid's especially TEEN's are going to do what they want to do. That's why you cannot blame this missing child's mom. We were once teens, and we were know it all's then too. Invincible. The problem is, it's just far worse for them these days. The days of party lines, but still being allowed to not have predators know your locale, are long gone. It's a very scary world. But sadly, you have to grow and make mistakes to really, "get" that.
Bless you Sarah.... and all of us parents. We've got the hardest, and yet most selfless job out there. (just stick to your guns....you don't need to be their friend. They have enough of those -and keep on rocking :))
p.s Everyone, TRADE with Kevin Kline too. It should be required watching for everyone. Scared the pants right off my son.
ReplyDeletep.s.@SARAH..."I'd knock his fucking teeth out, " let's just say, I LOVE your parenting style. We're on the same pg :)
ReplyDeleteMany blessings
Update:
ReplyDeleteThe guy is 26 and from Kansas. Police and the mother will not give his name.They just issued a statewide alert indicating there is reason to believe her life is in danger.She has been missing for almost 2 weeks. An unconfirmed report states that the man was questioned.
p.s. AT Jennifer Hanson....I believe you. I grew up in westchester county, ny and my little cousins were pulled into the proverbial (but very real) blue van while waiting for their bus. Their mom saw it and ran out so the van sped off and the kids were then safe, but man...scary sh*t. I don't know if it's a growing up in NY thing, but (mind you this was like '88) but we all knew and understood the dangers. Yet these kids where I live now, out in the country....middle america I guess you could say, just have absolutely no idea. As if it doesn't happen here (but it does, and I've seen far worse here then anywhere else I've ever lived!).
ReplyDeleteWhomever said that "it's always been going on, it's just that the world has become smaller (like the book, The World is Flat)" was spot on. \
I'm happy you got away.
(and now, I'm really done commenting for the day)
BLESS
I don't have kids of my own. But I am the designated internet stalker. I have a twitter account that none of the kids know about and I follow all of them on twitter including their friends so that I can see what they're up to even if they are smart enough not to post incriminating shit. I recently caught my friends son talking about snorting xanax bars, sex, booze. His dad made him take the twitter account down and within 1hour he had a new one up under an alias that I found because of the shit his dumbass friends were posting. These kids have no idea....if it is that easy for me to stalk them and find out what they're doing, where they are, than it is 10X's easier for.some internet troll/perv to do so.
ReplyDelete@Sian and @MonstersInc
ReplyDeleteMy daughter has learned all about internet safety in school (and from me) just like you did. Unfortunately, the internet is a different place than it was even 6 years ago (when you would have been my daughter's age). No matter what you teach them, kids are stupid. It's not because they have low IQs or aren't educated, it's because they are kids and are a combination of trusting/know it alls who don't have experience with the world.
My daughter is truly more responsible than most adults I know. She is an old soul. She is the first to tell me when someone says something they aren't supposed to online or is behaving in a way she thinks is wrong. It's not her that worries me, it's the pervs that have honed their approach so that my kind, generous, INEXPERIENCED daughter thinks they are something other than what they are.
When you are under 18 and living with your parents, you have no real expectation of privacy. That doesn't mean that, at least in my/my daughter's case, privilege (and therefore privacy) can't be earned. I don't, and never would, go through her writings, nor would I listen in on private conversations (eh, never say never...but it would have to be for extraordinary circumstances) but electronic communication opens kids up to the world, not just to her circle of known friends.
Trust is earned. But even within those parameters, we all have a responsibility to keep our kids safe from dangers. True, there is a line (I don't read texts from the kids I know and trust, for instance) but until kids have the maturity AND experience to handle what's out there, it's our responsibility to protect them.
Just wanted to say to Amber, actually holding onto the bike was a good idea. I heard someone "expert" talk about this once, and I had thought, like most, let go of the bike or the shopping cart and FIGHT. The expert said, hang onto what you've got and use it as a weapon the best you can, and DO NOT LET GO. Number one, it is a scenario the attacker will have less experience with, and number two, you are a LOT harder to put into a van if you have a a bike or a shopping cart "attached" to you.
ReplyDeleteThe more you know.
No updates on Morgan Martin. Discouraging lack of coverage by the "media".
ReplyDeleteMy 14 year old daughter bitches about our "surveillance" as she calls it. We have codes to everything and I check everything. I don't do it when she's around because when I did it once with her there it was creeepy, but she knows. I do check the bill for deleted texts and her laptop trash as well. Sorry, access to kids is too easy and there are too many sickos out there.
ReplyDelete^^ good for you, @musesx9. My parents were the same way when I was growing up--it was annoying at the time, yes, but now I'm thankful for the "trust no one" mentality that I have. Your daughter will appreciate it someday.
ReplyDeleteNo updates in FL news.
ReplyDeleteUgh Jesus, here we go again. If this young woman is hurt, captive, or dead, it is exactly ONE person's fault: THE PERPETRATOR
ReplyDeleteAgust 9th and still no updated news coverage in FL or elsewhere that I can locate.
ReplyDeleteAugust 10 , no updates on her.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the updates Agent It, wish they were more positive. :(
ReplyDeleteAugust 14 still no word of her. Missing since July 25. 20 days gone.
ReplyDelete