12-Year-Old Girl Live-Streams Her Suicide After Alleging Sexual Abuse
An investigation into a 12-year-old girl’s sexual abuse allegations took a tragic turn in late December when she live-streamed her suicide outside her family’s home, multiple media outlets report.
Katelyn Nicole Davis filmed her death by hanging on Dec. 30. In the video, taken in the front yard of her home in Cedartown, Georgia, Katelyn alleged she was physically and sexually abused by a family member.
According to the video, about 20 minutes of silence follows after Katelyn kills herself, after which her family can be heard in the background calling her name and looking for her before the footage ends. The video has since been shared widely online, despite police efforts otherwise.
Local investigators were made aware of the video after a police officer in California saw it the night of Katelyn’s death, Polk County Police Chief Kenny Dodd told WAGA. It is unknown whether anyone who watched the video live called local police.
Police have been investigating Katelyn’s family since before her death, Dodd told the Polk Standard Journal.
An investigation began after Katelyn published a diary entry online, on Dec. 27, alleging sexual abuse and assault, according to the Coosa Valley News. Katelyn’s blog post alleged that somebody had attempted to rape her, Dodd told the Journal.
No arrests have been made.
(A police spokeswoman confirms to PEOPLE that authorities are investigating Katelyn’s death, but she did not specify if they are investigating her abuse claims.)
“It hurts. Everywhere hurts,” Katelyn, going by the nickname “Dolly,” wrote on her blog. “My heart, my soul, my feelings, my body…”
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The Georgia Bureau of Investigations is performing Katelyn’s autopsy, the Journal reports.
In the meantime, Dodd said he is trying to have all copies of the video taken down online. He said that on social media, people say they are sharing the video to raise awareness about suicide, but Dodd believes the footage should be removed out of respect for Katelyn and her family.
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“We want it down as much as anyone for the family, and it may be harmful to other kids. We contacted some of the sites,” Dodd told WAGA-TV. “They asked if they had to take it down and by law they don’t. But it’s just the common, decent thing to do in my opinion.”
Katelyn’s family could not be reached.
